Excessive production (323 eggs per year on average) causes calcium to be diverted from the skeletal system to the shells. And this makes animals extremely fragile
Almost all of the laying hens, even those raised in organic farms, suffer from bone fractures, in particular to the sternum. And this is due not so much and not only to clashes, falls and collisions in overcrowded warehouses. But also to their excessive exploitation: forced to produce eggs intensively – each specimen produces on average 323, or almost one a day – and often at a young age, the calcium of their bones does not have enough time to regenerate, being used by the organism also for the production of shells. More fragile bones, therefore, and more prone to trauma and fractures.
the conclusion reached by the researchers ofUniversity of Bernwhich they underwent x-rays 150 hens for a period of 10 months reaping impressive results: the 97% of the specimens during the observation period reported one or more fractures, with an average of three for each animal. The study was carried out in Switzerland but the problem, according to the authors of the research, generalized. The current methods of raising hens and other animals – underlines dr. Harno Wrbel, Professor of Animal Welfare at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine – pain and suffering are inevitable. They are not sustainable methods. A Danish study, released last year, also highlighted the same problem, as well as other research carried out over the years in different countries. The Swiss researchers used radiography instead of simple palpation, and this made it possible to detect a greater number of fractures. 97% of injured specimens indicate that the presence of fractures is the rule, even when we are not talking about intensive farms with overcrowded sheds. However, the Danish study showed some differences in the incidence of fractures according to the way the hens were kept, with lower frequencies in the case of free-range birds.
Pain is not always evident in animals. However, there are signs that can suggest that something is wrong: hens that move more slowly or that take longer to get up or that tend to drink more from the fountains with water added with painkillers found in many farms.
For years we have been denouncing the impact of intensive farming on the health of laying hens and their young – he comments Alice Trombettaexecutive director of Animal Equality Italia which today has relaunched the research of the Swiss university -. The study by the University of Bern proves that this is a production system that is still too much based on exploitation, which does not adequately take into account the welfare of animals and which generates unnecessary suffering, in contrast to any form of animal welfare. Animal Equality also recalls that in Italy about 40 million laying hens who, according to the association’s data, in our country live for 40% in cages. Instead, I am among the 25 e i 40 million i male chicks of this species that are killed as soon as they are born (being males they will not be able to produce eggs and, consequently, are useless for the industry). In recent weeks, an amendment was approved in the House which provides that by the end of 2026 the chicks are no longer shredded alive and on which the Senate has not yet expressed itself.
March 1, 2022 (change March 1, 2022 | 19:05)
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