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Sentience in
Farm Animals main introduction
Sentience in Poultry: main introduction
Chickens, whether
intelligent or stupid, individual or identical, are
sentient beings. They feel pain and experience fear.
This, in itself, is enough to make it wrong to cause
them pain and suffering.”
Jennifer Raymond.
Interesting Facts About Chickens
A chickens' heart beats
at an amazing 280-315 beats a minute.
Chickens have more than
30 different calls, and chicks start communicating with
their mother while they are still inside the egg
Chickens
forage by scratching with their claws and pecking with
their beaks more than 10,000 times in a single day.
Chickens are
the closest living relative of the tyrannosaurus rex.
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Chickens sadly are perhaps the most maligned of all poultry when it
comes to accepting them as
sentient. We are all familiar with the many derogatory
remarks concerning chickens, the most common of which is
the reference to a coward as "chicken". This
term is in any case an inaccuracy; in the wild a mother
hen will defend her young with brave aggression towards
other birds and other animals, even other hens who approach
her nest. A chicken will fight with such formidable
creatures as foxes and eagles to protect her offspring.
Behind the myth of
stupidity and cowardice we find a creature of intelligence, capable of
emotion, deception, complex communication and
compassion.
Of all farm animals it is
chickens and other poultry who have the hardest time
getting people to accept that they too are aware,
conscious, thinking, feeling beings.
There is more to chickens
than meets the eye. Lets look closely at what really
makes a chicken a chicken.
In the wild chicken's lives are far
more complex and different than we can imagine so used
to associating them as confined in farms or vacuumed
packed in the supermarket. Most people have never seen a
live chicken. The average person knows very little about
chickens, neither their natural behaviours nor their way
of life; there are no documentaries about chickens in
the wild as there are
concerning; monkeys, elephants or foxes for example. Few it
seems are interested in these creatures and see
them as little more than egg and meat producing
machines. There are many people who claim to be
vegetarian yet will continue to include chicken, other
poultry and fish
in their diets. These people are not really vegetarian
and sadly seem to separate chicken and fish from other
animals and this is most likely due to the misconception
that poultry are not sentient, or that they are not
animals. I am sure you have heard some
tell you that they do not eat meat, than go on to tell
you that they eat chicken and fish!
Buy why do people get so
confused, a chicken is an animal as much as a cow or a
sheep, but somehow people see them differently as though
they lack something and are in some way different from
the rest. Sometimes this is due to confusion over
what constitutes an animal, for
an explanation of what is an animal:
Think Differently Go Vegetarian/Vegan. At other times it
is because people do not understand the true nature of
chickens as sentient creatures who in some areas of
intellect are more advanced
than your cat or dog or even your young children. It is only
when such people realise that chickens and
other poultry are animals that they then become vegetarians
and eventually vegans in the real sense of the word.
In the wild chickens are
social animals enjoying one another's company in small
flocks of up to thirty birds. Chickens may all seem the
same to us - although as you get to know them thier
individuality shines through - but chickens can
recognise the faces of other individuals and prefer the
company of those that they know and tend to avoid
chickens they do not know. So the erroneous common
misconception that all chickens are alike could not be
further from the truth, they are like all animals -
separate and unique individuals with their own
personalities and identities and ways of expressing
themselves.
“Chickens exist in
stable social groups. They can recognize each other by
their facial features. They have 24 distinct cries that
communicate a wealth of information to one other,
including separate alarm calls depending on whether a
predator is travelling by land or sea. They are good at
solving problems. As a trick at conferences I sometimes
list these attributes, without mentioning chickens, and
people think I’m talking about monkeys.”
“Perhaps most persuasive is the chicken’s intriguing
ability to understand that an object, when taken away
and hidden, nevertheless continues to exist. This is
beyond the capacity of small children.”
Dr. Chris Evans, Professor of Psychology at
Macquarie University, Australia.
The above quotation appears on Free Betty.com's website
where you will find more information about Chickens
The Natural Lives of Chickens // FreeBetty.com
Like cows, wolves, and
other herd or pack animals and
indeed most other animals, as few species live in isolation, chickens
establish social hierarchies. Hence the term "pecking
order" derived no doubt from the behaviour of poultry in
this regard. They spend their days sunning themselves, scratching about
for food, and most enjoyable to chickens is taking dust
baths which they take to cleanse their feathers. If you
have ever seen a chicken take a dust bath there can be
know doubt in your mind that they enjoy this immensely,
the experience of pleasure requires a sentient being to
experience such an emotion.
Chickens in their respective groups
co-ordinate these activities so that they all
participate in them together. A hen is very maternal; tenderly
caring for her young she shelters them under her wings
and aggressively fends off would-be
predators or other perceived threats. The rooster is
involved in the egg laying rituals performed by hens which is an important part of a chicken's life. He also
watches over the flock alerting the mother and her
chicks to any danger. He calls them excitedly whenever
he finds a tasty snack which he shares with the
family.
He can though be very devious as you will
see later on.
Hens like all birds build
nests to house and protect their young. In the wild she
follows a precise and complex method of constructing her
nest. Chickens build their nests on the ground by
scratching out a shallow indentation in the soil, from
here she will reach out to pick leaves and twigs which
she places on her back. Thus laden with her nest
building materials and after setting back into her nest
hole she
lets the material fall off her back forming a rim. She
continues in this manner until her nest reaches her
requirements.
Chickens have sensitive
beaks which they use to forage for food
(along with their claws), to explore thier surroundings
and to pick things up.
Chickens like other birds
and poultry do not make mindless squawks, squeaks,
chirps or other indecipherable calls, at least
indecipherable to our dull ears. Quite the contrary, in
fact chickens have between 25 to thirty different calls,
at least that is about as many that we are able to
distinguish and it is very likely that there are many
more which are not perceived by us. For example mother
hens communicate with thier chicks while they are still
incubating inside the egg. The chick in turn
reciprocates, making sounds to which the mother reacts.
A day or so before hatching she can hear the type of
squeaks which tells her that her eggs are about to
hatch. There are in fact numerous different calls that
are used to communicate a whole range of information
important to a chicken's way of life, even thier
survival, among the many calls there are calls to
exchange information, such as warning cries, and calls
to indicate their emotions. Here are some examples:
Cockerels crow to publicize their
territorial boundaries and assess other males. Other
calls that have been identified are
nesting calls, laying, mating, distress, fear,
threat and alarm calls, submissive and
contentment calls, food calls, and warning calls. Also types of calls which have been identified include
special and distinct calls indicating the presence or
approach of aerial or ground predators. Such calls are
immediately identified by other chickens who take
appropriate action by standing up alert, crouching
or taking cover. Cockerels are more vigilant in giving
out alarm calls when there are hens nearby. Chickens
also communicate in other ways for example by postures
and visual displays. Also consider the idea put forward
by William J, Long in his book, How Animals Talk, wherein
he postulates that the haw call of a crow set to guard the
flock have a number of different nuances imperceptible
to us that may be compared to an ancient language. Refer
to the section in Sentience
In Farm Animals: Turkeys
Sentience exists with or
without intelligence, at least according
to our perception of what it means to be intelligent.
However do bear in mind that animals have their own kind
of intelligence. But intelligence is a good indicator of
sentience because intelligence cannot exist without
sentience and looking at such enables us to understand
animals far better.
Following are examples of a chicken's intellectual
abilities.
Research shows that
Chickens are very discerning, chickens who are in pain
will choose food laced with morphine, they have made the
connection that this food is different from the other
food and alleviates their pain. Mother hens when given a
choice between toxic food and safe food invariably
choose the safe food, they also teach their chicks to do
likewise and to avoid the noxious food. In addition this
behaviour on the part of chickens shows that they feel
pain, as those chickens without pain did not of course
choose the food containing morphine. Yes it is difficult
to imagine, but there are people who think that chickens
do not feel pain. A great misconception. Pain is the
most obvious indication of sentience, it is experienced
by animals with a brain and nervous system and this
of course includes chickens. To experience pain a
creature has to be aware: sentient.
From an Interview with Dr.
Ian Duncan, Professor of Poultry Ethology
University of Guelph
Ontario, Canada
Q: Can chickens and turkeys feel pain?
A: Absolutely. It is indisputable that poultry are
capable of feeling pain. All poultry species are
sentient vertebrates and all the available evidence
shows that they have a very similar range of feelings as
mammalian species. Poultry can suffer by feeling pain,
fear and stress.
Finish reading this extract which contains further
information about intelligence in poultry including
chickens:
Poultry Sentience and Intelligence
Concerning food, chickens it seems are very devious in its acquisition:
they are willing to delay instant gratification if they
think that by doing so a larger portion will eventually
be offered. In research studies hens were tested by using coloured buttons, if the hens pecked on one of the coloured buttons they
received food after three seconds. If they took the
reward immediately they would receive no further food, however
if they waited for a further twenty two seconds they
would receive a much larger portion. The hens waited for
the larger portion ninety percent of the time. This show
that hens have the ability to not only live in the
present but to anticipate the future and are capable of
working out circumstances to their favour and of course
this test demonstrates thier ability to observe and
learn.
Below is an extraction on
this subject: Chickens think About the Future.
By Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News
"Chickens do not just live in the
present, but can anticipate the future and demonstrate
self-control, something previously attributed only to
humans and other primates, according to a recent study.
The finding suggests that domestic fowl, Gallus gallus
domesticus, are intelligent creatures that might worry.
Please read the article,
Available on Discovery Channel News
Discovery Channel :: News :: Study: Chickens Think About
Future
In other research the
learning capabilities of chickens was demonstrated in tests
where chickens where able to learn tasks such as opening
doors and finding their way through mazes with speeds
which are usually only expected of horses or dogs.
Chickens like other farm animals have cognitive
abilities that would astound those not familiar with
these creatures. Experiments indicate that they can
discriminate between different objects, people and
events in their environment. In addition these studies
in farm animal behaviour show that chickens form expectations of what may
happen and work out how to deal with new or unexpected
circumstances accordingly.
Tests have shown us that
hens like sheep, cattle and pigs can recognise
individual humans. For example in one experiment
chickens ignored the human who failed to offer them
food, clearly recognising the one that did.
From personal experience I know
that Chickens can recognise people, even after the
passing of several weeks. My husband occasionally when
buying bread stops by and feeds some to chickens at a
local allotment. These chickens recognise him as he
approaches, their heads perk up alert with expectation
as they rush to the fence long before they see the bread
or other food that he brings them.
Like other farm animals
chickens learn from one another as is the case already
mentioned of hens teaching their chicks to avoid which
of the two choices of food was tainted. It has been
observed that mother hens show their offspring which is
the right type of food for them to eat by what are
called food displays, these demonstrations involve
scratching and pecking. Also the mother hen shows
concern when her chicks
choose food which is unsuitable. Hens learn from
observing other hens in their flock performing a task.
Chickens understand that when an object is taken away
and hidden it continues to exist. Children do not
understand this concept until at least eight months of
age.
Birds who store food by burying not only show prodigious
memories that rival our own . They also show object
permanence - the awareness that objects continue to
exist when they are no longer visible. Day Old chicks
also demonstrate object permanence by remembering which
of two opaque screens a familiar object was moved
behind, than, when returned to the arenas three minutes
later, going behind the correct screen to the object.
Jonathan Balcombe,
Pleasurable Kingdoms
Tests demonstrate that
Chickens have complex communication
abilities and complex social behaviours.
Chickens are intelligent animals and
good problem-solvers.
Australian scientists recently
discovered that some hens emit
high-pitched sounds to signal they have
found food. The more they prefer a
particular food, the faster they
"speak."
"Chickens show sophisticated social
behavior," Dr. Joy Mench, Professor and
Director of the Center for Animal
Welfare at the University of California
at Davis, "That's what a pecking order
is all about. They can recognize more
than a hundred other chickens and
remember them. They have more than
thirty types of vocalizations."
hsus.org About Chickens
It may surprise you to know
that Chickens have enough
intelligence to be deceptive.
"Roosters curry
favour and increase mating opportunities with hens by
announcing the presence of a discovered bit of food ,
such as a seed or a juicy caterpillar. I have seen
roosters do this on a farm near my home; to watch a hen
come running, than watch her eat the morsel he might
have enjoyed himself is to witness chicken chivalry at
its finest. But roosters are not always so gallant.
They sometimes deceive hens by uttering the food call
when there is no nice titbit. It is thought that this
behaviour may occasionally be rewarded with a mating.
Obviously though it would not pay to deceive too often,
for soon the deceiving rooster may be recognised as a
fake and shunned by the hens. Studies find that roosters
only utter deceptive food calls when a hen is some
distance away and is easily fooled by the ruse.
I think it stretches
credibility to think that such sophisticated
behaviours could be instinctive."
Jonathan Balcombe,
Pleasurable Kingdoms
Emotion is yet another
indicator of sentience, a creature has to be aware in
order to experience emotion. It is though important to
note that rather like intelligence an animal may be
sentient without necessarily being able to express, experience or display emotion. Nonetheless if we can
demonstrate that an animal experiences emotion it does
help to establish sentience.
Research has demonstrated
that farm animals including chickens are capable of a
whole range of emotions including anger, fear, happiness,
loneliness, friendship and even jealousy.
Chickens like pigs, sheep,
cattle, dogs and ourselves display a variety of
emotional responses and frustration is one of them.
Research shows us that hens like all sentient
creatures form expectations and become frustrated and
angst when their expectations are thwarted. In an
experiment where chickens where deliberately prevented
from getting food which they had previously received in
a similar situation they where observed to responded by
emitting ‘gakel-calls’ which scientists have
interpreted as emotional frustration.
Many animals are capable of
compassion and forming friendships with both their own
kind and other species.
Here are two stories of
compassionate friendship and forgiveness.
Lauralee Blanchard paid
just one doller to a factory farm for a "spent hen" an
unplesant term used to describe a hen who is no longer
able to lay, she bought four in fact.
"One of the chickens was
particularly affectionate and sweet. In spite of what
she had seen of human behaviour, she craved human
company. Her leg was badly damaged by being tied too
tightly when she was sold, yet she would limp over to
Blanchard and with great difficulty jump up onto her
lap, settling down contentedly while being gently
stroked. Many people have written to me telling me how
loving they find chickens and what intense bonds can
develop."
The Above extract is from
the the book, The Pig who Sang to the Moon by Jeffery
Massom.
What Wings Are For” - The Story of
Ruby and Ivy, By Kay Evans
This is a charming story of
altruism, compassion, a hen adopting an abandoned chick.
Ruby a chicken, a buff
Orpington hen, adopts
Ivy a rescued chicken and
takes her literally under her wing.
Ruby was a buff
Orpington hen whom we’d had since she was a chick. She
lived among our main flock with her hen friends and a
rooster. When Ruby was three years old, she moulted her
feathers early, during the summer, and she seemed a
little slower than usual, so we placed her in one of our
“special needs” areas for a few days.
The next day I drove past a Perdue chicken shed on the
way to visit my mother. These sheds were near the
highway, and the doors were open. When I looked closer,
I discovered two small chickens, abandoned among the
manure and decomposing chickens left behind in one of
the sheds by the chicken catchers...
Kay rescues the abandoned chickens
whom she called ivy and oak. When sadly one of the two chickens
died this left Ivy alone.
...this left Ivy alone,
which made for more sadness, so we moved her in with
Ruby and watched them closely. Seeing they shared food
and water and seemed fine with each other, we hoped
they’d become friends and keep each other company. A day
or two later when Jim went to check on them, he
discovered Ruby sheltering Ivy under her wing, and went
back inside for the camera.
Ruby and Ivy soon moved in with the small,
every-changing flock of rescued Perdue chickens, and
continued on as mother and chick. Sometimes the two of
them would spend the day in my flower garden. They would
dig in the grass and dirt, Ruby calling to Ivy when she
found a tasty bug or seed, and the two of them coming to
rest as in the photo. As Ivy grew bigger, she would
still try to tuck herself under Ruby’s wing, even though
she was soon larger than Ruby. Finally, only her head
fit under Ruby’s wing. Even so, they both appeared very
happy resting together like this.
Please finish reading this story:
“What Wings Are For” - The Story of Ruby and Ivy
Mr
Joy who sadly died January 9th 2009 was a truly
incredible being.
The story of this amazing chicken created quite a stir
when it appeared in the Charlotte Observer.
"Raised from an egg, Mr. Joy
was no ordinary chicken. He loved to watch TV, ride
around on friendly shoulders and snuggling in his owners
lap."
"In his 9 years of life, he touched many lives proving
that when it comes to love, neither size nor species are
important.
Mr. Joy had a special knack for making people smile.
He loved riding in his tiny basket, meeting people all
over North Carolina at charity fundraisers, art
galleries and pet parades. He reached a worldwide
audience through his website with fans as far away as
New Zealand that appreciated his special charm and
message of animal sentience. Mr. Joy helped enlighten
many folks to the plight of chickens raised in factory
farms but he may be most well known for his work as a
therapy pet. Mr. Joy visited nursing homes and assisted
living centers locally bringing smiles and laughter to
many elderly and disabled residents. His therapy work
gained nationwide attention through television, radio
and newspaper stories allowing him to reach an even
wider audience.
For more information about Mr. Joy visit his website:
Mr Joy Coolest Chicken
on the web!
I came across these two stories On
the United Poultry Concerns website where you will find
a great many other stories of compassion, motherly
love, emotions, friendship intelligence: in other words,
sentience in poultry. In fact there are so many stories
I did not know which to choose from as all seem so
amazing, revealing a side to poultry that few people
neither understand nor appreciate
Thinking Like a Chicken ... Articles of Thought
and
UPC - Stories & Poems
After reading the
above and visiting the websites below it
is clear is it not that
chickens are more complex than most of us are aware,
they are intelligent, conscious, aware of self and others and thier
environment and capable of emotions. Despite such
overwhelming evidence, both scientific and anecdotal, many people will
continue to adhere to the misconception that chickens
are stupid, indeed the poultry farming industry wants
you to continue to think this way knowing that an
increasingly growing proportion of people are becoming
uncomfortable about sitting down to a meal consisting of
the dead flesh of a sentient being.
Chickens Stupid?
Consider: Perhaps it is we who are
stupid as we fail to see the real nature of these
creatures
References and links:
GoVeg.com // Cruelty to Animals //
Chickens // The Hidden Lives of Chickens
Veganpeace.com/animal_facts/Chickens.htm
http://www.upc-online.org/thinking/sentient.html
Chicken-Yard - General Remarks -
Behavioral Research
hsus.org About Chickens
Chickens are more evolved than previously
believed
Credit: Chicken:
photo by flickr user protohiro
Wiltshire Chicken on Flickr - Photo
Sharing!
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic
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