Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1890-01-16
ToRTuRINe LIVE POULTRY.
Is II True That Fowls Are Shipped in
Crates That Destroy Health and Life ?

Is It True That Fowls Are Shipped in
Crates That Destroy Health and Life?
The pains and brutal treatment of live
cattle en- route from the west to New
York have often been the subject of COM
ment and even Of legislation, but the
friend Of live poultry has yet to be
heard from. The country dealer in live
poultry packs (there is no word that bet
ter describes the thing done) his geese,
ducks, chickens, etc., in crates Of the
smallest possible height that he can get
the fowls into, and each crate is packed
until the fowls are as close to each other
as dead sardines are in their boxes. Then
the crates are slowed in two rows from
ten to twelve feet high on fiat car or
in an open cattle car, and away they go.
When the car reaches the New York
terminus it is drilled about on the
switches, and finally, after no one knows
how many hours of misery on the cars,
the fowls are placed on trucks and
driven to the consignees at the markets.
There the dead are taken from the crates
and the living during that day or the
next go to the retailers. 1t is not until
after three or four days in that vile
prison that the fowl is relieved from its
torture by death.
That they suffer real torture is evil
dent on moments consideration. 1t is
a pity that the shippers could not be
made to realize what the torture is by
packing them shoulder to shoulder, in
crates so low that their heads must be
kept forward, and their chins on their
breasts continually; or, to approximate
the condition of the fowls accurately,
they should be obliged to stand with
their backs bent at an angle of 80 degs.
People who have tried to sleep with
their legs curled up in railroad seat,
and have woke up with the cramp, wish
ing they could straighten out for just
one minute, may form a slight idea of
what the fowls suffer during three
days confinement in coop.
The fact that definite per cent, toll
erably well known among poultry deal
ers, of the fowls die from their suffer-
ing is also conclusive evidence that the
suffering is great.
Further than that, they are kept Cor a
long time without water to drink, while
the lower crates in the stocks on the
cars become intolerably offensive from
the drippings from the upper tiers.
There does not seem to be any ade-
quate remedy for this condition of af-
fairs. The shippers have calculated the
losses from death and find that the losses
are less than what the increased cost Of
freight would be were fowls shipped IN
crates high enough to allow them head
room. That the fowl gets the headache
and becomes feverish is fact of no con-
sequence to the shipper, because it does
not diminish his profit.
In many markets in the city one can
see signs saying that fowls will be killed
to order. The buyer has an idea that he
can there get fowls in better condition
than when he buys the country killed
fowls. Very likely he can in some well
managed shops, whose proprietors take
pains to turn their fowls out in clean
yard to recuperate, but it is almost
enough to give a person the typhoid
fever to eat fowl killed out of one of
the miserable crates they must travel in
when coming to New York. If any one
thinks this is overdrawn let him watch
a truck load of crates as it arrives at one
of the markets some morning.-New
York Sun,