Hundreds of Distressed Chicks Sent by U.S. Mail Impounded at Oakland Airport
May 14, 2008 -
Animal Place has responded to a call from Oakland Animal Services, who confiscated more than 500 day-old chicks at Oakland Airport on May 13th. The chicks were being transported by the United States Postal Service from Cal Cruz Hatchery in Santa Cruz to a destination in Washington State.
The Oakland Airport Postal Service discovered many sick and some dead chicks among the shipment of five boxes of 106 chicks each - or 530 total - and contacted Oakland Animal Services for help. By the time Animal Services arrived, the chicks had already been traveling for over 24 hours, and 47 birds were found dead.
Homes Needed
Animal Place is working with Oakland Animal Services to help place the chicks. Because the rescued birds are "broilers", or chickens raised for meat, they are bred for rapid growth so they can be slaughtered at only six weeks of age. Consequently, the birds' life expectancy is significantly shortened. Half will grow up to be roosters, making placement for these chicks especially tough. Although we've contacted other California sanctuaries, we haven't yet found a place for them to go. If you're interested in adopting some of these young birds, contact Oakland Animal Services at 510-535-5602.
It is legal to ship young birds through the mail, as long as they are under 24 hours old when presented for shipping, and delivered to the receiver within 72 hours. The practice of sending chicks through the postal service began over 100 years ago, when the first commercial hatchery in America sent 50 chicks from New Jersey to Illinois in 1892. Today, millions of chicks are shipped each year through the mail, without food or water or proper housing, and as a result, large numbers die before reaching their destination, while many more suffer unnecessarily. Animal advocates have long condemned the practice, and although the U.S. Postal Service has instituted modest policy changes, transport of live animals through the mail remains inhumane and results in countless deaths each year.
What You Can Do: Contact the USPS and ask them to adopt a compassionate policy of not shipping live animals through the mail.
John E. Potter, Postmaster General and CEO
United States Postal Service
475 L'Enfant Plaza W., S.W.
Washington, DC 20260-0010
Tel.: 202-268-2284
Fax: 202-268-4860
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