A new life for Clara the roaster chicken

(de Nederlandse versie van het verhaal van Clara is hier te lezen)

Three people of EVA had the opportunity to visit a  poultry farm in West-Flanders.

With two barns and a total of 50,000 broilers this farm was not even one of the largest broiler farms in Belgium. Yet it left a very strong impression on them.

"At the gate, the smell was already very intense,  probably  due to a row of loaded  containers and heaps of dead birds lying under a sheet of plastic.

While we were standing there with our mouth open in  horror, watching all these birds,  the chicken catchers came in and we saw a lorry standing at the end of the barn, ready to take some of the animals to the slaughterhouse.  These men and women, just like the farmer, seemed like ordinary people and this was obviously  not their first time.

The catching of the chickens went at a very fast pace, faster  than we had ever thought possible. Consequently, for the animals themselves it was hard and rough. They were taken  by their legs and from a distance thrown into the crates, which were stacked on the lorry by a forklift truck.

Sick and dying animals were kicked aside, because they would not survive the journey and even if they were still alive when they arrived at the slaughterhouse they would be rejected anyway.

As we watched in horror how the chickens disappeared into the blue crates, a poor little chicken was lying left alone at our feet. She was too weak to escape. Before she could be kicked aside, which would be fatal to her anyway, we took her into our arms.

The farmer had no objection. For him she was of no value, so Sybille disappeared in a soft towel in our car.

In the other barn they hadn't yet started to load the chickens. We sat down amongst them and watched. We noticed how many animals were sick and lame. Some could not walk and could therefore no longer get to their food and drink. Others lay motionless as a pathetic heap on the floor. All the chickens looked pale and were clearly suffering from their own excessive weight. We picked up one of those pathetic little heaps and placed her next to Sybille in the car. It hurt to leave all the rest behind but we had no choice....

At home Clara and Sybille straight away got  medication, vitamins and water. We put them in a cat basket to sleep and gave them a blanket to keep them warm. We were aware that they might not survive the next morning, but at least  they would have experienced love and would die in freedom.

Sybille did not make it. Clara though  stood up the next morning and her eyes said it all. She was excited to begin her new  life. She was brought to a volunteer of EVA who gave her intensive care over the first weeks: giving her medication and healthy things to eat, teaching her to walk, and showing her that  she could  trust people and she also gave her a thorough shower to get rid of all the dirt she had collected in her feathers over the last weeks.  Clara's new world had no boundaries and the first steps in the garden were delightful to see. She thoroughly inspected everything she found, and enjoyed the fresh air and the sun on her feathers.

But to make her really happy we looked for a more permanent home for her with other chicken friends, which we found through another EVA member. We were worried she would be overwelmed by the other chickens, sheep and pigs, after her protected existence of the last couple of months.

But we were wrong. She went straight into the crowd to meet everyone and even pecked at a chicken who came a little bit too close. She was clearly able to fend for  herself and later we heard she became best friends with another broiler chicken, previously rescued from a slaughterhouse. The two are always seen together and are masters of their beautiful yard where no harm will come to them.

Clara was the only one of the 50,000 chickens on the farm, who got a new chance to live a real chicken life. Everyone who knows her sees much more than a 1.5 euro roaster. The other 49,999 very likely ended up either dead in the barn or on a spit or in a plastic container ....... "

source: EVA

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