It's true! And don't forget sexing, where they get poo squashed out of them and turned upside down / this way & that. Even straight run may have been through the hands of a sexer as they were pulling pullets out of a batch (some straight run are true straight run, it depends on internal policies they don't share publicly).
From the moment they get removed from the incubator, chicks are subject to very abrupt handling at the hatcheries. I was watching a marketing video once where the hatchery employee in the background of the talker was scooping chicks out of a bin with both hands and 3-4 per fist full, not caring what part of the chick got grabbed. At least one was transported by its neck only.
Other videos on youtube they just take the tray of newly hatched chicks and tip it upside down over the bins on the rolling cart.
The employees are clearly fully desensitized to the idea these are living animals. I wouldn't be surprised if many are maimed and considered acceptable handling losses. Cause chicks are a product and time is money. Capitalism
But where was I? Oh right. As you raise the two batches of chicks, you'll probably notice your home hatched eventually catch up to the hatchery chicks in anxiety levels. Because there's an age component to anxiety and when they get to that 3-4 week mark where everything is a monster you may feel despair. But fear not, that stage eventually fades away. With good handling some of your hatchery chickens will forget their sad beginnings.
From the moment they get removed from the incubator, chicks are subject to very abrupt handling at the hatcheries. I was watching a marketing video once where the hatchery employee in the background of the talker was scooping chicks out of a bin with both hands and 3-4 per fist full, not caring what part of the chick got grabbed. At least one was transported by its neck only.
Other videos on youtube they just take the tray of newly hatched chicks and tip it upside down over the bins on the rolling cart.
The employees are clearly fully desensitized to the idea these are living animals. I wouldn't be surprised if many are maimed and considered acceptable handling losses. Cause chicks are a product and time is money. Capitalism
But where was I? Oh right. As you raise the two batches of chicks, you'll probably notice your home hatched eventually catch up to the hatchery chicks in anxiety levels. Because there's an age component to anxiety and when they get to that 3-4 week mark where everything is a monster you may feel despair. But fear not, that stage eventually fades away. With good handling some of your hatchery chickens will forget their sad beginnings.
The breed is as important as how they are hatched/shipped
