Found this news story during my regular daily news gorgings.
Professors try to understand the language of chickens. http://www.statesman.com/search/content/news/stories/nation/2009/06/24/0624squawk.html
Interesting story on how the Univ. of Connecticut is conducting research into the language of chickens. This isn't for general knowledge but to find out how to pacify chickens so they will lay more eggs. Of course animal rights activists are interested b/c results of reseach will (undoubtedly) show that chickens have a highly developed range of vocalizations. Meaning that they have a language. If they have a language then they are intelligent and aware.
You can submit a letter-to-the-editor (austin american-statesman) about this story. They should print it. Go to this link where u can submit your letter and find guidelines for doing this. Please be nice and polite and calm. Thx.
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nice, errol. well stated. let us know if statesman calls then we'll start keeping eye out in paper for it.
Thanks for posting this Ernest! I just submitted a letter to the editor. Here is what I wrote:
"I read with great interest last week's article about the UConn researcher studying vocalizations of chickens with the stated goal of enabling farmers to understand when chickens are stressed.
Do we really live in such extreme denial that we need a blackbox device to tell us when another living, sentient being is suffering?
Try an experiment: climb into a cage small enough that you can't stand up and can't stretch your arms out. Turn out the lights so you can't see. Imagine that another person that you don't know is crammed into that cage with you. Imagine that you are surrounded by thousands of similar cages above, below, and on all sides.
How do you feel? Stressed, to put it mildly? Should somebody need a special device to figure this out? I didn't think so.
The reality of the situation for chickens raised for their eggs or flesh is actually much worse than I have described.
What to do about it? For starters, stop paying for it. Stop buying eggs -- your body doesn't need them. Next, demand that your tax dollars start supporting scientific research to alleviate suffering -- not to manage it for maximum profit."
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