No need to be a jerk about it. If you don't like it that's fine but you don't need to be rude.

And to you, jillaroo!

^ Because chickens are great X) <3

Oh I don't doubt it, groups like PEETA tend to exaggerate. But still, the idea of cage farming is just sad even if they are treated nicer than what we are led to believe. I have seen one of the small "cruelty free organic" blah blah blah farms and they still just sit in a small space all day. And as someone who has kept a small flock for the last five years and has had a chance to see how much personality and intelligence they have that just seems wrong. It would be so much better if people just kept a little flock of 3-6 so there would less demand and strain on the farmers to produce so much. I can understand not being able to produce your own meat and milk and what not but 3 chickens are super easy to maintain.

Even if they don't all look this rough I prefer eggs from chickens who have a big grassy yard with lots of things to occupy them rather than from those locked in a cage. Which is why I raise my own.

It seems at least 7 people found it to be unfunny and rude. The first one was too but apparently less so.

And I like how the second fat joke got down voted like crazy lol.

The chicken meat you get at the store is from very young birds that haven't even aged enough to develop a cluck, they still have the chick "peep". Any hen old enough to have been used up as a layer is tough and usually only good for stew. Just so ya know.

Cage-free is better but still not very good. They only get slightly more space and better treatment, when you get to know these animals like I have it doesn't seem all that great. If at all possible for you I recommend that you raise 3 poults (teenage chickens) and get your eggs from them. They offer many benefits outside of just giving you eggs and they can be great pets when raised properly because they are as smart as most dogs. (the university of Bristol did a study about it) But if that isn't possible for you right now cage-free eggs are the best option.

The generally accepted life expectancy is 7-10 YEARS with proper care. I have a hen who just turned 5 and she still lays and runs around the yard like a poult. Broilers (chickens bred for meat) don't generally live that long because of their breeding but even they can get to like 3 or 4. Dual purpose breeds (egg and meat) don't generally make it to 10 but live longer than broilers. My five year old hen is a dual purpose (Delaware). Egg production and fancy breeds (bred for beauty and to be shown like dogs) seem to live the longest. Battery hens like this one are kept in miserable cages that aren't even big enough for them to spread their wings and when they stop laying they are disposed of. There are rescue groups that take used up hens and let them live freely in a pasture until they die of old age.

Even if they were planning on it a hen that old would be tough and stringy, hardly even suitable for the stew pot.

Aaand there we have the token fat joke, I knew there'd be one.

It isn't meant to teach the pet a lesson at all, it's just supposed to be a funny way of sharing your pet's antics with the world for a laugh. And you shouldn't do this with human children just fyi. And as for the not understanding English part you'd be surprised how much they can understand. My old hen understands her name, "no", "drop it", "Go outside", "shut up", "sit", "go away", and "come here" which compared to people isn't much but more than you would expect from an animal often seen as dumb. My lab can understand full sentences, or at least the jist of it. And there was this one dog that had like a 2,000 word vocabulary or something like that.

First of all, pixiedust, he DID say people who don't do what he is saying are wrong: "control that they THINK they have, but they don't have" and "there's a MUCH better way to live your life than the way YOU think is best, and that's God's way." pretty clearly shows him telling other people they are wrong, so by your definition he is forcing beliefs. Second of all just as he has the right to express his beliefs people have the right to downvote what he says, nobody flipped out and insulted this person they just downvoted him. I think THAT needs to be made clear.

c31107 I fail to see what this has to do with the post. If that is what you believe that is totally fine and up to you but don't go spouting it off in unrelated conversations and posts or you'll catch a lot of flak.

Lol well there are exceptions to every rule. Being able to admit you don't know everything is a mark of maturity. :b I like your username by the way. (: