Later this month, a western Wisconsin town will hold an annual celebration including an event known as a "chicken toss." Animal rights advocates say it is an example of entertainment across the country that comes at the expense of defenseless creatures.

A key attraction at Ridgeland's Pioneer Days festival involves a contest where chickens are tossed from a rooftop, and attendees who catch a bird get to keep it.

Kristin Schrank, board vice president of the group Alliance for Animals, said the birds can become injured, and there are no veterinarians on site to evaluate them. She argued it is time for the tradition to be replaced.

"As a society, we -- over time and every day -- are gaining a better understanding of the mental and physical impact that events like these have on animals," Schrank asserted.

She contended similar events, such as greased pig competitions, add to the animals' trauma. Organizers and participants at the Ridgeland festival have long argued their event, described as "chicken fly," is harmless fun as part of a celebration, which brings much-needed revenue to the community.

On a broader scale, some communities are changing their approach in light of growing awareness. For example, a county festival in California has replaced its greased pig competition with slippery watermelons.

Schrank noted a lot of children attend the events, which is another reason it is important to send the right message.

"How we treat animals is a demonstration of how we should have compassion for, really, for all living beings," Schrank emphasized.

Her group also stated the chicken toss underscores the need for Wisconsin to step up enforcement of its crimes against animals law, which includes a provision for mistreatment. An online petition is circulating, calling for an end to the Wisconsin event.

Rising egg prices have some wondering if raising backyard chickens could save money, but experts warn that this may not be a money-saving option.

The ongoing outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza, a dangerous strain of bird flu, has resulted in the loss of more than 100 million hens nationwide.

Dr. Tom Tabler, poultry extension and research specialist at the University of Tennessee's Institute of Agriculture, said backyard chickens are a good idea but they're costly and won't save you money on eggs. He said they add many expenses and take time to start laying eggs.

"A chicken is not going to lay eggs till she becomes sexually mature, and that's going to be - depending on what breed of chicken that is - that's going to be somewhere between about 19 weeks of age and 24 weeks of age," he said. "If you get baby chicks, you're going to have to raise those chickens for six months before you start getting any eggs."

Tabler said those buying adult chickens should make sure they're disease-free. He recommended getting them from sellers in the National Poultry Improvement Plan, which follows standards to ensure the birds are healthy.

Tabler said egg prices have remained high because bird flu has killed about 168 million birds since 2022; around 100 million of them were egg-laying hens. More than half of those losses happened just between October 2024 and last February, right in the middle of the holiday baking season.

"I really don't expect egg prices to seriously come down until maybe next year at the earliest," he said, "because again, it's going to take time to replace the lost flocks, and if we continue to lose table egg flocks, later into the year, those birds also have to be replaced."

Tabler said there's no vaccine yet for bird flu, although some companies are working on one. He said the best defense is to keep birds isolated, limit human interaction and make sure they are in a clean and sanitary environment.

By Grace Hussain for Sentient.
Broadcast version by Terri Dee for Indiana News Service reporting for the Sentient-Public News Service Collaboration

Egg producer Kipster recently announced it had failed to meet what was an ambitious goal - ending the practice of male chick culling in its U.S. supply chain, a practice responsible for culling six billion male chicks globally each year. The Dutch-based company had hoped to implement a technology called in-ovo sexing to eliminate this practice by fall of last year. But it hit a few roadblocks.

"We've been really trying hard to work with the technology provider and hatchery to get it to the United States," Sandra Vijn, who manages Kipster's U.S. operations, tells Sentient.

And there were other promising signs. Earlier this month, Walmart updated its animal welfare policies to prioritize "gendering innovation" within their egg supply chain, for instance. But the process is taking longer than expected.

Male chicks have long been considered a by-product by the egg industry because they don't lay eggs and they don't grow fast or large enough to compete with meat chickens. It's standard practice within the industry to kill them right after they hatch; approximately six billion male chicks are killed each year globally.

In-ovo technology eliminates the need to cull live, male chicks by determining whether the embryo developing inside the egg is male or female before they hatch. The male eggs are then discarded before they can finish developing. There are other alternative technologies being investigated by researchers too, like using genetic engineering to breed hens that only lay female eggs.

Still, the company is moving forward. Respeggt, a technology company that works with Kipster on the in-ovo technology, announced that their in-ovo sexing technology would be installed in the Nebraska hatchery that Kipster sources from this month. Vijn now expects to get sexed eggs from the hatchery sometime this summer. From there, it will take about 20 weeks for the hens to mature enough to start laying eggs, which the company expects to hit the market by late 2025.

Kipster Sees In-Ovo Sexing As a Temporary Solution

In-ovo sexing was not Kipster's first choice for the American market. The company wanted to take the production system that they use in the Netherlands - where male chicks are raised to be sold for meat - and replicate it in the U.S., says Vijn.

But that plan hit a snag. "We couldn't get a processor to work at the scale and price that we could afford," says Vijn. Instead of being sold for meat, the four flocks of adult roosters they had raised at their U.S. facility ended up being slaughtered, and their carcasses were donated to food banks.

For Vijn, raising male chicks for meat is preferable, as it cuts down on both waste and animal suffering. "We think that everything within our farm is a good source of food for people," she says. "With every rooster that can be eaten, there's less need to bring additional broiler chicks to life."

Ultimately, says Vijn, "we were looking at in-ovo as a temporary solution."

Satisfying the American Consumer

In the Netherlands, where Kipster was founded, consumers are willing to pay a premium for meat from chickens who had basic welfare accommodations - such as access to the outdoors - during their lives.

Since last year, all fresh chicken meat sold in Dutch grocery stores comes from slower-growth breeds of broiler chicken. Like their Dutch counterparts, consumers in the United States are also willing to pay extra for animal products - including up to 38 percent more for eggs according to a 2018 survey - that they believe were produced under higher welfare conditions.

A key difference between the two countries is that in the Netherlands, consumers buy and eat the rooster meat from layer chicken breeds, says Vijn. In Europe, Kipster also sells their spent hens - those who are no longer considered productive egg layers - for human consumption.

Consumers in the U.S. aren't so open to the idea, however. In the United States, the hens are sold for pet food.

In the U.S., Kipster raises Dekalb white chickens, a breed specifically bred to lay eggs, up to 500 in 100 weeks. Dekalb white chickens start laying eggs at around 18 weeks of age, weighing in at a little over 1300 grams.

Research has found that the high number of eggs they lay weakens their bones, making laying hens highly susceptible to bone fractures. Dekalb white chickens are especially vulnerable to these breaks.

Ultimately, the delay in bringing the technology to the United States came down to an issue of scale. Respeggt and Hendrix needed to know that there would be enough of a market for the sexed eggs. "The equipment we have is made to produce large numbers of female eggs, and acceptance from retail, and farmers took some time," Respeggt's representative told Sentient.

Sentient reached out directly to Neal Martin, General Manager of Hendrix ISA-U.S., a subsidiary of Hendrix Genetics, for comment and did not receive a reply.

For Kipster, adopting in-ovo technology remains a viable, albeit second-best option. "It really fits in our philosophy that we should be eating less eggs, less meat, less animal proteins," Vijn says, "but already use whatever is in the system so that we don't have to bring a life on earth just for the purpose of eating them."


Grace Hussain wrote this article for Sentient.


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Indiana's Natural Resources Commission will decide this week whether to allow bobcat trapping, giving Hoosiers one last chance to weigh in.

The meeting will be held Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Fort Harrison State Park in Indianapolis and will determine whether the state moves forward with a plan to permit bobcat trapping in 40 southern Indiana counties next fall.

Samantha Chapman, Indiana state director of the group Humane World for Animals, stressed Hoosier voices are critical at the meeting.

"We really want folks to show up and voice their opposition to this proposal," Chapman emphasized. "Indiana's bobcats are still recovering, and we need more data on what the actual numbers and populations are for bobcats in Indiana."

Opponents said the plan is premature. The Department of Natural Resources has released only a siting map, not a full study, raising concerns the species remains vulnerable. Humane World Animals urged residents to demand a zero quota, arguing the proposal prioritizes trappers over conservation.

The plan allows trappers to capture up to 250 bobcats, with each trapper limited to one and required to obtain a special license. Chapman warned trappers will kill bobcats at a time when Indiana must prevent past population declines rather than risk undoing decades of recovery.

"While the commission can legally set a quota of zero, it is instead proposed allowing 250 bobcats to be barbarically trapped, bludgeoned, strangled, stomped or shot," Chapman contended. "This is why we need Hoosiers to speak up at the Natural Resources Commission meeting."

Conservationists stressed live bobcats generate more economic benefits through tourism than trapping ever could. They urged Hoosiers to turn out in force Tuesday and speak before the commission makes its final decision.


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