Debeaking Chicks in Israel. If you want to use this footage, please contact us: contact@animal-tv.org =================== Hens have a 'pecking order' which refers to the hierarchy natural in a flock. In the cages frustrated natural urges lead to more aggressive pecking, and weaker hens who cannot escape may suffer. Debeaking is carried out to reduce this behavior, but it is only partial solution, and is cruel. Egg producers routinely debeak chicks at 1-10 days old by cutting off up to half of the upper mandible and a third of the bottom with a red hot blade or wire. This procedure is sometimes termed "beak trimming". If beaks have regrown, producers debeak a second time just prior or during the laying period. Debeaking is a painful procedure which causes chicks extreme shock, and some may even die. Pain is immediate, causing chicks to react visibly to the blade, but there are also long-term effects because the beak contains sensitive nerves which are exposed by cutting. As the beak is tiny and the process mechanical and executed with "production line" speed, sometimes too much beak can be removed. Measures to eliminate the barbaric debeaking of hens include the implementation of improved husbandry practices and a breeding program which reverses the trend towards aggression in birds =================== For more info, Go to: Animal-TV.org