Poultry Catching Welfare: The Most Stressful Event in a Chicken's Life

The catching and loading of poultry before transport is one of the most acutely stressful and injurious events in commercial poultry production.

Key Facts

Catching rates in manual operations can reach 1,500 birds per hour per worker
Wing and leg fractures occur in 3-5% of manually caught birds
Mechanical catching machines reduce fracture rates but can cause other injuries
Chickens are held upside down during manual catching causing cardiovascular stress
Stress during catching causes adrenaline surges that can affect meat quality for hours

Welfare Considerations

Manual chicken catching involves rapid grabbing, inversion, and placement in transport crates at high speed under conditions of low light and confusion. The process causes acute fear, cardiovascular stress, and physical injury at measurable rates. Workers are under production pressure to catch birds as quickly as possible, preventing gentle handling. Mechanical catchers improve some welfare outcomes while creating others. Every catching event involves millions of birds experiencing acute stress.

What You Can Do

Advocate for catching welfare standards including training requirements for manual catching crews
Support mechanical catching machine research and adoption
Choose poultry from farms with documented catching welfare protocols
Donate to welfare organizations working on poultry catching reform
Engage with poultry supply chains about catching welfare as a procurement criterion