4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Goosey Lucy]

*Please could a mod move this if I've posted it in the wrong section?*

 

The school I help at are thinking of asking the PTA to provide the funds to hatch chicks. I've not got all the facts yet but I would like to know your thoughts about this. My main concern is what happens to the chicks when they leave the school?

 

(As Treasurer of the PTA I seem to be looked upon as the benevolent one yet all decisions are passed by the committee. I just sign the cheques and keep the accounts up to date )

 

Initially I thought it was a great idea, lovely for the kids but now I'm not so sure. If we were keeping the chicks for eggs/the pot I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it but we're not.

 

Please help me to clarify my thoughts and to be able to have a rational, informed discussion.

 

I am hoping to see the teacher who is making the request tomorrow.

 

Thanks.

[BeckyBoo]

So if you're not keeping them for eggs or the pot what are they planning to do with them? Just hatch them then give them away? I would have thought that was a sort of empty ended thing to do, hatch them then keep the girls for eggs and the boys for the pot - just like HFW - a real view of life and the way it is lived, and ended. Mind you, depends on how old the pupils are - not sure a primary school would be a good candidate for learning about chooks for the pot?

 

Mrs B

[Goosey Lucy]

I think they rent the equipment from a company who also supply the eggs, then if there are no takers for the chicks they are collected by the company. What happens to them then I don't know. This is what I want to find out tomorrow.

 

I can see that it is informative for the children to learn about hens coming from eggs but these children are only in Year 1 (ages 5 and 6) so aren't ready for the full HFW/Oliver campaign just yet.

[Yorkshire Pudding]

I think I saw this company at a recent education show - they hire out the equipment for hatching and rearing, including eggs a few days away from hatch and I'm sure the literature said that all birds not kept or homed would be rehomed by the company. No mention of them going for meat.

 

It is a lovely thing to do in a classroom, as long as you're sure what happens to the chooks afterwards.

[Christian]

Don't want to put the cat amongst the chickens, but we had this discussion a while ago I think.

 

A certain company takes the chicks away and they are gassed. Can't remember all the details I'm afraid. I'm sure someone here must know what happened?

[Egluntyne]

Maybe you could *google* the company and see if the give any info.

 

There might be a contact address for you to email and ask specific questions.

[Goosey Lucy]

This is what I'm hoping to do, I've found one company (lloyd maunder) that come highly recommended by Jamie Oliver no less, but their service is free to schools. I'll see the member of staff tomorrow to get the details. I don't want to deprive the children of a wonderful experience but I couldn't support something that ended in the chicks being gassed. Obviously some companies don't do this. I was wondering if anyone had used a good company?

[BeckyBoo]

I think at age 5 or 6 the children could learn a lot from hatching the eggs then keeping the chicks for eggs. If all they did was hatch them then give them back it would really only provide for the "ahhhh, how cute, fluffy chicks" sort of side of it.

If they company disposed of the boys by gassing them then I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole, and to be honest I'd be quite surprised if they could find decent homes for cockerels from all those hatchings.

 

Mrs B

[bronze]

Don't want to put the cat amongst the chickens, but we had this discussion a while ago I think.

 

A certain company takes the chicks away and they are gassed. Can't remember all the details I'm afraid. I'm sure someone here must know what happened?

 

It was one that Kazaddress talked about. I seem to remember she rescued the chicks

[Christian]

Thank you Bronze

 

I knew I had read it somewhere

[Willow]

Isn't there someone on the forum with a connection to lloyd maunder ? I can't remember who but I thought I remember seeing some comments wrt HFW programme and his portrayal of lloyd maunder.

 

They may be able to shed some light on the school hatching programme

[Louise]

I don't want to put the cat amongst the pigeons here but if you have issues with males being gassed don't do this

 

At the end of the day the chicks will be layer birds so there will be no meat on the boys and since most people don't want or can't have a pet cockerel what the heck else is there to do with them

 

They would have to be killed somehow and gassing at a young age is probably kinder than alot of methods

[The Dogmother]

Isn't there someone on the forum with a connection to lloyd maunder ? I can't remember who but I thought I remember seeing some comments wrt HFW programme and his portrayal of lloyd maunder.

 

They may be able to shed some light on the school hatching programme

 

I think that may be Chelsea's OH, but I might be wrong.

 

Louise is right - personally I wouldn't encourage it if the end result was at all vague or against my principles; they are animals and sentient beings, not toys to be discarded. Sorry Lucy, but that's my view (and yours too I think). You are right to raise these questions; children need to learn that life isn't disposable without a 2nd thought. I'm no bleeding heart as you know, but this isn't to be entered into lightly.

 

Sorry to rant

[Guest]

When I was 12 our Biology topic was to do with the development of unborn chicks - leading onto baby humans of course. We had an incubator in the lab with fertilised eggs in it. Each week, in pairs, we had to open an egg to see how developed the chick had got. Of course the chicks died, because they just weren't ready.

 

Even at that young age I felt it an horrendous project and hated the waste of so many lives. It must have been 150 chicks a week! I refused to take part and said I could learn just as much by looking at pictures in a book. I could even accept that if the real thing was absolutely necessary, maybe just one egg per class could be opened by the teacher and then we could all look.

 

So the rest of the class took part and I sat far away at the back, learning from a book. I couldn't and didn't eat eggs for 2 whole years after that. I felt so sick at the thought of it.

 

So I would want to know very much what the purpose of this idea is. I entirely agree that children should be taught and shown that life is precious and not disposable.

[Louise]

Nowadays Ginette you would have to chill the eggs overnight to kill the chicks first

 

Still grisly but at least they would be killed first

[Cate in NZ]

I remembered that we'd discussed this before and trawled back through old topics (I'm supposed to be at work but anything is better than tackling that mountain of recall letters that's just looking at me ). Anyway I found ....this..... thread posted by Kazaddress a year ago. I wonder if it's the same company

[Goosey Lucy]

I've spoken to the teacher and obtained the company's literature. They come highly recommended by our Science advisory team.

 

However I am not necessarily persuaded as on their website they say that chicks that are returned to them are generally used in free range egg production.

 

There is no mention of the males other than it is difficult to sex chicks, it can be done by an expert at one day old but generally it's very difficult to do until they are nearer maturity.

 

I am waiting for a phone call so I can ask them about the males.

 

I don't want to put the kaibosh (sp?) on an exciting event for the school children but I still feel it is irresponsible and needs checking into further.

 

The company is called Living Eggs, for anyone who's interested, their website is here

 

Thank you all for your thoughts and comments so far.

[Goosey Lucy]

Kate, you're a star, I started to look for the thread but couldn't see straight at midnight.

 

I think it's the same company, she suggested it was live egg or similar so I'm guessing it's the same one.

 

I'll let you know if/when they ring what happens to the returned chicks.

 

Thanks again.

[Yorkshire Pudding]

This is definitely the same company I saw at the show a few weeks ago. I asked the woman on their stand what happened to the chicks that were returned, she assured me they were found free-range homes - I specifically asked about the males and she said they too were rehomed.

 

Let's hope you get the same response from them today.

[The Dogmother]

It'll be interesting to hear what they say Goosey Girl

 

I'm still not convinced

[cammy73]

My OH is a school caretaker, and they are due to have Living Eggs deliver them in a couple of weeks..

I was a little unsure at first, but they have been told that they can keep the chicks, or send them back where they will be sent to free range laying.

We are having some of the chicks and raising them at home... I'm just hoping they're girls!!! no seriously I've got a friend who'll have the boys.

sharon x

[Goosey Lucy]

I've spoken with an Australian chap today who assured me that the birds are not dispatched. From our area the hens go to two farms which keep the hens as free range birds, selling their eggs at the farm gate.

 

The cockerels are left to live until approximately 10 weeks old then they are dispatched as meat birds.

 

I feel a bit happier about this now.

[The Dogmother]

That sounds better Lucy

[Goosey Lucy]

Now do I really have to give back 10 fluffy chicks..?

[The Dogmother]

It'll break your heart Lucy

 

I can see you keeping some!