Court intervenes as NSPCA wins battle for humane treatment of chickens at Daybreak Farm

Attached to the NSPCA’s founding affidavit were photographs and video footage of the mistreatment of the chickens. The photos displayed, amongst other attachments, chickens with their intestines exposed, severely underfed chickens and heaps of dead chickens.

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However Daybreak denied any inhumane treatment of chickens occurred, arguing that the injuries were probably due to the chickens pecking at each other’s wounds (which may have been caused by the chickens’ spurs) which is a natural reaction of the chicken.

According to Daybreak, the company was in a state of disrepair due to financial mismanagement.

“They further stated that the financial collapse led to employees not being paid, which in turn, led to casual workers being employed to take care of the chickens. There was neither the time nor the money to train the casual workers in every facet in a poultry production facility. Should any inhumane culling have taken place, it might have been due to inexperience or lack of training of the casual workers,” court papers read.