An investigation into the causes of death reveals that curiosity not only kills the cat
The idea that turkeys drown in a rainstorm has been heard for generations. Farmers used to report that their turkeys would hold their heads up to the sky and let the water run down their throats, eventually drowning themselves. Turkeys have often been thought of as “stupid birds” and perhaps this has contributed to the overall negative stereotype on turkeys. The question is not so much can turkeys drown in a rainstorm, but how does a turkey drown and what factors affect turkey survival?
A turkey’s brain accounts for only 2% of its body-weight putting it among the lowest of the bird brains. However, we all know that intelligence cannot be directly measured from brain size – some of the smallest brains, by percent body mass, are among the most intelligent. Turkeys are more curious than anything and as a result they often find themselves in “sticky situations,” explains Cathy Kimak, a former poultry producer. As well, turkeys can no longer reproduce naturally due to the large size of their breast. In fact, they are so out of balance, they can hardly walk! But this didn’t stop Benjamin Franklin from feeling that the turkey should be the national bird for the American emblem. And he wasn’t the only one who held a special place for the traditional turkey – Sesame Street incorporated the turkey into the making of Big Bird’s costume, which is composed of about 4000 turkey feathers dyed yellow.
By now it should be evident that the idea of turkeys drowning in a rainstorm not only sounds ridiculous, but is highly unlikely. What are the chances a turkey would stand in the rain long enough to drown itself. Even in the worst of storms, turkeys are not going to drown; they are going to die from various other factors.
Whether in intensive or extensive operations, “turkeys are one of the hardest animals to keep alive,” explains Darrel Ulledal, a turkey pharmaceutical sales associate with Elanco. The critical period for survival is the first two weeks following hatch – at this time the mortality rate is close to 70%. In extensive operations, weather is the key factor that influences the high mortality rate of turkeys. Poults, who have not yet fully developed their feathers, are especially susceptible to cold and wet weather because they are only covered with a soft down. Other detrimental factors include: electrocution by lightning or electric fence, suffocation or crushing by other turkeys and lack of food and clean water. Drowning, not due to the rain, may also happen. One farmer tells a story about accidentally leaving a 10-gallon bucket in his turkey pen one day. One of the birds was curious, jumped in, and was unable to get back out. Another heard the racket and jumped in to check it out. The end result when he returned? Ten gallons of dead turkey with one very confused bird on top wondering why all the gobbling had stopped! Predation is also a major factor when it comes to extensive operations. Predation increases during and after rainstorms because turkeys are extremely smelly when wet. Predators with a keen sense of smell can easily locate them because of this. Failed generators can also result in the death of turkeys; generators are responsible for the proper circulation of air, maintaining the right temperature and oxygen level, and many other variables which are critical to a turkeys’ survival.
With all of these factors influencing the survival of turkeys, it is in the farmer’s best interest to find ways to protect his livestock. The more turkeys that survive the more of a profit the farmer makes. One way of controlling factors like weather and predation is switching a livestock operation from extensive to intensive farming.
Extensive farming is essentially outdoor-raised livestock. It involves a larger amount of land but because it uses nature, it tends to be of a lower cost. The turkeys can use sunlight, which enables utilization of vitamin D, and since they are foraging birds, they can obtain nutrients naturally from the pasture, which reduces feed costs. However, some find this method of farming inhumane due to exposure to the elements, possible disease spread from wild animals, and predation. A farm like this can have mortality rates of over 30%. With management, these factors can be minimized. For example, electric fencing can be used to keep out predators.
Intensive farming uses very little land, and attempts to reproduce an ideal outdoor environment indoors. This involves controlling variables like temperature, ventilation, humidity, and photoperiod (hours of daylight). Although this gives the farmer a certain amount of control, using this method brings rise to other issues like pecking among birds, lack of activity, and behavioral issues. Intensive farming is also more expensive due to things like building and energy costs. Both methods have their advantages and disadvantages, but both can prove to be profitable using the right management techniques.
We can now see that the myth about turkeys drowning in the rain is an unlikely story that arose from the fact that turkeys are very curious creatures that tend to get themselves into life-endangering situations. Turkeys are very susceptible to extreme weather conditions, predation, and other factors; this makes it very difficult for farmers to protect their birds when they are housed in extensive operations. Therefore, intensive operations may be a better choice when deciding on proper housing to improve survival rates of turkeys. However, in either extensive or intensive farming operations, there is a huge importance placed on management and disease prevention in order to maximize survival and minimize death losses.
- Melissa Croft, Leeanne Kimak and Krissia Menjivar
How much do fast food restraunts really care about the animals they serve?
If you asked children their favorite food, most would probably say a kid’s meal from a fast food restaurant would top the list. In a society where time has become a highly valued commodity, people are often looking for fast and relatively inexpensive places to eat. Last year alone, there was a 2.3 percent increase in the amount of food purchased from fast food restaurants in Canada. Recently, there has been an increase in public concern regarding how animals are treated. Some consumers are demanding that animal welfare standards be set and met by producers for the products they are purchasing, especially from fast food establishments.
Animal welfare concerns in the fast food industry first gained the public spotlight during the longest public relations trial in the UK’s history. Helen Steel and David Morris, two London Greenpeace activists, were sued by McDonalds for distributing pamphlets to consumers that were critical of the corporation. The trial lasted just over two years, ending when the judge ruled in favor of McDonalds. However, he did highly criticize McDonalds and stated that they were “...culpably responsible for cruel practices in the rearing and slaughter of some of the animals which are used to produce their food.” Consumers began to question animal welfare standards in the fast food industry, and soon demanded that changes be made.
McDonalds’ image suffered a major blow after the trial, so the company quickly responded to consumer demands. An animal welfare council, composed of six animal welfare experts, was hired, including the well-known animal behaviourist Dr. Temple Grandin. Since 1999, all beef, pork, chicken, and egg suppliers must be audited and adhere to set standards of animal welfare. In 2002 there were 500 audits conducted at processing facilities around the world. The standards of housing, handling, and humane slaughtering are all evaluated, and suppliers who do not meet standards will no longer be able to sell their product to these fast food restaurants. While most suppliers pass the audits, those that do not are given 30 days to make the necessary changes to reach McDonalds’ standards.
Soon after McDonalds made their own policies on animal welfare, its biggest competitors followed suit. Similar animal welfare councils have been formed by hiring numerous agricultural researchers and animal behaviourists to develop humane standards and review the effectiveness of changes made by suppliers. Performing standardized audits on their suppliers has become the norm. These audits follow the guidelines developed by Dr. Grandin, who has now also been hired as a consultant for both Wendys and Burger King. There have even been talks between companies to set industry-wide standards, likely through a third party system. “The leadership that has been shown in the past several years by fast food restaraunts with respect to standards for animal care has been remarkable,” says Dr. Craig Wilkinson, DVM and director of animal care for the Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Home Economics at the University of Alberta.
With dramatic changes in industry standards, suppliers have been forced to adopt their policies, raising questions about the costs. New housing and slaughter equipment does not come cheap. However, these investments are easily made up by increasing profits. Companies are paying more than ever for meat and eggs from humane suppliers. Research has also shown humane treatment of animals decreases injury/ bruising and mortality while improving meat quality and egg production. Susan Church, the general manager of Alberta Farm Animal Care (AFAC) agrees, as she has seen that “raising the standards, regarding animal welfare, has led to better quality products.” An increase in supply with better product quality leads to greater profits, which is enough reason in itself to treat animals humanely.
Enforcing standards has made a huge impact on animal welfare across North America. In 1996, audits were performed by Dr. Grandin and the USDA, and only 30% of beef plants were in compliance with American Meat Institute’s guidelines for stunning animals. Just 4 years later, after McDonalds became involved, this number skyrocketed to 74%, and continues to climb to this day. Dr. Grandin has stated “I have been working in the meat industry for more than 25 years and I saw more improvements in 1999 than I have seen in my entire career.” Consumers demanded standards, and fast food restaurants responded above and beyond expectations. This movement may very well be the first step towards improving standards for livestock from all suppliers, making our next hamburger meal a little easier to swallow.
- Lindsey Kurach, Jessica Lynch
While sheep are often associated with human sleep, people do not usually think about how sheep sleep. Sheep only sleep 3.8 hours in a day, meaning they are active 20.2 hours a day. During the 3.8 hours per day spent sleeping, 2% of that is spent in REM sleep. REM stands for rapid eye movement, a characteristic of deep sleep. As a prey animal sheep tend to sleep in herds so that there are more eyes on the watch for predators. For the same reason they space out their time spent sleeping by taking numerous naps and sleeping lightly. Sheep also sleep on their front to allow for a quick escape. A sleeping sheep can be recognized among a herd by its posture, they tend to have a droopy head and neck. In addition, wild sheep sleep with their heads uphill in order to detect predators and falling rocks. This leads to the question: is sleeping with their heads uphill a natural instinct for sheep? Although there is no definitive evidence that sheep sleep with their heads uphill, prolapsing can be associated with this sleeping position. Vaginal prolapsing usually occurs during the last trimester of a female ewe’s pregnancy due to increased intra-abdominal pressure caused by the developing fetuses. Sheep tend to have one to four lambs per litter depending on the breed which can increase the pressure on the uterus. In fact, the record in Canada is a Romanov ewe that had 9 lambs in one litter. Dr. Lloyd Keddie DVM states that if a sheep is already prolapsing then sleeping in an uphill position will make the prolapse more apparent. The force of gravity adds pressure onto the pregnant ewe’s uterus making prolapse more severe and obvious. Dr Lloyd Keddie also mentions a similar event happening to a cow, the pregnant cow being caught in an uphill position prolapsed because of the increased stress on her uterus.
While prolasing is not often a fatal condition, according to Dr. Jim Brown DVM 4% of sheep prolapse per year on average. In order to prevent further distress once prolapsing begins a ewe-spoon is inserted into the vagina to temporarily keep the uterus inside the ewe. However, Dr. Brown mentions that this technique is not very effective. Sheep that have prolapsed are typically culled or sold because of its reoccurrence. The question of whether sheep sleep with their heads uphill is a difficult one to answer; only assumptions can be made from their natural tendencies. -Laura Kippen, Brandy Bartlett, Christine Buchanan, Erin Galloway and Kim Kuneff
