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Manure Pits of Despair

In the manure pits, below the cages, mounds of feces stretch as far as the eye can see. Massive cobwebs engulf the walls and ceilings, and the manure crawls with maggots, beetles, and other insects. Flies swarm everywhere. Investigators found the air hard to breathe and the stench nearly intolerable.

The high emission of ammonia produced contributes to the spread of disease and infection in the hens above by injuring the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract, making it easy for disease organisms to invade their bodies. The ammonia also causes a painful corneal ulcer condition known as “ammonia burn” which can lead to blindness.

Hens that had managed to escape their cages were found wondering in the filthy, dark manure pits of Weaver Bros. Egg Farm. Many emaciated hens had insects crawling over their weakened bodies. Dead hens, their bodies infested with maggots and flies, were found in the manure pits. Other live hens were discovered perching on the walls, a natural behavior they were unable to fulfill while confined to their battery cage.

“(D)ead birds are shown lying in the manure pit. I suspect that again this is a reflection of the old cages that have allowed some birds to escape. If birds do end up in the manure pit and are not rescued from there, they suffer a slow lingering death because there is no food or water available.” --Dr. Ian J.H. Duncan, Professor of Poultry Ethology at the University of Guelph

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