Canadian Turkey Breeder Found Guilty of Animal Cruelty

Hybrid Turkeys, the world’s largest turkey breeder, has been convicted of animal-cruelty charges after a Mercy For Animals (MFA) Canada video showed abuses on one of its factory farms, marking the first time a Canadian factory farm has been found guilty of such charges because of hidden camera footage. The horrors included workers crushing turkeys’ spines and heads with bolt cutters, throwing turkeys by their fragile wings, and leaving injured animals without veterinary care to die, often within full view of management. Ian Duncan, a professor at the University of Guelph and a Canadian poultry welfare expert, told MFA, “The euthanasia practices depicted in the video I saw were inhumane; they did not result in immediate unconsciousness. It is not appropriate to kick, punch, or swing birds. This is gratuitous cruelty.” This video was part of MFA’s Turkey Torture campaign that examined Canada’s “cruel turkey industry.” Hybrid Turkeys pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty under the Ontario SPCA Act “for failing to exercise reasonable care and supervision of the euthanasia of animals,” and will pay the Ontario Court $5,600 in fines.