Protest "Chick Days" at Tractor Supply!

Hello Fellow Animal Advocates, WMARA is kicking off a new campaign to get Tractor Supply (and other stores) to stop selling chicks and ducklings both in stores and online! Our first protest is THIS SATURDAY, 12:30-2:30, AT TRACTOR SUPPLY IN GREENFIELD! Signs and literature will be provided, but feel free to bring your own sign. Lunch afterwards at the Frankling Community Coop in Greenfield. Please join us if you can! *** Please let me know if you can help make signs about the cruelty of selling chicks (don't mention Tractor Supply so we can use them at other stores). Materials can be provided. Thank you. *** If you're a Greenfield resident who would like to join this campaign, please contact me. Thank you. PARKING: Please do not park at Tractor Supply! Park in the lot across the street from Tractor Supply. Feel free to message me or call/text me at (413) 374-1921 if you have any questions. -------------------------------TAKE ACTION ONLINE TOO! PLEASE SIGN & SHARE THESE PETITIONS: https://www.upc-online.org/.../260203_urge_tractor_supply... https://woodstocksanctuary.org/.../petition-to-tractor...-------------------------------Every spring Tractor Supply and other agriculture supply stores sell chicks in their stores (https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/cms/chick-days...). These tiny baby birds are often bought by people for backyard flocks, as pets, or for entertainment. Farm Sanctuaries see the after-effect of these purchases when called to take in unwanted, abandoned, and often severely neglected birds who were originally purchased at Tractor Supply during their very popular and lucrative “Chick Days.” People impulse-buy these baby birds without understanding what it really means to care for them. In later spring and summer, all rescues and sanctuaries see an increase in requests to take in backyard birds from people who have realized they are unwilling or unable to provide them the care that they need. There is also an increase in birds dumped in parks, in the woods, and on the side of roads. Why are these birds unwanted? Often, it’s due to lack of understanding of the cost of proper care or how much work it takes to care for chickens and ducks. But also many of the purchased chicks are roosters, and you’ll see roosters over-represented in shelters and rescues that are able to take them in. Why is this, especially when Tractor Supply often sells chicks that they say are all female? Tractor Supply confidently makes this claim because the giant hatcheries where their chicks are born are supposed to kill the boys shortly after hatching. What Tractor Supply doesn’t tell you is that a lot of males are mis-sexed, ending up with the female chicks on their way to backyards across the country. As weeks go by, customers realize they have roosters instead of hens. Since roosters don’t lay eggs and are the subject of many negative (and inaccurate!) stereotypes, many people are very eager to offload their roosters onto someone else or just dump. The last few years, the situation with backyard birds feels more precarious than ever. Rising egg prices means that many will look to backyard birds as a source of “cheap” eggs, without really understanding what it means to care for them. This happened in 2020, with disastrous results for the birds. This time, with cases of avian flu on the rise in birds and mammals like cats and cows, it feels particularly irresponsible for Tractor Supply to ship birds from enormous hatcheries to people’s backyards, especially without proper warnings and instructions on how to minimize risk. Shelters, rescues, and sanctuaries are already grappling with how to keep their existing flocks safe from avian flu. For many, that means pausing bird rescues and implementing strict biosecurity protocols. Another big wave of unwanted backyard birds is the last thing they need. Chick Days at Tractor Supply have begun, with chicks being sold in stores and online. Tiny baby birds are being mailed in boxes across the country with no food or water at a few days old with little regard for what happens to them in transit or upon arrival. Many will die during shipping. More will die in stores while on display. And even more will end up in subpar care—dying in people’s basements or backyards and being exposed to avian flu. And farm sanctuaries are bracing for an influx of requests to take unwanted backyard birds, which will compromise the health and safety of the birds already living there. Every sanctuary and rescue in the country is dealing with the same issues, with very little guidance or support. Western Mass Animal Rights Advocates is advocating for the end of chick sales in our local communities and hope to work with county officials who have the authority to limit or stop this irresponsible practice. Outside of the world of sanctuary and rescue, many have no idea how many birds are abandoned every year, or why! Our goal is to end the shipment of "live baby chicks" or any other animal through the mail to ALL agricultural supply stores, hoping they will remain focused on their original business model, which the communities depend on. Sheryl & "The Chick Crew"