animal welfare

A tour guide on a horse-drawn carriage points outside of Independence Hall in Philadelphia in 2007. One of the city's two horse-drawn carriage companies is closing down and transferring its animals to the city.

National

Philadelphia Horse-Drawn Carriage Company Shuts Down After Abuse Allegations

6:15pm December 21, 2017

by Camila Domonoske

City inspectors found violations of building codes and animal welfare laws. The horses will be sent to a sanctuary. A second company still offers carriage rides.

Fresh fish fillets for sale in a display case. Concerns over animal welfare have led to changes in recent years in raising livestock. But seafood has been missing from the conversation. One group aims to change that.

Do You Care If Your Fish Dinner Was Raised Humanely? Animal Advocates Say You Should

1:59pm October 20, 2017

by Clare Leschin-Hoar

Concerns over animal welfare have led to changes in recent years in how livestock are raised. But seafood has been missing from the conversation. One group aims to change that.

Young chickens hide inside a wooden box, one of the "enrichments" that Perdue is adding to its chicken houses.

Perdue Farms Signs Up For A Chicken Welfare Revolution

3:39pm July 27, 2017

by Dan Charles

The poultry industry may be on the verge of adopting ambitious new animal-welfare standards, giving chickens more space and daylight, and even returning to older, slower-growing chicken breeds.

Blue North is a new fishing vessel designed to catch Pacific cod using a Seafood Watch granted catch method. It also utilizes a stun table to render fish unconscious before processing.

Will Fish Get A Humanely Harvested Label? These Brothers Bet $40 Million On It

1:25pm June 14, 2017

by Clare Leschin-Hoar

Beef and poultry get labels designating humane treatment; seafood doesn't. Two fishermen want to change that. Their state-of-the-art ship makes fishing safer for crew and minimizes pain for fish.

Cage-free chickens walk in a fenced pasture at an organic farm near Waukon, Iowa.

National

Organic Chickens Get More Room To Roam

7:20pm January 18, 2017

by Dan Charles

New rules for organic farming will require farmers to give chickens more pasture. Some of the biggest organic egg producers will have to change their practices, or stop calling their eggs organic.

A girl with her donkeys in the streets of Harar, Ethiopia.

Health & Safety

Donkeys Are Finally Getting More Respect

1:49pm November 07, 2016

by Amy Yee

Ethiopia has 7 million donkeys — more than any other country. They have a pretty tough life, but changes are afoot.

Technology May Rescue Male Baby Chicks From The Grinder

6:30pm October 28, 2016

by Dan Charles

The egg industry may soon eliminate a wasteful — and to some, horrifying — practice: slaughtering male chicks. New technology can identify male embryos in eggs before they enter incubation chambers.

Queue Listen Now

On display at ZooAve Animal Rescue in Alajuela, Costa Rica, Grecia, the chestnut-mandibled toucan, can now eat on its own and sing with the new beak. Grecia was in rehabilitation for months after receiving a 3-D-printed nylon prosthesis.

Science

After Losing Half A Beak, Grecia The Toucan Becomes A Symbol Against Abuse

11:45am August 27, 2016

by Carrie Kahn

After the famous toucan received a prosthetic replacement, it's story has helped spark a national movement against harming animals in Costa Rica, where a new anti-abuse bill is also gaining traction.

Queue Listen Now

Perdue will study the effects of features such as perches in chicken houses. It hopes to double the activity levels of its chickens in the next three years.

National

In Quest For Happier Chickens, Perdue Shifts How Birds Live And Die

9:07pm June 27, 2016

by Dan Charles

Perdue Farms, one of the largest poultry companies in the country, says it will change its slaughter methods and also some of its poultry houses. Animal welfare groups are cheering.

Queue Listen Now

On Thailand's Samui Island, a macaque picks coconuts from a tree top. Captive monkeys are trained to help harvest coconuts on the island's plantations.

What's Funny About The Business of Monkeys Picking Coconuts?

11:01pm October 19, 2015

by Eliza Barclay

Animal advocates were outraged after discovering videos of leashed monkeys picking coconuts in Thailand. But monkey trainers and scientists say it's common practice, and doesn't count as abuse.