- Apr
- 10
Baby Huey … the Chicken Who Made Me Give Up Chicken
Posted by Kerry Anderlik at 5:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (44)
When I was in my early 20s, I fell in love with a meat-eater named David. He was willing to give up eating red meat, but he wanted me to compromise by eating chicken. Back in those days (30 years ago), the value of a vegetarian diet was not yet understood. David was afraid that we would suffer protein deficiency without some type of meat in our diet. I hated the idea, but I had heard that chickens were “as stupid as potatoes,” so I agreed under one condition: If we were going to eat chicken, then we had to raise and kill our own chickens. If we were going to eat them, I argued, we had to take responsibility for their death.
David rushed down to the farm supply store and bought 12 peeping baby chicks. We started our peeping baby chicks out in a box with a hot water bottle in the living room while we finished building a little chicken barn. It was so much fun to watch them grow and get to know them. Every morning, they would waddle over from the barn to the house and cluck and scratch around until we came out to scatter their feed. They were so excited to see us when we got home from work, and they followed us around everywhere. Each chicken had his or her own unique personality, and they were filled with such joy and gusto for life.
Baby Huey was our favorite of all the chickens. She was a lover girl, always wanting to be petted and held. She had a big plumped up chest, and whenever she saw us, she would come running a hundred miles an hour, often falling over forward if she was running too fast. She reminded us of the cartoon duck Baby Huey, so we named her Baby Huey.
One day, a neighbor came to visit and accidently ran over Baby Huey with his car. As part of his apology, he offered to take Baby Huey home and cook her in his smoker and bring her back the next day for us to eat. I was so relieved when David announced that we were vegetarians and would no sooner eat a chicken than we would a dog.
I will never forget Baby Huey and our little flock of chickens. I can’t look at chicken on a plate or packaged in the grocery store meat department without thinking that every one of those chickens is a Baby Huey who never had the chance to be loved, to be held and petted, or to peck around in the sunshine. Baby Huey and our little flock of chickens taught us that chickens are friends, NOT food.
Have you had any similar experiences with individual farmed animals?
Posted to Family & Friends | Posted to Tags: chicken, Kerry Anderlik, vegan, vegetarian
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Ellen says...
April 10th, 2009, 1:44 pm
Awww
thats such a nice story (apart from baby huey dying)
I do kinda know how u feel i guess, i used to have chickens a year ago and from then on the thought of eating them really bothered me.
x
Joanna says...
April 10th, 2009, 1:54 pm
This is awfully sweet! :)))
Akool says...
April 10th, 2009, 2:00 pm
What a touching story! Back in my home country, my uncle used to own a farm and he had about 5 cows. I loved them all and whenever someone ate meet, I always used to wonder why did they kill the innocent cows?
. says...
April 10th, 2009, 2:08 pm
Wow.. that’s a really cute story. I had a cat on my uncles farm once named Fluff.. he’d been hit by multiple cars, attacked by other cats but he was so friendly! And he was like.. the cutest thing ever even though he had a disease in one eye. He got killed by my other cat but he was the coolest cat ever.
sarah says...
April 10th, 2009, 2:18 pm
What a happy and sad story. Baby Huey reminded me of my little chickens who we adopted as pets when we were growing up. They are wonderful pets and so misunderstood. Kerry didn’t say what happened to the rest of Baby Huey’s brothers/sisters. I hope they had natural deaths.
Sarah
Ellie B. says...
April 10th, 2009, 2:19 pm
I’m surprised you let your boyfriend talk you out of vegetarianism. My rule is that I’m happy to date an omnivore as long as he’s okay with not being kissed right after eating meat.
Leigh Anne says...
April 10th, 2009, 2:29 pm
Such a precious story. Everyone I know, except for my husband and one of my daughters, eats meat—especially poultry. After reading this story, it further ingrains why I DON’T eat hoof or feather! All animals are capable of reciprocating love and they all have PERSONALITIES! Thanks for sharing the story.
Isabelle says...
April 10th, 2009, 2:32 pm
What a good story!!!! It’s remind me, i was about 12 years old, my father gave me 3 rabbits, baby rabbits. We where leaving on a farm with horses, ducks, chickens, dogs and cats. I gave each of them names, took pictures of them, carry them in my little girl stroller, just having so much fun. They where my friends, has my horses, my dogs and all the other animals we had. Well…. one day i came back from school, on the kitchen counter was my rabbits, no fur, no head, no legs and dead!!!!!! I had a shock that day, of course my parents cook them for dinner, how cruel and unconscious of them. Since that day i never eat meat again.
Stephanie says...
April 10th, 2009, 2:35 pm
Awwww…..that’s a great story. I had pet chickens before and thats exactly what they acted like, PETS. They didn’t act like dumb animals waiting to be killed for supper; they are very sweet and humorous animals.
Laura says...
April 10th, 2009, 3:04 pm
Hi Kerry,
That’s such a great story! You should consider sending it out as an op-ed to your local paper. More people need to read stories like this, get them to think with their heart and soul instead of their taste buds.
Nancylee says...
April 10th, 2009, 3:14 pm
Since becoming a vegetarian last year in October, I now wonder why I ever ate meat. I have come to the conclusion that I don’t eat anything with EYES except potatoes. Chickens have such horrible lives if they are factory farmed and I once read that a chicken NEVER has a good day if raised in that environment and each and every day is misery for the chickens. I cannot condone that and I see the misery in their EYES and know they cannot speak to let us know of their misery, pain and suffering. I watched a You Tube video called Jamie’s Fowl Dinners which told me everything I needed to know about the chicken industry and totally confirmed to me that what happens to those poor creatures is criminal !!! Baby Huey was a lucky bird until civilization caught-up to her. I love this story for it’s understanding and compassion. I think if more people got to know chickens as these people did and came to realize their tremendous pain and suffering, they might just stop eating them too. Goveg.com !!!!!!!! There is so much food out there for us. I feel so much better knowing that a life did not have to end for me to eat; no blood shed and inhumane slaughter. OH and the world slaughters billions every year……BILLIONS !!!!! It never ends.
GINA MARCHELLO says...
April 10th, 2009, 3:28 pm
THAT STORY IS TRULY TOUCHING.I BELIEVE THAT IT SHOULD BE SHARED WITH EVERYONE!I’LL MAKE SURE 2 PASS IT ON.THAT IS A WONDERFUL DECISION THAT U AND DAVID MADE.THIS STORY TRULY INSPIRES ME 2 MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE,OF COURSE SAVING 1 ANIMAL AT A TIME!!!THIS WAS A GREAT NEWSLETTER.I’M SURE BABY HUEY IS RESTING PEACEFULLY NOW,KNOWING THAT HE WAS ABLE 2 BE LOVED.
Seren says...
April 10th, 2009, 4:10 pm
I have two pet bunnies. They are considerably farm animals (when raised for fur and meat). They each have their own personalities, and I love them dearly, as they love me. I am also considering adopting a pet chicken. I cannot believe that people can eat meat and not think about what animal it was, and who it could become.
Betsy says...
April 10th, 2009, 4:33 pm
What a lovely story.
Im thinking of keeping chickens, but getting them from the Battery Hen Welfare Trust. Basically a group that wants to ban Battery Cages. They do this by going to the farmers, talking to them, sometimes even changing their farming methods, and get their chickens to give to people like me. (veggies, or vegans, people that wont eat them, just keep them as part of the family!)
Go to their website: http://www.bhwt.org.uk/
Thanks
Amy says...
April 10th, 2009, 4:54 pm
Kerry, I cried reading your story. I am curious about one thing - did you put the condition to your partner because you intitutively knew that he would change? Whatever it was, your story touched me deeply.
Sharon says...
April 10th, 2009, 5:17 pm
It always makes me sad to see someone raise an animal, then kill it & eat it. Many are sold at auctions, & people say they need the money. Find another occupation that does not depend on the death of animals for income.
Tammy says...
April 10th, 2009, 6:35 pm
That’s because ignorance is bliss… except for the victims that is
My closest friends ALL can no longer eat animals. I just casually kept pointing out facts about them, and once your eyes are opened… well.. it’s kind of hard to just pretend you don’t know! I would say little things like how there is veins in chicken, or I would mention “pets” and make the comparison cuz for some reason THAT ppl find gross.
collesta says...
April 10th, 2009, 6:52 pm
i speened most of my life on a fram. i never could understand why my mom and dad keep our freezer filled up. the day to kill the chickens was the worse,i always tred to be gone on that day. maybe being around,all the
animals and just being ther on the wrong days helped me to become a vigen. that alone is hard for my husband is a meat and pop.guy.
Kayleigh says...
April 10th, 2009, 7:02 pm
This is how I became vegetarian. After getting pet chickens, and realising each has their own unique personality I could not look at another animal on a plate, never mind eating it! I have been vegetarian for over a year now, and will carry on doing so.
Kylie H. says...
April 10th, 2009, 7:34 pm
Last year my little sister volunteered to take care of baby chickens… they were so cute,friendly,and fun to play with,they even fell asleep on my stomach when I was resting on the couch
after that,I couldn’t eat chicken ever again. Another story is I was at my uncles house in the summer and he has a pet cow, who was so awesome (lol yes awesome…) so after that I stopped eating all meat. I also have a pet rabbit and when I found out people eat them and wear their fur…. I got more into animal activism and now,here I am! ^^
haha… and I have pet fish so no seafood for me!
francine rodriguez says...
April 10th, 2009, 8:03 pm
Real touching story…i always wanted to save a cow, pig, and chickens from being slaughtered, but never was able to..I live in the city and cannot have farm animals..Think about animals everyday, i hate it when i see the big trucks on the highway and they are filled with cows, on there way to death..so sad..your story at least made me smile, well until baby Huey was killed…thanks for sharing your story…Peta supporter…
Pamela Coburn says...
April 10th, 2009, 8:19 pm
I do believe that if people name and raise their own animals and then had to look them in the eyes before they slaughtered them, there would be more vegetarians.
Robyn says...
April 11th, 2009, 12:22 am
I would not want to eat anything that suffered a traumatic death as I feel that it is possible to pass on bad energy and paying for it is the same as condoning bad treatment of the animals.
Deena Naidoo says...
April 11th, 2009, 5:32 am
Back in the days, about 50 years ago, my grandfather brought home 2 one day old chicks. I was blessed with raising them, I even had names for them. One, I named Rajha and the other Rani. Ironically they each turned out to be their respective names according to their sexes. Both mated over the years giving us many Rajha’s and Rani’s. Unfortunately, during the years that passed both Rajha and Rani died on the same day.
My grandfather, who was a very wise man trom India said, Ma and Pa were so close to each other that they could not live without the other. Subsequently, that I found out later in life that man is no different.
michelle says...
April 11th, 2009, 11:27 am
I am crying while I write this because I’m thinking of all the chickens who suffer being butchered. I will never eat chicken again.
Bonnie says...
April 11th, 2009, 12:14 pm
this is a beautiful story. I don’t eat but my husband still does. I don’t like that he is giving it to our girls because at less than two I don’t feel that they’re able to make their own decisions about it. As more and more of our friends are headed down ( or at least more towards) a vegetarian path I see it changing him gradually. Meat is no longer an every day thing but a once in a while thing for him. I introduced vegetables into his diet before it was bacon on toast I turned it into a BLT wanting to give him a easier transition to veggies. It’s working. Maybe he will never fully go vegetarian, but at least I have made a difference for animals and his health.
Penelope Kinzer says...
April 11th, 2009, 2:50 pm
HOORAH for all of you who do not eat meat or chicken. Please forgive me for still wanting the occasional cheeseburger or fried chicken. Truly I am trying but at my age, “71″ it’s really hard to give it all up.
Deena Naidoo says...
April 11th, 2009, 6:14 pm
What exactly do you mean by ‘polite, constructive, and on the topic’. It was a life experience. We definately did not slaughter any one of Rajha and Rani’s offsprings, if that’s what you want to know.
Cecilia Dunbar Hernandez says...
April 12th, 2009, 4:27 pm
YES, the Baby Huey Chicken story really touched my Heart and makes me glad I turned my Life around and became a Vegetarian!!! I was raised on a Beef cattle farm in Kansas and we had over 200 head of Cows each year and I grew up eating lots of Beef products but now have alot of Health problems and I have totally turned my Life over to God First since 2006 and now am cleaning up my act and my body and losing alot of weight. Also, quit smoking in one day long time ago and never gone back and feel better every day when I eat Fruits and Veggies and Salads and pastas and other great things for my body. All Animals belong to GOD and he says: Thou Shalt NOT Kill so we need to be mindful of God and the Bible every day and then we truly will be healthy and feel better about ourselves and others too! God bless everyone and Happy Easter too! CECE
meghana says...
April 12th, 2009, 6:56 pm
ohhh…how sweet is dat hmm gr8 spirit guys…
kp says...
April 13th, 2009, 12:24 am
animals r so lovable and so cute…. we just hv to understand their feelings if we r really true humanbeings.
Dolly says...
April 13th, 2009, 12:40 pm
Great story!! My grandmother had a rooster that would wait under the steps and attack..so for awhile I was kind of afraid of chickens..lol..guess he did not want me invading his “territory” which was the whole yard!! But I also have quit eating all meats and eggs..and look at chickens in a whole new light..they are just as intellengent as any other animal and can be great pets!!
Lisa says...
April 13th, 2009, 3:32 pm
If you are looking for a way to convince someone that veg is the way to go, have them rent Earthlings, it’s available on Netflix. It changed my life in several ways, for the better. I’ve written to several local newspapers, in attempt to have my article promoting “Earthlings” published. In some cases it has gone to print. The more we all spread the word of how the animals suffer, the quicker their suffering will end.
BTW, what a nice story that was! : )
Anya says...
April 14th, 2009, 4:37 am
a friend of mine’s got a organic eggs farm and I worked there during one summer. While checking the inside of the building (walking around all those lovely hens) I noticed one who was different to me (i called her “La Meneuse”). Every year, the building is “cleaned” m(eaning all the 2000 hens go to the slaughterhouse), I couldn’t let my poor Meneuse being sent to death (it was a pain though to not be able to save them all). At the end of the summer, I took 3 hens with me as my parents’ garden is way big enough to welcome chicken and we discover the immense joy of having hens ! I discover those so-unknown creatures and learnt to completly love chicken ! they made me laughed in so much ways XD
They didn’t live very loog (La Meneuse was 1,5 yo when I get her and she died at 4) because the breeds of laying hens are not “studied” to be healthy after 1-2 years old, they’re just made to lay big eggs every day.
kiri says...
April 14th, 2009, 11:30 am
me twin used to have a baby chick named poof poof. she died suddenly and i cant understand why someone would eat a chicken. theyre creatures too.. or any other meat.. your story is beautiful♥ even though baby huey died…
Sara says...
April 14th, 2009, 11:54 am
When I was younger, my mother and I flew back every year to visit her family in Iowa. Most of my family lived on farms, and there was one uncle in particular whom we always stayed with. He had many farm animals of all different types: cows, chickens, sheep, horses, and many others, all of whom were beautiful and lovely creatures. There was one cow in particular whom I fell in love with instantly. She was chocolate brown with a white heart on her forehead, and being a fan of the band Heart, I named her Heart. I grew to love this cow and she loved me. Every day, first thing in the morning, I would run down to the barn where she sleeped, wake her up, and let her out into the pasture, petting her and talking to her all the while. Heart lived for a few years on that farm, and the next time I came back she was still there, and she recognized me! I couldn’t believe that after the year that I had grown and changed so much, she came running over to the fence to greet me, her tail wagging like a puppy. We had been back for a few days when Heart wasn’t in her pen the next morning. She wasn’t in anyone elses pen, and she wasn’t in the pasture either. I walked inside to eat breakfast worried, but hopeful, that she would show up eventually. After a breakfast of steak and eggs, I asked my uncle if he had seen her anywhere. He told me to look on my plate, and that the scraps of bones and fat on my plate were my beloved Heart. He had slaughtered her that morning as I lay in my bed, and I was too young to understand where steak came from. Ever since that day, I haven’t touched any form of meat, and can’t help but think of Heart every time I see someone eating cow. It breaks my heart to think that not only was I not there to say my last goodbye, but that I took part in the eating of her flesh. Anyone who cares about any animal should NOT EAT ANIMALS. Just as all people should be created equal, so should all animals.
Elizabeth says...
April 16th, 2009, 6:23 pm
My “carnivorous” husband recently watched the HBO documentary “Death on a Factory Farm”. It documented the life of pigs on a factory farm in the midwest. He was so disturbed by what he saw, he vowed to never eat any type of pork again. I agree that knowledge is the most powerful tool in encouraging vegetarianism, and the visions in some of the undercover investigations that have been done are unbelievably disturbing and IMPOSSIBLE to forget. I think everyone should watch one of those undercover investigations if they are thinking about reasons to stop eating meat.
And once you stop consuming one type of animal, it is not difficult to generalize to others and before long, you have yet another vegan or vegetarian (hopefully!)
soodle says...
April 17th, 2009, 4:57 am
Go Veagn!!!
sara says...
April 17th, 2009, 5:39 am
oh my god! i actually cant stop crying after reading this…. so true, all animals are living beings and friends and definitely not food!!!
Tim says...
April 26th, 2009, 5:14 am
I find being vegan difficult but I bought 2 ex battery hens-everyone is a winner
They have a wonderful home and new life
I get fantastic free range eggs totally cruelty free
My dogs love the raw eggs with their biscuit and need less meat
A lot of table scraps get the perfect re-cycle
And believe me they are real characters
Tina Max says...
May 1st, 2009, 2:59 pm
I am a vegan and boyfriend is a carnivore. I have the kissing thing covered, I just never kiss him. So he is missing out.
Also, great and touching story.
Tina
Julie van Niekerk says...
September 25th, 2009, 8:47 am
Some people do tease me about being vegetarian. I immediately ask them if the know what happened to their meat before it ends up on the dinner plate. You can be sure that I tell every detail ……………….
Cathy S says...
November 5th, 2009, 11:22 pm
AT the tail end of this story…didn’t read it when it first came out but have to comment. You women who are married, dating, “going with,” a man who is a carnivore, I have to ask why? Like I told my friend, who is also a vegetarian, I could not be with a man with no compassion towards animals…ALL animals. (I live with four dogs.) Also, yeah, I get teased or people actually look at me with pity when they know I’m a veggie. I am very vocal and outspoken about it. That’s what I told Ingrid when I met her here in Vegas a couple months ago. And I always wear my “meat is murder” pin.
Teresa says...
November 6th, 2009, 10:08 am
We once tried raising chickens. All but one of them were simply “chickens” - they were pleasant, but behaved the typical chicken life.
One of them, named Buffy, became a pet…..she loved being held, came when she was called and always wanted to sit on my shoulder like our parakeets and cockatiels. I couldn’t seem to convince her that her claws hurt.
Oh how I miss Buffy!