As heavy snowstorms plagued the Washington, D.C.-metropolitan area, tens of thousands of egg-laying hens at ISE-America fell victim—not only to the inclement weather, but to our taste for eggs. On the evening of Thursday, February 20th, Compassion Over Killing (COK) received an anonymous tip that the roofs of some sheds at the ISE mega-egg farm in rural Cecilton, Maryland had collapsed due to the snowfall, and hens were trapped inside battery cages, some crushed, others mangled, both housing live and decomposing hens. Later that night, COK investigators entered the ISE facility and documented in photos and videos horrific cruelty to animals. The roofs of three of five sheds at this location, one of three ISE facilities in the area, had crashed into the structures housing hundreds of thousands of hens. Many of the highest cages in the four-tiered sheds were flattened, hens crushed beneath metal sheeting and plywood. Other wire battery cages were smashed, and still live hens were found amidst badly rotting corpses. COK investigators left the facility that night with two rescued hens. This was not the first time COK documented neglect and animal abuse at an egg factory farm. More information available at the Compassion Over Killing website. Baltimore Sun article: Collapse kills, traps 300,000 chickens. Click on any photo for larger version
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