Novel campaign by PETA to protest 'abusive' treatment of chickens

Kolkata, Nov 12 (UNI) Holding a banner which reads, "KFC: Stop terrorising checkens", a giant crippled chicken in a wheelchair will cross the road in front of a Kolkata KFC outlet tomorrow as a mark of protest against the company's 'abusive' treatment of chickens.

The action is part of an international campaign of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to exert pressure on the KFC to crack down on the suppliers' 'cruel' treatment of chickens.

PETA sources today said video footage from an undercover investigation documented that workers at a slaughterhouse in the US kicked, threw and stamped on live birds.

The sources alleged that KFC's suppliers pack chickens into filthy and and extremely crowded warehouses. '' The birds are drugged and bred to grow so large that many become crippled from the weight of their massive upper bodies--many can not even walk because of leg deformities, '' they said.

PETA said the celebrities, who were supporting the campaign against the KFC, included actor Pamela Anderson, sitarist Anoushka Shankar, Nobel peace prize winner the Dalai Lama and rock legend Sir Paul McCartney.

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