Would you rather have a colorful chick or a normal yellow?

Before deciding on which being aware of the true affects of this dyeing on both the chicks subjected to it and the possibility of disease that those how own one risk as well. This issue is a severely overlooked issue that change is needed urgently. 

There are many was of how these chicks are dyed such as;

• Injection into the egg embryo before hatching,
• Spraying the dye over the chicks, or
• Pouring liquid dye on them.

Despite this variety of processes they all have similar health affects to the chicks that are easily life-threatening. Injecting the dye into the embryos has a chance of the chicks being born deformed as it is unnatural for their growth and can quickly lead them to being unable to develop properly and  lead to death. Spraying and pouring the dye over the chicks can also lead to things such as repertory issues from when they are dyed; it causes things such as vision and digestion problems. If the chick manages to evade these issues somehow then the chick also faces skin issues when beginning to molt causing irritation and future possible issues that can follow.

These chicks are an impulsive buy as they are cute but there is no thought of how to properly care for the chick later and can lead them to suffer additional diseases. Research conveys the idea that these chicks after impulsively being purchased they are very likely to abandoned which causes even more harm to the chicks as they do not have their mother hen and do not know how to find food and other skills needed for their survival.

With no research of proper chicken care, most buyers can face diseases carried by the chicks unknowingly. A case from a study over the years of 2004 to 2011 of which there was an outbreak of salmonella in the United States of America (Aleccia). In this outbreak scientists came to the conclusion that all of these patients were subjected to holding or buying a dyed chick. As a result the case had 316  through 43 states of people were affected and an estimated 5000 more had likely  gone unreported (Aleccia). 

This issue is very sentimental to me after experiencing it while on a trip it was shocking to see this done to the chicks. Seeing the issue first hand is what inspired me to want change.

This is an issue that needs to be addressed now before another further outbreak of salmonella  and the lives of innocent chicks being lost. 3 weeks of joy for a human is not worth the lives of these chicks. 

Solutions of which this petition will help is more awareness of this topic and a better future for humans and animals alike. This petition will also be used to support a children's book on the matter and translating this book to a more diverse range of languages for better accessibility; the title of the book is 'Clover the Green Chick' and is coming out later this year of 2025. The hope is that this will allow more studies of this topic and in the future better education and enforcement of regulations in animal care.

Citations

Aleccia, JoNel. "Salmonella by Mail? Hatchery Sparks 8-year Outbreak." NBC News,
     31 May 2012, www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/
     salmonella-mail-hatchery-sparks-8-year-outbreak-flna803569.

Childree, Angelina. "Why Dyed Easter Chicks Aren't Healthy." PetMD, Chewy, 17
     Mar. 2024, www.petmd.com/bird/why-dyed-easter-chicks-arent-healthy
     Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.

Lago, Amanda. "Colored Chicks a Hit with Kids, but Animal Rights Advocates Cry
     Cruelty." Translated by Danaielle Haley Magtoto. GMA NEWS Online, GMA
     Network, 26 Jan. 2016, www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/content/245857/
     colored-chicks-a-hit-with-kids-but-animal-rights-advocates-cry-cruelty/story/.
     Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.

"CODE of PRACTICE AND MINIMUM STANDARDS for THE WELFARE of CHICKENS." PAWS
     Downloads, Philippines Animal Welfare Society, 1 Apr. 2002, paws.org.ph/
     downloads/ao12_s2002.pdf. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.