Animal’s Angels investigators visited the weekly auction in Manheim, PA. The bird & rabbit sale, which is held in a separate building, is part of a large farmers market that sells produce, baked goods and other items. The animals are unloaded straight from cars and trucks that pull up next to the entrance and are then placed into metal cages on wheels. Investigators were pleased to see that all cages had flooring that covered up the cage wire. No water was available for most animals.
It was a warm day and inside the building 3 fans were running. However, the ventilation did not reach all of the birds. Chickens and ducks in plastic crates, that were stacked on one side of the building did not get any airflow and were observed panting heavily. A livestock truck (Pete’s Poultry, DOT # 1723648) was backed up to the side entrance of the building. He was parked in full sun and had multiple piles of plastic crates with chickens already loaded inside the trailer. All birds were panting heavily.
The auction included all kind of different animal such as doves, chickens, turkeys, ducks, 1 peacock, rabbits, guinea pigs and goats. In one area dozens of cardboard boxes with baby chicks and baby ducks were sold. The cardboard boxes were stacked on top of each other and auction visitors were constantly opening and closing the boxes to look at the animals inside. Several chickens in 2 cages were in bad condition. 1 chicken died and was immediately removed. Several others were lying with their heads down on the cage floor and appeared lethargic. 1 duck had a bleeding wing injury. Animals’ Angels will continue to monitor this sale.