What many of us do not know is that there are two types of chickens that are raised, those for meat, and those for eggs. The chickens raised for meat are bred to grow quickly and develop a high body mass. They typically grow from chick to slaughter size in just 6 weeks, twice as fast as naturally-bred chickens would. Their breasts are so disproportionately heavy that they find it difficult to support their own weight. Once they reach maturity, it is not uncommon for them to die suddenly of a heart attack while running due to the excess weight.

With the egg-laying variety, the male chicks are separated from their sisters and discarded. The egg industry has no incentive to keep them, as they are viewed as taking up space that they are not worth. Egg-laying females are kept in wire cages a mere 20 inches wide, five to a cage, with no place to stretch their wings, move or even walk.

To prevent them from pecking each other, their beaks are cut off without any anaesthesia soon after birth. The beak is a very sensitive part and many die as a result of this cruel procedure, but this is considered a natural loss by the industry. The claws on their feet are often cut off for the same reason, leaving their feet and legs deformed. They are also kept in darkness for most of their lives to reduce aggression and to make them lay more eggs. These chickens have been bred to lay about 250 eggs a year, a tenfold increase from what they would produce in nature. As a result of the ensuing calcium depletion, their bones become brittle. When their egg production decreases, in about a year, they are taken to slaughter and used as chicken soup or pot pies, where their depleted bodies are ground or otherwise dismembered so that their bruises go unnoticed. The situation with the chickens is similar in India—rural India is now dotted with poultries, factory farms for chicken.