MEDIA, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Linvilla Orchards finds itself in the hot seat as they work to comply with new welfare standards for birds.
“What we saw was terrible conditions for birds at Linvilla,” said PETA’s Willow Hecht.
Hecht says PETA gave a tip to the USDA, which led the agency to multiple inspections – one of which they found a dead chicken.
“They found animals being treated for a mysterious illness with medication that nobody had cleared with a veterinarian.”
They also found two turkeys and six chickens with “significant feather loss,” with no records of observations for any them, treatment records, or record of any bird deaths.
“Birds are not currently on the written program of veterinary care and there was no documentation birds with feather loss were being treated,” the report said.
According to the report, the bird caretaker stated the feather loss “was due to the normal breeding season,” which is May through August.
Linvilla’s Sarah Mills says the USDA’s reports on Linvilla came in late August and early September, soon after new federal guidelines were implemented on how to care for different birds.
“Since then, we brought out a bird specialist, a veterinarian who specifically deals with birds on an enrichment plan for the birds, so that has been implemented,” Mills said.
Mills says since they’re neither an animal farm or a zoo, they fall into a unique category when it comes to regulations, but try to go above and beyond to give their animals the best quality of life they otherwise would not have.
“USDA comes, out we welcome the feedback, because our goal here is the same for everybody. We want a safe clean and enriching environment,” Mills noted. “Every single note that they make on these reports is taken seriously and dealt with.
Mills says they’ll continue to work with the agency to make sure they are in compliance.