Holly Spindler
THL UK stands with Animal Law Foundation against Government’s plan to legalise chicken suffering.
In a move that has sparked outrage across the animal protection community, the UK Government is planning to legalise the cruel and unnecessary practice of catching chickens by their legs—a method that causes immense suffering, despite clear alternatives.
This shocking development comes despite longstanding UK law which states animals must not be lifted or handled in ways that cause unnecessary suffering.
Catching chickens by their legs and carrying them upside down can cause fear, pain, breathing difficulties, and serious injuries such as dislocations and fractures. In animals that are already impacted by the horrors of factory farming, this practice is incredibly harmful, and unnecessary.
Upright catching—lifting birds by the body rather than the legs—is a proven, less painful, and more humane alternative. It reduces stress, injury, and suffering. There is no justifiable reason to continue inflicting pain on millions of animals every year when kinder, better methods are available.
In 2021, THL UK joined forces with the Animal Law Foundation to raise the alarm on this unlawful and inhumane practice. We wrote to Defra to demand change. In response, the Government's Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) reviewed the issue—but what followed only deepened our concern.
In February 2024, the AWC acknowledged the serious animal welfare harms of leg-catching, admitting it is a “welfare compromise” that causes “pain, discomfort and breathing difficulty.”
And yet, astonishingly, it still recommended allowing the practice to continue.
Then, in October 2024, the Labour Government confirmed plans to amend the law to legalise this very cruelty. Let’s be clear: this would be the first deliberate dilution of EU-derived animal welfare standards since Brexit—despite repeated assurances that our laws would not backslide.
This outrageous decision by the Government will ensure that millions of animals continue to needlessly suffer and is completely at odds with Labour’s pledge to introduce the biggest boost in animal welfare for a generation.
~ Sean Gifford, The Humane League UK Managing Director
We must not let the Government get away with diluting laws that are there for a reason: to protect animals from harm.
Now, the Animal Law Foundation is taking the Government to court through a Judicial Review—and THL UK is proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them.
Meanwhile, Defra has launched a public consultation on the proposed change, closing in early May. We’ve already submitted our response, making it clear: changing the law to allow cruelty is not acceptable.
We’re urging animal lovers in the UK to speak up. Legalising this suffering sets a dangerous precedent—and we must not let it happen. This is not only about chickens and this specific issue—it’s about whether our laws exist to protect animals or to serve industry interests. It's about whether we, as a nation of animal lovers, will choose compassion or complicity.
Join us in standing up for animals.
