Rabbis cry 'fowl' on ritual use of chickens - Israel Jewish Scene, Ynetnews

Rabbis cry 'fowl' on ritual use of chickens - Israel Jewish Scene, Ynetnews: "profession, claims that in light of the welfare crisis in this country it is better to think of more efficient ways to practice Kapparot: “Needy people, who once received the slaughtered chicken, would today prefer a cooked and prepared chicken, and would always prefer money. In many cases the chickens are not given to poor people, but are cruelly tossed to the side.' As a child, Vanderbrook experienced Kapparot and to this day, she claims that she will never forget the sights and sounds. “We would buy chickens a few days before Yom Kippur and they would wander through our garden,” she retells, “Before Yom Kippur the butcher would arrive and I would go to my room and hide under the covers in order to not hear the cries of the chickens. It was a difficult and cruel experience. Children who are exposed to this custom either become cruel adults or are traumatized. Vanderbrook agrees with Rabbi Kariv that it is not just the slaughter that is unacceptable, but also the manner in which the birds are treated. “Next to my house in Jerusalem there are chicken cages scattered around without water,’ she tells ‘The chickens are brought to the slaughter in cramped cages without water in the broiling sun. Half of them die on the way. No one thinks that these poor creatures deserve to live on the way to their death. “Unfortunately I think that it will be very hard to eradicate this custom in the Ultra-Orthodox community” Vanderbrook pessimistically summarizes, “But I am appealing "