PETA activists dress as 'crippled' chickens in downtown Winnipeg

People dressed up as chickens using wheelchairs, crutchesand walkerstoprotestthe way the birds are treated by themeat and dairy industries.

The costumed chickens were part of aPETArally outside the RBC Convention Centre on Monday indowntown Winnipeg, where theCanadian Poultry and Egg Processors Council was meeting

"Chickens raised and killed by the meat and dairy industries routinely endure miserable confinement, painfuldebeakingand rough handling that leads to broken wings and legs," stated a press release from theanimal rights organization.

"Chickens are individuals with personalities and the capacity to develop families and friendships, a chance every animal used by meat and egg industries is denied,"PETAexecutive vice president Tracy Reiman stated in the release.

"PETAis calling on caring people to spare chickens by swapping meat and eggs for cruelty-free vegan fare."

According toPETA,chickens killed for food are fed a steady diet of antibiotics and bred to grow so large that their legs snap under their weight. Chickens used for eggs are crammed into filthy cages so tiny that they're unable to lift a wing, and male chicks are killed because they're of no use to the egg industry.