New USDA Rule Takes First Steps to Protect Birds; PETA Celebrates

For Immediate Release:
February 17, 2023

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

It’s been a long road, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has now finalized rules that establish minimum standards for humane handling, care, treatment, and transportation standards for birds who are not bred for use in research and whom Congress added to the federal Animal Welfare Act more than 20 years ago. Below, please find a statement from PETA Foundation General Counsel for Captive Animal Law Enforcement Brittany Peet:

Although PETA celebrates today’s news that the USDA has finally provided birds with some protections, these long-overdue standards fall far short of addressing their unique needs, such as requiring adequate space for flight. PETA will continue to campaign for stronger safeguards and will be watching closely to ensure that the USDA is, at the very least, enforcing these new regulations.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org, listen to The PETA Podcast, or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.