First-Ever ‘Chicken Star Search’ Picks 10 Finalists

Pidge, Mr. Rooster, and Baba Are Among PETA’s ‘Top Flock’ of Companion Chickens

For Immediate Release:
November 18, 2019

Contact:
Nicole Meyer 202-483-7382

Ten feathery finalists have been chosen in PETA’s first-ever “Make Your Chicken a Star” competition—and charismatic chickens from Massachusetts, California, and several states in between are at the top of the pecking order. Voting is now open to the public to help determine the winner, who will be announced on December 9.

The finalists include Pidge, a spirited chicken who was rescued from a slaughterhouse-bound transport truck that crashed in Cleveland; Baba, a resilient bird who struggled to walk until his guardian fashioned a leg splint for him and massaged his feet every night; Dora, a hen who came from a factory farm that went out of business; and Mr. Rooster, who was destined for the dinner table but found himself adopted just in time and now enjoys life in rural California alongside several hens—and he always lets them eat before he does.

“PETA’s contest celebrates unique, intelligent chickens and the guardians who keep them safe, happy, and loved,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “Anyone who’s touched by these birds’ stories and sweet personalities should think twice about eating any other chickens, and PETA stands ready to help people go vegan.”

Rounding out the finalists are Daisy from Boylston, Massachusetts; Adello from Bristol, Rhode Island; Tubby and Junior from Flat Rock, Michigan; Becky from Wilmington, Ohio; and Opal from Prosperity, Pennsylvania. For photos and additional information about each finalist, please click here.

The winning chicken will be featured in a new PETA ad and in PETA Global magazine and will receive a gift basket stuffed with toys and treats, and the winner’s guardian will receive a framed award and prize pack that includes a T-shirt, a vegan cookbook, and more (plus bragging rights, of course).

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—opposes speciesism, which is a human-supremacist worldview. PETA will choose the winner based on several factors, including vote count. For more information, please visit PETA.org or click here.