Pidge the Chicken Is a Finalist in PETA’s ‘Make Your Chicken a Star’ Competition
Rescued Chicken Purrs, Loves Grapes, and ‘Dances’ When He Sees His Guardian
For Immediate Release:
November 21, 2019
Contact:
Megan Wiltsie 202-483-7382
The “top flock” of feathery finalists have been chosen in PETA’s first-ever “Make Your Chicken a Star” competition—and Pidge, a chicken who was rescued from a slaughterhouse-bound transport truck by local animal rights activist Amy Stewart, is among them. Voting is now open to the public to help determine the winner, who will be revealed on December 9.
In June, a truck carrying Pidge and thousands of other chickens crashed on Route 30 near Pigeon Run Avenue S.W. outside Brewster—and in the chaos that followed, a worker handed Pidge to Stewart, who had rushed to the scene. Pidge fell asleep in Stewart’s car as soon as he realized that he was safe, and when she took him home, he followed her everywhere, slept on her chest, and even won over her cat. While he now lives at a sanctuary, he always greets Stewart excitedly when she visits—especially when she brings grapes, his favorite treat. “I want people to understand just how smart these animals are,” she says. “They are amazingly empathetic, kind, and intelligent animals, and Pidge is definitely no exception.”
“Even though his early life was filled with suffering, Pidge’s loving, trusting, joyful spirit endured,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “All the brave, resilient chickens in PETA’s contest have unique personalities, value companionship and their own lives, and have formed an unbreakable bond with their loving guardians.”
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.
