Vegetarian Star

Farm Rescue

Games involving vegetarian or animal issues make you feel less bad about sitting on the couch all the day long playing them.

Farm Rescue, a new application on Facebook designed by activist Mark Middleton (who’s created similarly themed tech projects like a USA animal slaughter rate widget) allows users to rescue virtual hens from battery cages while educating family and friends on the inhumane conditions these birds must endure in real life.

Mercy for Animals had the opportunity to interview Middleton. A few highlights:

On what inspired Farm Rescue:
“Sometime last year I learned that some of the most popular social games on platforms like Facebook and iPhone were farming games. The goal of these games was to earn money to buy things by growing crops and maintaining herds of animals, and many of them are based on the “Old McDonald’s farm” stereotype of farms where animals roam around in the yard and are happy. In some of the games, you can “harvest” the animals without even killing them, which somewhat reinforces the denial that most people have about what really happens to animals on farms.”

Why egg laying hens were chosen:
“More animals die per human-edible calorie gained from eggs than for any other food except for chicken meat, and the intensive confinement of chickens in battery cages probably causes more suffering than any other factory farming practice. I believe that putting an end to battery-cage confinement is an extremely urgent priority in the protection of animals, and that it is a goal that is within reach in our lifetime.”

Read entire interview.

Possibly Related Posts:

• Jon Stewart and Wife Tracey Stewart Adopt Horse
• Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Elephants Retire To Sanctuary
• SeaWorld Phasing Out Whale Breeding Program
• Best Vegetarian Stories Of 2015
• Morrissey Adds Vegan Touch To First In-Person Interview In Decade On “Larry King Now” (Video)