Animal Protection Advocates Support Meghan and Harry

They rescued some of the most abused animals on earth and showed how to use media power to help them

Meghan and Harry rescued some of the most abused animals on the planet, chickens.

There were many bombshells in the Oprah interview with Harry and Meghan, some of them heartbreaking and infuriating but there was one revelation that delighted animal protection advocates around the world. It was the segment that was filmed in “Archie’s Chick Inn,” the family’s chicken coop. There, we saw Prince Harry, born to a family that murders animals for fun, indoctrinated as a child into the culture of trophy hunting, kneel down and actually cuddle a chicken. He didn’t look awkward; he wasn’t posing, he looked like he was enjoying himself. With a chicken.

Even better, we learned that their hens, living like winged princesses in Montecito, were rescued from a factory farm. Harry and Meghan might not yet be vegans, but 17 million viewers, most of them who habitually eat abused chickens, got to see some liberated hens and as a bonus, got a lesson in empathy. There is no doubt this was deliberate. They had to plan it. Meghan and Harry wanted their chicken coop filmed because it doesn’t merely make them look good, it shows that liberating chickens is a kind thing to do. Even if some mean people claim this was a manipulative ruse to appear ethical, the act of rescuing “fryers” or egg laying hens and building them such a lovely home means the world to those winged individuals.

For the animal liberation community, the Oprah interview was an extraordinary success for how the couple subtly and skillfully raised awareness for the most abused animals in the world. More chickens are raised and killed for food than all other land animals combined, yet not a single federal law protects them from abuse — even though most Americans say that they would support such a law. Every year, the food industry murders over 66 billion chickens. I have investigated factory farms and have seen how chickens suffer, even in so-called “free-range” factories. Hens are the sweetest animals and once you get to know them, they can be as affectionate as dogs and are very intelligent. The suffering they endure in factory farms is abominable. It was heartwarming to see such happy hens at Harry and Meghan’s.

To learn more, watch a hen rescue I participated in below:

There is joy in Meghan and Harry’s chicken coop and the fact that the couple named it “Archie’s Chick Inn” is not only adorable but it says a lot about the couple. It broadcasts that they are teaching Archie to appreciate, nurture and respect animals. It means that Harry has evolved from his trophy hunting days where he used to pose smiling in front of a “kill.” The entire world watched Harry having an affectionate moment with a hen, smiling at her, feeding her, knowing that this hen had been tortured in a factory farm.

In another sweet moment of the Oprah interview, we see Meghan’s senior dog enjoying a stroll on the beach with her son. That dog was rescued from a kill shelter. And later on, during the conversation when Oprah asked him about how life was going, Harry said, “well, the dogs are happy!” The dogs’ state of mind, their happiness, is included in their new life. Chew on that.

Haters, trolls and racists will say whatever they want but these hens are better off at Archie’s Chick Inn in Montecito than at the dining room table (dead on plates) at Buckingham Palace. And they’re free to mingle with their friends, warm sun on their faces. Meghan, Harry and Archie are better off too. Free, happy, loving life and each other.