Animal activists branding themselves in support of animal rights

Members of the 269life movement are branding themselves with the numbers 269 in public protests to make their case for animal rights.

“The branding of the calf's number, chosen by the industry to be "269", is for us, an act of solidarity and immortalization,” the group says on its Facebook page.
The movement began last year in Tel Aviv. The group opposes the use of animals for food, research, or entertainment. Some critics believe that the group is going too far by branding themselves.

"Branding animals is a matter of identification. Doing it on humans is a disgrace," Dachau survivor Uri Hanoch told the Associated Press.

This kind of branding has not been practiced in the United States for several years. Pigs are typically marked with ink. Cattle and sheep are identified with ear tags in a process that some compare to ear piercing. Dairy farmers are turning to collars with electronic chips instead of heat branding to avoid distressing the animal.

Israeli police are investigating the group because of its apparent extremity.