Meat

Grand sage Nombre de messages : 1492 Date d'inscription : 24/09/2011

EMERGENCY – PLEASE WRITE TO COMMISSIONER DALLI NOWPlease insert your data and click on Send and the message below will be forwarded in your name to Commissioner Dalli.

http://www.8hours.eu/letter_to_dalli/

If you want to send a personal message, you can write to cab-dalli-webpage@ec.europa.eu

If you want to make your message even more effective sending it by post, this is the Commissioner's address:

Mr John Dalli

European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy
European Commission
B - 1049 Brussels
Belgium

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Address

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Dear Commissioner John Dalli,

On the 8hours website I listened to your statement in which, on Thursday 7 June 2012, you announced that 'by 2014 the Commission will publish a legislative proposal'. This proposal, according to what you said, would include animal transport. As you told the delegation of MEPs and animal welfare organisations in the meeting that preceded the hand-in of the 1,103,248 signatures of the 8hours petition, this proposal should lead to reductions in transport times too. You know that such steps are necessary, and you publicly affirmed in the press conference conference on that same day that 'some species of animals require a much lower figure than 8 hours'.

You then denied your own words less than a week later!

How can European citizens trust their institutions if their opinion - and that of their elected representatives - can be so blatantly disregarded, and if there are even attempts to claim that those words were never pronounced?

Commissioner Dalli, it is my understanding that the European Commission has a duty to represent the interests of all European citizens, not just those of a few people who profit from animal suffering.

In your specific role as Commissioner responsible for animal welfare, you should feel compelled to do your best to put into practice the mandate of Article 13 of the EU Treaty that says that 'In formulating and implementing the Union's agriculture (...) policies, the Union and the Member States shall, since animals are sentient beings, pay full regard to the welfare requirements of animals (...)'.

You are aware of the fact that some rules have been in place for over 20 years and never been enforced. One more promise that they will be enforced in the future - rather than a commitment to change them, and especially to limit transport times - is simply not credible, and fails to tackle the huge problems suffered by transported animals on European roads. It is also offensive to all Europeans who care about animal welfare.

I am therefore writing to you to ask that you not only maintain the laudable commitment you made publicly on 7 June on the occasion of the hand-in of the 8hours petition, but commit yourself to bringing forward effective legislative proposals before 2014, taking into account the mandate of Art. 13 of the Treaty, and respecting the right of European citizens to be fully represented by their institutions.

Yours faithfully

Grand sage Nombre de messages : 1492 Date d'inscription : 24/09/2011

8 hours is more than enough! explains why a reliance on proper enforcement of the existing rules is unlikely ever to be effective, because most of the rules have been in existence for almost 20 years and have never been properly enforced throughout the EU.
Furthermore, the publication explains why even a full enforcement of the existing rules would not solve the huge problems that are inherent in long-distance live animal transport.

8 hours is more than enough! Read it below or download for free here.

1
Over 1 Million EU citizens signed the 8hours petition, asking for a limit on
transport times for animals destined for slaughter to an overall maximum of
8 hours. The European Parliament adopted a Written Declaration in support
of the 8 hour limit. It’s time to stop long-distance live transport in Europe.
EUROPE CALLS FOR AN END
TO LONG-DISTANCE
TRANSPORTS OF LIVE ANIMALS!
8 hou r s
i s mor e tha n e nough!
2
Written by: Christine Hafner, Julia Havenstein, Adolfo Sansolini
Design: Barbara Flammang | Go Hero! S.L.
Photo copyright: Animals’ Angels unless stated otherwise.
Many thanks to Sheelagh Graham for her valuable help.
All rights reserved. Reproduction and dissemination of material in this publication for educational or other noncommercial
purposes are authorised without any prior written permission from the copyright holders provided the
source is fully acknowledged. Reproduction of material in this information product for resale or other commercial
purposes is prohibited without written permission of the copyright holders.
Applications for such permission should be addressed to:
Animals’ Angels – 8hours
Rossertstrasse 8
D-60323 Frankfurt a. Main
Germany
or by e-mail to:
8hours@animals-angels.de
© Animals’ Angels 2012
www.8hours.eu
ISBN 978-3-9814946-6-2
€ 2.00
8 hours is more than enough!
3
For 15 years, Animals’ Angels has monitored animal transport throughout
Europe. We have exposed the brutality of many people handling animals
in markets and during transport. We have documented the widespread ignorance
of relevant legislation and brought the perpetrators to court. We
trained several thousand of European police officers how to enforce the law
which regulates animal transportation. And we found that there is an inherent
unavoidable suffering when animals are shipped for more than 8 hours.
Animals’ Angels therefore advocates a limited transport time for farm animals
and asks the competent authorities at the EU and Member State level
to adopt a legally binding 8 hours limit for all animal transportation. Animals’
Angels speaks out for many concerned citizens throughout Europe
who share our ethical belief that all animals have a right to be treated with
respect and consideration and not pushed beyond their physical limits for
reasons of profit.
Christa Blanke
Founder of Animals’ Angels.
Dan Jørgensen,
Danish MEP
Members of the European Parliament have called for new EU rules to secure
better conditions for the millions of animals transported for slaughter on the
European highways every year. But nothing has happened even though we
have been promised action by the two previous commissioners responsible
for animal welfare, Markos Kyprianou (2004-2008) and Androulla Vasiliou
(2008-2010); both have stated publicly to the European Parliament that they
would put forward a revision of the existing rules for animal transports, but
they didn’t deliver. This is disrespectful behaviour from the Commission
towards the elected members of our house.
The present commissioner for animal welfare John Dalli recently published
an evaluation of animal transport legislation. Although this evaluation revealed
big problems in the existing rules, the commissioner has so far refused
to change the legislation.
It is thus time to take matters into our own hands. We want a revision of the
legislation and we want an 8-hour limit on the animal transports. I hope that
you will take the time to read this brochure and support the actions in the
European institutions aimed at establishing a maximum 8-hour limit so we
can make it happen.
We have great public support for our demand. On the website www.8hours.
eu we have gathered well over 1 million signatures against long animal
transports.
4
The 8hours campaign was launched jointly by Animals’
Angels - an international organization which
has documented hundreds of cases of severe suffering
endured by animals transported on long distance
journeys - together with Danish MEP Dan Jørgensen.
The aim of the initiative is to bring an end
to this additional and totally unnecessary suffering of
farmed animals. Animals transported for the purpose
of slaughter must not be transported for more than
8 hours. Destinations must be planned within this
transport time.
It is the current EU legislation itself (Council
Regulation (EC) No 1/2005) which lays down the
basic principle that journeys for animals “shall
not exceed eight hours”. The previous legislation,
Council Directive 91/628/EEC as amended, stipulated
the same basic principle. So why is it still possible
to carry out long-distance transports, i.e. transports
exceeding eight hours? The answer is simple: the current,
as well as the previous legislation, provide many
pages of derogations and long-distance transports
are carried out on the basis of these derogations.
It should also be emphasized that the time period of
8 hours was chosen by the EU legislators themselves.
In fact Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 even defines
“long journeys” as “journeys exceeding 8 hours”.
The 8hours campaign wants to see these long journeys
brought to an end and the basic principle of the
legislation come into effect.
The first step of the 8hours campaign was to collect
one million signatures. The response of the EU citizens
was amazing. The target was not only reached
but substantially exceeded: By February 2012, the
8hours petition had collected nearly 1,100,000 signatures
– either through the website www.8hours.eu
or on petition forms.
Over one million citizens are asking the European
institutions to take action against the
biggest problem related to live animal transport:
the length of the journey. The enforcement of
the existing rules is not enough, if long-distance
journeys are not brought to an end.
8hours campaign www.8hours.eu
The 8hours petition is not a European Citizens’ Initiative1,
because it would have not been legally possible
to launch it before 1st April 2012, but it gathered the
support of a greater number of citizens than required
by the ECI. If the Commission decides to ignore this
call, it would damage the credibility of tools such as
the ECI: citizens could become even more disillusioned
and ask whether EU institutions care about
their opinion.

1

Grand sage Nombre de messages : 1492 Date d'inscription : 24/09/2011

JULY 24 2012

mals in Massachusetts
by Alicia Graef
July 25, 2012
11:30 pm
80 comments
03004.get causes updates
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.Massachusetts is currently considering legislation that would bring about improved changes to some of the standard industry practices used in the state with the Massachusetts Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act (H458/S786).

There are currently thousands of animals who spend their lives in cages and crates so small they can’t even enjoy the simple pleasures of moving, stretching or turning around. Despite its inherent cruelty, intensive confinement of egg-laying hens in battery cages, calves in veal crates and sows in gestation crates continues to cause suffering to animals who are forced to live on large-scale farms.

The proposed legislation, sponsored by representative Jason Lewis and Senator Katherine Clark , would end the cruel practice of intensive confinement for sows and calves, sows and egg-laying hens by banning gestation crates, veal crates and battery cages and imposing “a penalty for the confinement of farm animals in a manner that does not allow them to turn around freely, lie down, stand up, and fully extend their limbs.”

Violations would result in a misdemeanor with a fine up to $1000, up to 180 days in jail, or both.

According to a joint letter released by the animal advocacy groups that support this legislation, “there is overwhelming support for farm animal welfare in Massachusetts. For example, 89 percent of voters said they would support legislation to prohibit intensive confinement systems. H458/S786 will protect our local agricultural brand, local family farmers, and the animals under our care; while preserving consumers’ interest in the well-being of farm animals.”

TAKE ACTION!

This bill must be passed by July 31, so please sign the petition asking Massachusetts legislators to join the other states that have already taken a stand against intensive confinement and support the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/help-protect-farm-animals-in-massachusetts.html#ixzz21kdgwXb2

Grand sage Nombre de messages : 1492 Date d'inscription : 24/09/2011

JULY 2 2012

Sodexo: Stop Abusing Pigs And ChickensPETITION CLOSED The time period for signing this petition has ended.

Embed Get more signatures on this petition:Add this widget to your website or blog. Customize your petition widget below:Width300px 250px 220px 180px 150px ColorRoyal Blue Blue Black Red Green Orange Purple Pink Forest Green Yellow Gray Brown Grab the embed code and paste it into your blog or website<div id="change_BottomBar"><span id="change_Powered"><a href="http://www.change.org/" target="_blank">Change.org</a></span><a>|</a><span id="change_Start"><a href='http://www.change.org/start-a-petition'>How to Start a Petition</a></span></div>
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Help / Feedback Signatures
3,338 out of 5,000 Petitioning
Sodexo (+ 3 others)
Petitioningclose Sodexo Sodexo Sodexo Sodexo
Created By
Lindsey Adams
Philadelphia, PA About this Petition Petition Letter Petition Updates
As someone attending a university with a Sodexo-run dining operation, I’m disappointed by where our food comes from. There are few things we do on a daily basis that reflect our core values more than the food we choose to consume. While on a college campus, there’s a trust students have that the food offered will be as healthy, sustainable, safe, and humane as possible. Sodexo betrayed and continues to betray this very trust.

Sodexo is one of the largest food service companies in the country, with the dining operations everywhere from Disney to NASA to Louisiana State University to Ford. With all that power comes responsibility, and I have to wonder why Sodexo supports cruel confinement of pigs and hens.

Most of the eggs Sodexo serves its customers come precracked in the liquid form. Virtually all of these eggs come from hens confined in tiny cages that are so cramped the birds can’t even spread their wings. Each of these hens is given less space than a single sheet of paper on which to live for her entire life.

Virtually all of Sodexo’s bacon, sausage, and ham come from pork suppliers that confine pregnant breeding pigs inside crates so narrow the animals can’t even turn around. These pigs are immobilized for their entire lives, often up to four years. This abuse is so cruel it has been banned throughout the entire European Union and eight U.S. states. In fact Compass Group, Sodexo’s primary competitor, recently announced it’s eliminating all of pork products that come from operations that use gestation crates by 2017.

Dr. Temple Grandin, perhaps the most famous animal scientist in the country, strongly opposes gestation crates stating “I feel very strongly that we've got to treat animals right, and the gestation stalls have got to go,” she says. Explaining further that, “gestation crates for pigs are a real problem....Basically, you’re asking a sow to live in an airline seat. I think it’s something that needs to be phased out.”

Aside from being cruel to animals, this abusive factory farming practice is bad for workers and rural communities (due to the noxious fumes stemming from millions of confined animals), bad for the environment (due to the air, water, and soil pollution from the factory farms), and bad for food safety (due to the unhygienic conditions forced upon the animals).

Sodexo should stop greenwashing and live up to its proclaimed social responsibility standards. The company should immediately switch its liquid eggs to cage-free (which means the hens weren’t confined in cages) and pork from operations that don’t confine pigs in gestation crates.

Grand sage Nombre de messages : 1492 Date d'inscription : 24/09/2011

Over 130 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs)
have expressed their support for 8hours publicly (see
www.8hours.eu/supporters/).
Over 100 organizations all over Europe are supporting
this campaign.
As a second step in the 8hours campaign, in November
2011 five MEPs - Dan Jørgensen (S&D, Denmark),
Esther de Lange (EPP, Netherlands), Pavel
Poc (S&D, Czech Republic), Carl Schlyter (Greens,
Sweden) and Andrea Zanoni (ALDE, Italy) - tabled
Written Declaration 49/2011 'on the establishment of
a maximum 8-hour journey limit for animals transported
in the European Union for the purpose of being
slaughtered'.
WD 49/2011 is directly linked to the 8 hours campaign.
It was adopted by the European Parliament on
15 March 2012 with the signatures of over half of the
MEPs (395) from all 27 Member States and all political
parties. It ‘calls on the Commission and the Council
to review Regulation 1/2005 to establish a maximum
8-hour limit for the journeys of animals transported for
the purpose of being slaughtered’.
More initiatives will follow on the way to changing
the current legislation towards an 8-hours maximum
transport time limit. Through investigations, Parliamentary
Questions, institutional contacts and media
reports, the dreadful reality of long-distance live
transport will be brought to light until this long-awaited
reform is achieved.
5
Council Directive 91/628/EEC which came into force
in 1993 was replaced by Council Regulation (EC) No
1/2005 in 2007. The new legislation covers transport of
vertebrate animals by road, rail, sea and air but it only
brought slight improvement regarding the protection of
animals on board the trucks. First and foremost Council
Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 fails to make much-needed
improvements to key provisions such as journey
times and space allowances. In fact it still permits
commercial transports of live animals, including animals
transported for the purpose of being slaughtered,
over long and very long distances across all
of Europe and to Third Countries.
Currently horses, other equines and pigs may be transported
for 24 hours, then have a 24-hour rest period and
then start another 24-hours period of transport, and so
on; cattle, sheep and goats can be transported for 14
hours, then should have a 1-hour rest on board the vehicle,
before being transported for a further 14 hours,
then have a 24-hour rest and then start another 14 hours
transport and on and on; unweaned calves, lambs, foals
and piglets can be transported for 9 hours, then have a
1-hour rest, then be transported for 9 hours, then have a
24-hour rest, and then start again. These cycles can be
repeated indefinitely.
Although Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 already
says that journeys for animals “shall not exceed eight
hours”, and the previous legislation, Council Directive
91/628/EEC as amended by Council Directive 95/29/EC,
stipulated the same basic principle, many pages of derogations
permit long-distance transports to continue. It
is time to bring these derogations to an end and to
comply with the 8-hour principle adopted by EU legislators
almost 20 years ago!
The European Parliament has already called for
a limitation of transport times to a maximum of 8
hours in 20012, as well as in 20033.
Previous and current legislation
1-hour rest on board
the vehicle
1-hour rest on board
the vehicle
Transport
14 hours
Transport
24 hours
No time limit!
Transport
14 hours
Transport
9 hours
Transport
9 hours
Rest
24 hours
Rest
24 hours
Rest
24 hours
These cycles can be repeated
indefinitely!
Unweaned calves, lambs, foals and piglets
Cattle, sheep and goats:
Horses, other equines and pigs:
Rabbits and poultry:
6
The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
(TFEU), part of the Lisbon Treaty, came into force on 1st
December 2009 after having been ratified by all twentyseven
Member States. It is one of two Treaties that define
the European Union.
According to Article 13 TFEU, animals are sentient
beings who must be respected in the EU decision
making process and full regard has to be paid to their
welfare requirements. The Lisbon Treaty re-affirms the
European Union's commitment to animal welfare and
creates an explicit duty of care regarding animal welfare
under EU law. This means that the EU and its Member
States have to pay full regard to animal welfare in
policies relating, inter alia, to transport, agriculture and
internal market.
Nevertheless, this avowed goal of broad animal protection
and welfare is still too often not reflected in the European
legislation on the protection of “farm” animals. EU
legislation on the protection of “farm” animals regularly
disregards the so called “Five Freedoms” which are considered
as the basis of the EU animal welfare policy:
 Freedom from Hunger and Thirst
 Freedom from Discomfort
 Freedom from Pain, Injury or Disease
 Freedom to Express Normal Behaviour
 Freedom from Fear and Distress
The possibly most hotly debated matter in this regard,
and an issue about which European citizens are most
concerned, is the EU-legislation on the Protection of
Animals during Transport. This European Regulation
still permits commercial transports of live animals
over very long distances across all of Europe and to
Third Countries. This is in spite of the fact that scientific
research and empirical investigations give persuasive
evidence that animals do suffer on long journeys, and
moreover prove that animal suffering is unavoidable in
long journeys. In long-distance live transport the Five
Freedoms are constantly violated.
Extensive documentation on Animals’ Angels investigations
on the road showing the suffering of
animals during long-distance transports can be requested
at 8hours@animals-angels.de.
The Lisbon Treaty requires a ban
on long-distance transports
Continuing to permit commercial longdistance
transports of live animals in the EU
would be a breach of Article 13 TFEU.
Picture
The five MEP promoters of Written Declaration 49/2011, in Strasbourg on the day of its adoption:
Andrea Zanoni, Dan Jørgensen, Esther de Lange, Carl Schlyter, Pavel Poc (photo: Klara Subrtova)
7
Suffering due to
Injuries and Pain
It regularly happens that animals get injured during longdistance
transports. This has multiple causes:
 animals get stuck with their legs between the
sides of the vehicle and the floor of the decks
 animals get stuck between the dividers and
the bottom of the lorry
 cattle get stuck with their horns between the
ventilation openings
 animals who are lying down are trampled on
and injured by other animals standing
on them
 animals get injured when stress leads to fights
as often happens with pigs or horses
 animals lose balance in the moving vehicle
(due to braking, curves, mountains etc.)
 etc.
In the majority of the cases, treatment is not possible
during transport and often the injury remains undetected
until arrival at the final destination.
Long-distance transport, August 2011
Animals’ Angels observes a bull loaded on the top deck
who has his foot caught in the side of the lorry and
cannot get up. On Animals’ Angels demand the drivers
manage to free the bull’s foot, but the bull is still not
able to stand up. He is severely salivating and appears
apathetic. 7 hours later the animal transport still has not
continued the journey. The distance to the destination
is still approx. 1,000 km, an estimated remaining transport
time of at least 14 hours. It should be noted that
the vehicle observed was a modern standard vehicle as
commonly used for animal transports. It regularly happens
in practice that animals get trapped by their legs
when the hydraulic decks of the vehicles are moved,
mainly during loading. This problem can occur during
long as well as during short distance transports, but the
consequences are more severe in long-distance transports,
simply because the animals have to suffer for a
much longer time.’
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from injuries and pain.
It is impossible to achieve an acceptable level of animal protection during long-distance transport due to factors
which are – in practice - unavoidable, such as:
Animal suffering is inherent in
long-distance transports
8
Long-distance transport, 2009
The watering devices are out of reach for the pigs. The
driver had placed the hydraulic decks of the vehicle in
such a way that the watering devices were parallel to
the side construction of the vehicle; thus the pigs had no
access to water. The vehicle travelled a distance of approx.
1,250 km, an estimated transport time of at least
18 hours. This is a practical problem inherent in longdistance
transports. The decks of most vehicles used for
long-distance transports are hydraulic in order to facilitate
loading and unloading procedures and in order to adapt
the deck height to the height of the animals. There is no
way to guarantee that the drivers during loading place the
decks in a way that allows the animals access to the watering
devices. While this does not have consequences
during short distance transports (as there is usually no
necessity to water the animals), the consequences during
long-distance transports are severe.
Long-distance transport, 2009
Watering devices for sheep, dirty and blocked with excrements
so that the sheep could not use it during this
long-distance transport. The transport covered a distance
of approx. 1,974 km, an estimated transport time
of at least 28 hours. This is a practical problem inherent
in long-distance transports. There is no way in practice
to guarantee that the drivers regularly inspect and clean
the watering devices during transport; furthermore the
watering devices are often placed in a way that makes it
impossible to properly reach and clean them from outside
the vehicle. While this does not have consequences
during short distance transports (as there is usually no
necessity to water the animals), the consequences during
long-distance transports are severe.
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from thirst
and dehydration.
Thirst and dehydration
Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 requires that the
means of transport used for journeys exceeding 8 hours
must be equipped with a water system and watering
devices appropriately designed and positioned for the
animal species being transported. The aim of this legal
requirement is to ensure that the animals’ minimum
need of water during transport is met. However, during
its investigations on the road Animals’ Angels regularly
observes watering systems which are
 simply not functioning
 out of the reach for the animals
 so filthy that the animals cannot use them
 not usable by the animals because the animals are
not used to the system and don’t know how to operate
it
 insufficient with regard to the number of drinking devices
in relation to the number of animals transported
 frozen during periods of very low temperatures
 connected to water tanks whose capacity is too low
to satisfy the increased need for water of the animals
during periods of high temperatures
 inaccessible by a large number of the animals due to
the limited space on the vehicle and the associated
limited possibilities of movement
9
Hunger: Unweaned animals
cannot be supplied with
adequate liquid on board
the vehicle
Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 requires that unweaned
animals are given adequate liquid in between
two transport periods of 9 hours each. This concerns
mainly unweaned calves as these animals are transported
in large numbers over long distances. It is, however,
impossible to feed unweaned calves adequately
on board the truck: these animals cannot properly use
the drinking devices (bite nipples) commonly installed
on trucks; it is not possible to work the commonly
used drinking systems with the liquid necessary for
unweaned calves; heating up the liquid – as it would
be necessary for this category of animals - is also not
possible on regular road vehicles; above all, however,
in order to guarantee that each animal drinks and
that each animal drinks the correct amount of liquid,
it would be necessary to feed them by hand one by
one – this, however, is not feasible on board the truck.
Consequently unweaned animals do regularly suffer
from feed/liquid deprivation during long-distance
transports4.
The Technical Report “Project to develop animal welfare
risk assessment guidelines on transport” submitted
to EFSA (2009) provides the scientific basis for this
by stating: “During transport it is technically impossible
to feed calves on board of the vehicle with milk
or milk replacer”5.
Consequently in all transports of unweaned calves
checked by Animals’ Angels during its investigations,
in which the vehicle’s system of providing liquid
was examined it turned out to be inadequate for unweaned
calves.
The longer the journey the more intense the level of the problem becomes.
Long-distance transport, 2011
These unweaned calves of less than 4 weeks of age were
transported on a long distance journey even though it
is commonly known that it is technically impossible to
supply unweaned animals with adequate liquid on board
trucks (as required by Regulation (EC) No 1/2005). Thus
these animals suffered from lack of feed/liquid during
this long-distance transport. This problem is inherent in
long-distance transports – it is not avoidable in practice
as long as long-distance transports are permitted.
Long-distance transport, 2009
200 unweaned calves of 4-6 weeks of age are transported
over a distance of approx. 2,550 km from northeast
Europe to southwest Europe even though it is commonly
known that it is technically impossible to supply
unweaned animals with adequate liquid on board trucks
(as required by Regulation (EC) No 1/2005).
10
Suffering due to heat and
cold stress
Significant temperature fluctuations are part of longdistance
transport: pigs are transported from Northern
Europe to Southern Europe, small ruminants and
horses are transported from Eastern Europe to the
South, heifers and “dairy” cows are transported from
Northern Europe to Africa, pigs are transported from
Central Europe to Russia, etc. It is self–evident that
during these long journeys large-scale and extreme
temperature fluctuations are unavoidable. Temperature
fluctuations are a major stress factor for the animals
during transport.
“Temperatures which are too low or too high
cause stress, which can lead to disease and
even death if it is severe or prolonged”.6
In animal transport vehicles fans are commonly the only
forced, i.e. mechanical, ventilation system. These sys-
The longer the transport takes, the more likely it is that the animals experience big
temperature variations and the longer the animals suffer from heat or cold stress.
Long-distance transport, 2010
Pigs suffering from heat stress during long-distance
transport at 31°C external temperature and ventilation
system working at full capacity. High temperatures
causing immense suffering to the animals are inherent in
long-distance transports.
tems are not capable of reducing or increasing the temperature.
Therefore, heat suffering cannot be remedied
during long-distance transport. In cases of very low temperatures,
in addition to the suffering from cold stress,
generally the water supply is not available due to frozen
water systems. Furthermore, there is a danger of frostbite
when the animals come in cotact with the frozen sides of
the truck.
In none of the long-distance transports observed by
Animals’ Angels since 2007 were the vehicles used
equipped with a ventilation system which allowed the
temperature to be adjusted.
Practical experience shows that animal suffering due
to high or very low temperatures cannot be avoided
during long-distance transport.
11
Suffering due to insuffcient
ceiling height
Insufficient headroom above the animals during transport
is a frequent problem and a major factor causing
severe animal suffering.
The Technical report submitted to EFSA confirms Animals’
Angels observations and states that “too low
deck height” can cause prolonged thirst, thermal
discomfort, locomotion problems, injuries, disease
and behavioural disorders in mammals7.
The unnatural and stooped posture caused by insufficient
ceiling height prevents the animals from maintaining
their balance; the risk of falling down during
transport and thus the risk of injuries and also of having
difficulties to stand up again increases. If the animals
are forced to remain in an unnatural posture for
many hours, general pain as well as exhaustion and
muscle fatigue, which may cause the animals to fall
down, frequently occur and injuries or wounds on
their heads or backs are not rare. Furthermore, the
disease susceptibility increases significantly.
An insufficient height above the animals´ backs and
heads also prevents effective ventilation, in particular
it prevents adequate temperature regulation and removal
of ammonia gases. The presence of strong ammonia
gases and dense air conditions leads to respiratory
disorders which provoke anxiety and fear8, leads to
coughing and increases the susceptibility to illness and
disease. Moreover, animals may not be able to reach
feeding and drinking devices during long journeys since
changes of position may be impossible or painful when
the animals’ backs are rubbing against the ceiling.
Where ceiling heights are too low an adequate inspection
of the animals is made impossible9.
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from not being able
to stand upright and from insufficient ventilation.
Long-distance transport, 2010
Lambs transported on 4 decks from Eastern to Southern
Europe over approx. 21 hours. The animals were not able
to stand in a natural upright position and the ventilation
was severely compromised. This problem has been constantly
observed in practice for many years.
12
Suffering due to
insufficient space
Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 provides tables
with minimum space requirements for equines, cattle,
sheep, goats and pigs. Practice has shown that
the minimum space requirements indicated in the
Regulation’s tables are insufficient to allow the animals
 to lie down and rest without being trampled on by
other animals
 to stand up again
 to move adequately
 to have access to the watering devices
 to be able to regulate their body temperatures
 to be inspected and cared for
Long-distance Transport, 2010
Insufficient space for animals to lie down and rest comfortably.
They risk being trampled on by their companions
and not being able to stand up again - even though
loading density during this long-distance transport corresponds
to the minimum space required by tables of
current legislation on animal welfare during transport.
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from insufficient space.
This leads to severe animal suffering and can even
lead to injuries, disease and death on long-distance
journeys.
In practice even these space allowances are ignored
in numerous cases.
13
Lack of infrastructure for
cases of emergency
On many occasions in recent years Animals’ Angels
teams faced situations in which checks on road transport
of live animals resulted in the urgent need to unload
the animals from the vehicle. Especially in cases where
such emergency situations occur during night-time and
at weekends it often turns out to be very difficult - or impossible
- to carry out the necessary unloading. In the
cases where emergency unloading is carried out it often
takes many hours, which prolongs the animals’ suffering.
The reasons are various:
 official veterinary service not reachable by police authorities
 no emergency unloading facility available
Long-distance Transport, 2010
At the request of Animals’ Angels this long-distance
transport was checked by the authorities after more
than 20 hours of transport. The official veterinarian ordered
the urgent unloading of the sheep because several
were in very alarming condition. However, the nearest
possible place for unloading was reached only after
9 more hours of transport. During emergency unloading
one dead sheep and four sheep that were unable
to walk were observed, as well as sheep with mastitis,
severe eye inflammations and limping animals.
 no control post located at a reasonable distance
 control posts (claiming to be) fully booked and therefore
not capable of accepting the animals
 control posts not equipped to accommodate the particular
species transported (example: the 7 official
control posts in Spain are authorised only for cattle)
 European legislation does not oblige the approved
control posts to be reachable 24 hours a day for emergency
cases
It is unrealistic to think that the Member States will provide a sufficient number of
emergency unloading places in future.
14
Suffering during transport
due to other unavoidable
reasons
There are various further circumstances which occur
all too often and which increase the animals’ suffering
during transport:
 Sudden braking or acceleration or over-rapid cornering
– leading to animals collapsing onto the floor of
the truck where they are in danger of being trampled
on by their companions.
 Poor road conditions, such as bumpy road surfaces,
winding roads, roads leading through hills and mountains.
 Traffic jams, accidents or break-downs of the trucks –
leading to the animals being forced to endure additional
hours on board the truck; these situations become
fatal at high temperatures during summer, as
the trucks are stationary without the possibility of
parking in the shade.
 Waiting times, for instance, in ports before embarkation;
often the trucks are exposed to direct sunlight
leading to a rapid and serious increase of temperature
inside the truck.
 Many hours of delay between arrival and unloading of
the animals at the place of destination; this considerably
prolongs the transport time, often without any
authority noticing it.
These practical problems cannot be avoided by legislation
as they are inherent in animal transport. They can
only be helped by considerably reducing the currently
allowed transport times.
Long-distance transport, July 2010
Pigs suffering from severe heat stress. The truck had a
breakdown and the animals were forced to remain for additional
hours on board the truck in direct sunlight on the
highway at temperatures
of 35°C. The distance covered
by this transport was
approx. 1,500 km, i.e. a
minimum journey time of
22 hours, not taking into account
the delay due to the
truck’s breakdown.
Long-distance transport, 2010
After a transport time of 29 hours these animals had
to wait additional 10 hours at the place of arrival before
being unloaded. The animals suffered from severe
thirst – nevertheless they were forced to remain on
board the truck. One lamb had its leg trapped for hours
between the floor of the deck and the side of the truck.
As is common, there was no veterinarian present during
unloading.
The longer the transport takes, more likely it is that the animals will suffer as
a consequence of unavoidable problems
15
Conclusion
Exhaustion and death
Long-distance transport, 2011
42 animals on board this truck did not survive the stresses
and strains of this long-distance transport. The transport
covered approx. 1,594 km.
Long-distance transport, 2011
This young bovine did not survive the transport of
approx 1.700 km.
Too many animals are not able to stand these stresses and
strains associated with long-distance transports and die
after many hours or even days of immense suffering.
Typically during long-distance transports it is impossible
to treat animals who get injured, fall ill or become too exhausted.
Systematic controls of animal transports are
impossible, due to the nature of this business, unless
huge resources are spent for this purpose, just to allow
the existence of an activity which European citizens
and the European Parliament want to see ended.
16
Timeline
1993
1994-95 2000
2001
2002
Entry into force of Directive
91/628/EEC on the protection
of animals during transport.
This Directive does not
contain an absolute maximum
time limit for animal
transport.
EU – Parliament calls for limit
of transport time to 8 hours
(Resolution of European Parliament)
German Agriculture Minister
calls for a maximum time
limit of 8 hours for transports
of animals destined for
slaughter.
Commission and Council
refuse to introduce this time
limit. Directive 95/29/EC
establishes some rules on
watering, feeding and resting
periods, but no overall
journey time limits. These
rules are the ones that still
apply today (see page 5) with
dreadful consequences for
the animals.
The EU Commission’s Committee
on Animal Health and
Animals Welfare publishes its
report on the Welfare of Animals
during Transport. The
report states that “transport
should be avoided wherever
possible and journeys should
be as short as possible” for
animals not accustomed to
transport (N.B. undoubtedly
“slaughter” animals are almost
always not accustomed
to transport)
Bull suffering from
heat stress during longdistance
transport
Pig suffering from heat
stress
Exhausted horse on
long-distance transport
Sheep die during longdistance
transport
Moribund lamb on longdistance
transport
Cattle injured during
long-distance transport
Lambs suffering from
lack of water during
long-distance transport
Sheep die during longdistance
transport
Horse dies during longdistance
transport
Sheep dies during longdistance
transport
Cattle die during longdistance
transport
No pictures available
Report from the Commission
and the Council to the EU
Parliament on the experience
acquired by Member States
since the Implementation of
Council Directive 95/29/EEC
amending Directive 91/628/
EEC concerning the protection
of animals during transport.
The report states “Several
fundamentals of the Directive
should be evaluated on a scientific
basis and notably data
concerning travelling times
and loading densities.”
All pictures are related to the relevant year.
Photo: Linda Furniss Photo: Linda Furniss
17
2003
2005
2010
2011
2012
EU – Parliament calls for limit
of transport time to 8 hours
(Written Declaration 4/2003)
EU – Commission report on
the impact of Council Regulation
(EC) No 1/2005 confirms
that the rules are constantly
breached but fails to
propose the main answer to
this problem: a review of the
existing legislation which establishes
a 8 hours maximum
limit for animals transported
for the purpose of slaughter.
As already in 1995 the Commission
still wants to focus
only on enforcement of the
existing rules.
Council Regulation (EC) No
1/2005 comes into Over 130 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs)
have expressed their support for 8hours publicly (see
www.8hours.eu/supporters/).
Over 100 organizations all over Europe are supporting
this campaign.
As a second step in the 8hours campaign, in November
2011 five MEPs - Dan Jørgensen (S&D, Denmark),
Esther de Lange (EPP, Netherlands), Pavel
Poc (S&D, Czech Republic), Carl Schlyter (Greens,
Sweden) and Andrea Zanoni (ALDE, Italy) - tabled
Written Declaration 49/2011 'on the establishment of
a maximum 8-hour journey limit for animals transported
in the European Union for the purpose of being
slaughtered'.
WD 49/2011 is directly linked to the 8 hours campaign.
It was adopted by the European Parliament on
15 March 2012 with the signatures of over half of the
MEPs (395) from all 27 Member States and all political
parties. It ‘calls on the Commission and the Council
to review Regulation 1/2005 to establish a maximum
8-hour limit for the journeys of animals transported for
the purpose of being slaughtered’.
More initiatives will follow on the way to changing
the current legislation towards an 8-hours maximum
transport time limit. Through investigations, Parliamentary
Questions, institutional contacts and media
reports, the dreadful reality of long-distance live
transport will be brought to light until this long-awaited
reform is achieved.
5
Council Directive 91/628/EEC which came into force
in 1993 was replaced by Council Regulation (EC) No
1/2005 in 2007. The new legislation covers transport of
vertebrate animals by road, rail, sea and air but it only
brought slight improvement regarding the protection of
animals on board the trucks. First and foremost Council
Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 fails to make much-needed
improvements to key provisions such as journey
times and space allowances. In fact it still permits
commercial transports of live animals, including animals
transported for the purpose of being slaughtered,
over long and very long distances across all
of Europe and to Third Countries.
Currently horses, other equines and pigs may be transported
for 24 hours, then have a 24-hour rest period and
then start another 24-hours period of transport, and so
on; cattle, sheep and goats can be transported for 14
hours, then should have a 1-hour rest on board the vehicle,
before being transported for a further 14 hours,
then have a 24-hour rest and then start another 14 hours
transport and on and on; unweaned calves, lambs, foals
and piglets can be transported for 9 hours, then have a
1-hour rest, then be transported for 9 hours, then have a
24-hour rest, and then start again. These cycles can be
repeated indefinitely.
Although Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 already
says that journeys for animals “shall not exceed eight
hours”, and the previous legislation, Council Directive
91/628/EEC as amended by Council Directive 95/29/EC,
stipulated the same basic principle, many pages of derogations
permit long-distance transports to continue. It
is time to bring these derogations to an end and to
comply with the 8-hour principle adopted by EU legislators
almost 20 years ago!
The European Parliament has already called for
a limitation of transport times to a maximum of 8
hours in 20012, as well as in 20033.
Previous and current legislation
1-hour rest on board
the vehicle
1-hour rest on board
the vehicle
Transport
14 hours
Transport
24 hours
No time limit!
Transport
14 hours
Transport
9 hours
Transport
9 hours
Rest
24 hours
Rest
24 hours
Rest
24 hours
These cycles can be repeated
indefinitely!
Unweaned calves, lambs, foals and piglets
Cattle, sheep and goats:
Horses, other equines and pigs:
Rabbits and poultry:
6
The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
(TFEU), part of the Lisbon Treaty, came into force on 1st
December 2009 after having been ratified by all twentyseven
Member States. It is one of two Treaties that define
the European Union.
According to Article 13 TFEU, animals are sentient
beings who must be respected in the EU decision
making process and full regard has to be paid to their
welfare requirements. The Lisbon Treaty re-affirms the
European Union's commitment to animal welfare and
creates an explicit duty of care regarding animal welfare
under EU law. This means that the EU and its Member
States have to pay full regard to animal welfare in
policies relating, inter alia, to transport, agriculture and
internal market.
Nevertheless, this avowed goal of broad animal protection
and welfare is still too often not reflected in the European
legislation on the protection of “farm” animals. EU
legislation on the protection of “farm” animals regularly
disregards the so called “Five Freedoms” which are considered
as the basis of the EU animal welfare policy:
 Freedom from Hunger and Thirst
 Freedom from Discomfort
 Freedom from Pain, Injury or Disease
 Freedom to Express Normal Behaviour
 Freedom from Fear and Distress
The possibly most hotly debated matter in this regard,
and an issue about which European citizens are most
concerned, is the EU-legislation on the Protection of
Animals during Transport. This European Regulation
still permits commercial transports of live animals
over very long distances across all of Europe and to
Third Countries. This is in spite of the fact that scientific
research and empirical investigations give persuasive
evidence that animals do suffer on long journeys, and
moreover prove that animal suffering is unavoidable in
long journeys. In long-distance live transport the Five
Freedoms are constantly violated.
Extensive documentation on Animals’ Angels investigations
on the road showing the suffering of
animals during long-distance transports can be requested
at 8hours@animals-angels.de.
The Lisbon Treaty requires a ban
on long-distance transports
Continuing to permit commercial longdistance
transports of live animals in the EU
would be a breach of Article 13 TFEU.
Picture
The five MEP promoters of Written Declaration 49/2011, in Strasbourg on the day of its adoption:
Andrea Zanoni, Dan Jørgensen, Esther de Lange, Carl Schlyter, Pavel Poc (photo: Klara Subrtova)
7
Suffering due to
Injuries and Pain
It regularly happens that animals get injured during longdistance
transports. This has multiple causes:
 animals get stuck with their legs between the
sides of the vehicle and the floor of the decks
 animals get stuck between the dividers and
the bottom of the lorry
 cattle get stuck with their horns between the
ventilation openings
 animals who are lying down are trampled on
and injured by other animals standing
on them
 animals get injured when stress leads to fights
as often happens with pigs or horses
 animals lose balance in the moving vehicle
(due to braking, curves, mountains etc.)
 etc.
In the majority of the cases, treatment is not possible
during transport and often the injury remains undetected
until arrival at the final destination.
Long-distance transport, August 2011
Animals’ Angels observes a bull loaded on the top deck
who has his foot caught in the side of the lorry and
cannot get up. On Animals’ Angels demand the drivers
manage to free the bull’s foot, but the bull is still not
able to stand up. He is severely salivating and appears
apathetic. 7 hours later the animal transport still has not
continued the journey. The distance to the destination
is still approx. 1,000 km, an estimated remaining transport
time of at least 14 hours. It should be noted that
the vehicle observed was a modern standard vehicle as
commonly used for animal transports. It regularly happens
in practice that animals get trapped by their legs
when the hydraulic decks of the vehicles are moved,
mainly during loading. This problem can occur during
long as well as during short distance transports, but the
consequences are more severe in long-distance transports,
simply because the animals have to suffer for a
much longer time.’
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from injuries and pain.
It is impossible to achieve an acceptable level of animal protection during long-distance transport due to factors
which are – in practice - unavoidable, such as:
Animal suffering is inherent in
long-distance transports
8
Long-distance transport, 2009
The watering devices are out of reach for the pigs. The
driver had placed the hydraulic decks of the vehicle in
such a way that the watering devices were parallel to
the side construction of the vehicle; thus the pigs had no
access to water. The vehicle travelled a distance of approx.
1,250 km, an estimated transport time of at least
18 hours. This is a practical problem inherent in longdistance
transports. The decks of most vehicles used for
long-distance transports are hydraulic in order to facilitate
loading and unloading procedures and in order to adapt
the deck height to the height of the animals. There is no
way to guarantee that the drivers during loading place the
decks in a way that allows the animals access to the watering
devices. While this does not have consequences
during short distance transports (as there is usually no
necessity to water the animals), the consequences during
long-distance transports are severe.
Long-distance transport, 2009
Watering devices for sheep, dirty and blocked with excrements
so that the sheep could not use it during this
long-distance transport. The transport covered a distance
of approx. 1,974 km, an estimated transport time
of at least 28 hours. This is a practical problem inherent
in long-distance transports. There is no way in practice
to guarantee that the drivers regularly inspect and clean
the watering devices during transport; furthermore the
watering devices are often placed in a way that makes it
impossible to properly reach and clean them from outside
the vehicle. While this does not have consequences
during short distance transports (as there is usually no
necessity to water the animals), the consequences during
long-distance transports are severe.
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from thirst
and dehydration.
Thirst and dehydration
Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 requires that the
means of transport used for journeys exceeding 8 hours
must be equipped with a water system and watering
devices appropriately designed and positioned for the
animal species being transported. The aim of this legal
requirement is to ensure that the animals’ minimum
need of water during transport is met. However, during
its investigations on the road Animals’ Angels regularly
observes watering systems which are
 simply not functioning
 out of the reach for the animals
 so filthy that the animals cannot use them
 not usable by the animals because the animals are
not used to the system and don’t know how to operate
it
 insufficient with regard to the number of drinking devices
in relation to the number of animals transported
 frozen during periods of very low temperatures
 connected to water tanks whose capacity is too low
to satisfy the increased need for water of the animals
during periods of high temperatures
 inaccessible by a large number of the animals due to
the limited space on the vehicle and the associated
limited possibilities of movement
9
Hunger: Unweaned animals
cannot be supplied with
adequate liquid on board
the vehicle
Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 requires that unweaned
animals are given adequate liquid in between
two transport periods of 9 hours each. This concerns
mainly unweaned calves as these animals are transported
in large numbers over long distances. It is, however,
impossible to feed unweaned calves adequately
on board the truck: these animals cannot properly use
the drinking devices (bite nipples) commonly installed
on trucks; it is not possible to work the commonly
used drinking systems with the liquid necessary for
unweaned calves; heating up the liquid – as it would
be necessary for this category of animals - is also not
possible on regular road vehicles; above all, however,
in order to guarantee that each animal drinks and
that each animal drinks the correct amount of liquid,
it would be necessary to feed them by hand one by
one – this, however, is not feasible on board the truck.
Consequently unweaned animals do regularly suffer
from feed/liquid deprivation during long-distance
transports4.
The Technical Report “Project to develop animal welfare
risk assessment guidelines on transport” submitted
to EFSA (2009) provides the scientific basis for this
by stating: “During transport it is technically impossible
to feed calves on board of the vehicle with milk
or milk replacer”5.
Consequently in all transports of unweaned calves
checked by Animals’ Angels during its investigations,
in which the vehicle’s system of providing liquid
was examined it turned out to be inadequate for unweaned
calves.
The longer the journey the more intense the level of the problem becomes.
Long-distance transport, 2011
These unweaned calves of less than 4 weeks of age were
transported on a long distance journey even though it
is commonly known that it is technically impossible to
supply unweaned animals with adequate liquid on board
trucks (as required by Regulation (EC) No 1/2005). Thus
these animals suffered from lack of feed/liquid during
this long-distance transport. This problem is inherent in
long-distance transports – it is not avoidable in practice
as long as long-distance transports are permitted.
Long-distance transport, 2009
200 unweaned calves of 4-6 weeks of age are transported
over a distance of approx. 2,550 km from northeast
Europe to southwest Europe even though it is commonly
known that it is technically impossible to supply
unweaned animals with adequate liquid on board trucks
(as required by Regulation (EC) No 1/2005).
10
Suffering due to heat and
cold stress
Significant temperature fluctuations are part of longdistance
transport: pigs are transported from Northern
Europe to Southern Europe, small ruminants and
horses are transported from Eastern Europe to the
South, heifers and “dairy” cows are transported from
Northern Europe to Africa, pigs are transported from
Central Europe to Russia, etc. It is self–evident that
during these long journeys large-scale and extreme
temperature fluctuations are unavoidable. Temperature
fluctuations are a major stress factor for the animals
during transport.
“Temperatures which are too low or too high
cause stress, which can lead to disease and
even death if it is severe or prolonged”.6
In animal transport vehicles fans are commonly the only
forced, i.e. mechanical, ventilation system. These sys-
The longer the transport takes, the more likely it is that the animals experience big
temperature variations and the longer the animals suffer from heat or cold stress.
Long-distance transport, 2010
Pigs suffering from heat stress during long-distance
transport at 31°C external temperature and ventilation
system working at full capacity. High temperatures
causing immense suffering to the animals are inherent in
long-distance transports.
tems are not capable of reducing or increasing the temperature.
Therefore, heat suffering cannot be remedied
during long-distance transport. In cases of very low temperatures,
in addition to the suffering from cold stress,
generally the water supply is not available due to frozen
water systems. Furthermore, there is a danger of frostbite
when the animals come in cotact with the frozen sides of
the truck.
In none of the long-distance transports observed by
Animals’ Angels since 2007 were the vehicles used
equipped with a ventilation system which allowed the
temperature to be adjusted.
Practical experience shows that animal suffering due
to high or very low temperatures cannot be avoided
during long-distance transport.
11
Suffering due to insuffcient
ceiling height
Insufficient headroom above the animals during transport
is a frequent problem and a major factor causing
severe animal suffering.
The Technical report submitted to EFSA confirms Animals’
Angels observations and states that “too low
deck height” can cause prolonged thirst, thermal
discomfort, locomotion problems, injuries, disease
and behavioural disorders in mammals7.
The unnatural and stooped posture caused by insufficient
ceiling height prevents the animals from maintaining
their balance; the risk of falling down during
transport and thus the risk of injuries and also of having
difficulties to stand up again increases. If the animals
are forced to remain in an unnatural posture for
many hours, general pain as well as exhaustion and
muscle fatigue, which may cause the animals to fall
down, frequently occur and injuries or wounds on
their heads or backs are not rare. Furthermore, the
disease susceptibility increases significantly.
An insufficient height above the animals´ backs and
heads also prevents effective ventilation, in particular
it prevents adequate temperature regulation and removal
of ammonia gases. The presence of strong ammonia
gases and dense air conditions leads to respiratory
disorders which provoke anxiety and fear8, leads to
coughing and increases the susceptibility to illness and
disease. Moreover, animals may not be able to reach
feeding and drinking devices during long journeys since
changes of position may be impossible or painful when
the animals’ backs are rubbing against the ceiling.
Where ceiling heights are too low an adequate inspection
of the animals is made impossible9.
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from not being able
to stand upright and from insufficient ventilation.
Long-distance transport, 2010
Lambs transported on 4 decks from Eastern to Southern
Europe over approx. 21 hours. The animals were not able
to stand in a natural upright position and the ventilation
was severely compromised. This problem has been constantly
observed in practice for many years.
12
Suffering due to
insufficient space
Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 provides tables
with minimum space requirements for equines, cattle,
sheep, goats and pigs. Practice has shown that
the minimum space requirements indicated in the
Regulation’s tables are insufficient to allow the animals
 to lie down and rest without being trampled on by
other animals
 to stand up again
 to move adequately
 to have access to the watering devices
 to be able to regulate their body temperatures
 to be inspected and cared for
Long-distance Transport, 2010
Insufficient space for animals to lie down and rest comfortably.
They risk being trampled on by their companions
and not being able to stand up again - even though
loading density during this long-distance transport corresponds
to the minimum space required by tables of
current legislation on animal welfare during transport.
The longer the transport takes, the longer the animals suffer from insufficient space.
This leads to severe animal suffering and can even
lead to injuries, disease and death on long-distance
journeys.
In practice even these space allowances are ignored
in numerous cases.
13
Lack of infrastructure for
cases of emergency
On many occasions in recent years Animals’ Angels
teams faced situations in which checks on road transport
of live animals resulted in the urgent need to unload
the animals from the vehicle. Especially in cases where
such emergency situations occur during night-time and
at weekends it often turns out to be very difficult - or impossible
- to carry out the necessary unloading. In the
cases where emergency unloading is carried out it often
takes many hours, which prolongs the animals’ suffering.
The reasons are various:
 official veterinary service not reachable by police authorities
 no emergency unloading facility available
Long-distance Transport, 2010
At the request of Animals’ Angels this long-distance
transport was checked by the authorities after more
than 20 hours of transport. The official veterinarian ordered
the urgent unloading of the sheep because several
were in very alarming condition. However, the nearest
possible place for unloading was reached only after
9 more hours of transport. During emergency unloading
one dead sheep and four sheep that were unable
to walk were observed, as well as sheep with mastitis,
severe eye inflammations and limping animals.
 no control post located at a reasonable distance
 control posts (claiming to be) fully booked and therefore
not capable of accepting the animals
 control posts not equipped to accommodate the particular
species transported (example: the 7 official
control posts in Spain are authorised only for cattle)
 European legislation does not oblige the approved
control posts to be reachable 24 hours a day for emergency
cases
It is unrealistic to think that the Member States will provide a sufficient number of
emergency unloading places in future.
14
Suffering during transport
due to other unavoidable
reasons
There are various further circumstances which occur
all too often and which increase the animals’ suffering
during transport:
 Sudden braking or acceleration or over-rapid cornering
– leading to animals collapsing onto the floor of
the truck where they are in danger of being trampled
on by their companions.
 Poor road conditions, such as bumpy road surfaces,
winding roads, roads leading through hills and mountains.
 Traffic jams, accidents or break-downs of the trucks –
leading to the animals being forced to endure additional
hours on board the truck; these situations become
fatal at high temperatures during summer, as
the trucks are stationary without the possibility of
parking in the shade.
 Waiting times, for instance, in ports before embarkation;
often the trucks are exposed to direct sunlight
leading to a rapid and serious increase of temperature
inside the truck.
 Many hours of delay between arrival and unloading of
the animals at the place of destination; this considerably
prolongs the transport time, often without any
authority noticing it.
These practical problems cannot be avoided by legislation
as they are inherent in animal transport. They can
only be helped by considerably reducing the currently
allowed transport times.
Long-distance transport, July 2010
Pigs suffering from severe heat stress. The truck had a
breakdown and the animals were forced to remain for additional
hours on board the truck in direct sunlight on the
highway at temperatures
of 35°C. The distance covered
by this transport was
approx. 1,500 km, i.e. a
minimum journey time of
22 hours, not taking into account
the delay due to the
truck’s breakdown.
Long-distance transport, 2010
After a transport time of 29 hours these animals had
to wait additional 10 hours at the place of arrival before
being unloaded. The animals suffered from severe
thirst – nevertheless they were forced to remain on
board the truck. One lamb had its leg trapped for hours
between the floor of the deck and the side of the truck.
As is common, there was no veterinarian present during
unloading.
The longer the transport takes, more likely it is that the animals will suffer as
a consequence of unavoidable problems
15
Conclusion
Exhaustion and death
Long-distance transport, 2011
42 animals on board this truck did not survive the stresses
and strains of this long-distance transport. The transport
covered approx. 1,594 km.
Long-distance transport, 2011
This young bovine did not survive the transport of
approx 1.700 km.
Too many animals are not able to stand these stresses and
strains associated with long-distance transports and die
after many hours or even days of immense suffering.
Typically during long-distance transports it is impossible
to treat animals who get injured, fall ill or become too exhausted.
Systematic controls of animal transports are
impossible, due to the nature of this business, unless
huge resources are spent for this purpose, just to allow
the existence of an activity which European citizens
and the European Parliament want to see ended.
16
Timeline
1993
1994-95 2000
2001
2002
Entry into force of Directive
91/628/EEC on the protection
of animals during transport.
This Directive does not
contain an absolute maximum
time limit for animal
transport.
EU – Parliament calls for limit
of transport time to 8 hours
(Resolution of European Parliament)
German Agriculture Minister
calls for a maximum time
limit of 8 hours for transports
of animals destined for
slaughter.
Commission and Council
refuse to introduce this time
limit. Directive 95/29/EC
establishes some rules on
watering, feeding and resting
periods, but no overall
journey time limits. These
rules are the ones that still
apply today (see page 5) with
dreadful consequences for
the animals.
The EU Commission’s Committee
on Animal Health and
Animals Welfare publishes its
report on the Welfare of Animals
during Transport. The
report states that “transport
should be avoided wherever
possible and journeys should
be as short as possible” for
animals not accustomed to
transport (N.B. undoubtedly
“slaughter” animals are almost
always not accustomed
to transport)
Bull suffering from
heat stress during longdistance
transport
Pig suffering from heat
stress
Exhausted horse on
long-distance transport
Sheep die during longdistance
transport
Moribund lamb on longdistance
transport
Cattle injured during
long-distance transport
Lambs suffering from
lack of water during
long-distance transport
Sheep die during longdistance
transport
Horse dies during longdistance
transport
Sheep dies during longdistance
transport
Cattle die during longdistance
transport
No pictures available
Report from the Commission
and the Council to the EU
Parliament on the experience
acquired by Member States
since the Implementation of
Council Directive 95/29/EEC
amending Directive 91/628/
EEC concerning the protection
of animals during transport.
The report states “Several
fundamentals of the Directive
should be evaluated on a scientific
basis and notably data
concerning travelling times
and loading densities.”
All pictures are related to the relevant year.
Photo: Linda Furniss Photo: Linda Furniss
17
2003
2005
2010
2011
2012
EU – Parliament calls for limit
of transport time to 8 hours
(Written Declaration 4/2003)
EU – Commission report on
the impact of Council Regulation
(EC) No 1/2005 confirms
that the rules are constantly
breached but fails to
propose the main answer to
this problem: a review of the
existing legislation which establishes
a 8 hours maximum
limit for animals transported
for the purpose of slaughter.
As already in 1995 the Commission
still wants to focus
only on enforcement of the
existing rules.
Council Regulation (EC) No
1/2005 comes into force
but only brings very limited
progress for the animals on
board the trucks, it fails to
make improvements to key
provisions such as journey
times.

3
progress for the animals on
board the trucks, it fails to
make improvements to key
provisions such as journey
times.

3

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

May 17 , 2011

Tell USDA: Don't play chicken with food safety

"USDA's plan to privatize and speed up poultry quality inspection is a threat to food and worker safety. Tell the Food Safety and Inspection Service to abandon the plan before the May 29th deadline."

Learn more about this campaign

Stop USDA's dangerous new poultry inspection plan. Dear Friend,
Three chickens per second.
Under a new plan proposed by USDA, that's how fast inspectors would have to conduct quality control inspections in poultry factories — six times the current rate.
Worse, USDA's proposed rules privatize these inspections, letting the industry police itself by replacing highly trained USDA food inspectors with poultry facility employees who have no required training.1
Salmonella in our meat and poultry makes nearly a million people sick every year in the US — it's our number one cause of food-borne illness. USDA's new plan could make the problem even worse, and we have just days to stop it.
Tell the USDA: Don't weaken poultry inspection standards!Food safety groups are opposing the standards and veteran poultry inspectors are calling them "a big step back," and "a very, very bad idea."2
Current rules provide for three inspectors to examine 140 birds per minute. Under the new rules, inspections would speed up to 200 per minute — with only one inspector on the line. Even the professionals say that is way too fast.
With far less time to inspect each chicken, unsanitary, defective poultry meat has a higher chance of making it into our supermarkets. And while USDA says it would save less than $30 million per year on poultry inspection costs, it could cost the agency (and us) far more to deal with potential increases in foodborne illness.
Speeding up the poultry line isn't just hazardous to our health — it's also hazardous to those who work in poultry factories. Poultry workers already have an alarming rate of workplace injury from conditions which include a workplace full sharp objects like knives and scissors, and from the repetitive nature of poultry factory tasks. Speeding up the chicken line will only make conditions even more hazardous.3
Tell the USDA: Don't weaken poultry inspection standards!But while food and worker safety will undoubtedly suffer, the new rules are expected to result in a quarter of a billion dollar windfall to poultry companies.
The safety of our food, especially poultry which has such a high incidence of contamination, should be the highest priority of USDA. If their answer is less quality control inspection, more dangerous workplace conditions, and allowing an industry with a horrible safety record to police itself, it's probably time to go back to the drawing board.
Click below to submit a comment to the USDA before the May 29th deadline:
http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=3912&id=40256-3936455-oEvfj4x&t=9
Thank you for fighting for safe and healthy food.
Elijah Zarlin, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

April 20 , 2012

Ways to Help Animals on Earth Day .. More Sharing Services
...

.. ..Earth Day (April 22) is an international day when people raise awareness for the Earth, but did you know that you can help not only Mother Nature but also animals on Earth Day? Here are five easy ways to help animals this Earth Day:

1. Write a letter to the editor. Next time you see an article about Earth Day in your local newspaper or in a magazine, write a letter to the editor letting people know about the correlation between factory farming and helping keep the Earth clean. We have a Guide to Letter Writing with tips and suggestions.

2. Sharing is caring. Share PETA's "Meat's Not Green" video on Facebook and Twitter! Let everyone know about how the meat industry damages the environment as well as about the suffering that animals endure because of the cruel practices on factory farms.

3. Go faux. Not only is raising animals for fur poisoning our waterways with the hazardous waste from the processing of pelts, it also pollutes the air by releasing ammonia. Furs are packed with chemicals to keep them from decomposing, which pollutes the environment and wastes the Earth's resources. Pledge to be fur-free and stick up for the Earth by helping to keep her clean.

4. Educate others. Grab a friend and hit the streets with some of our "Meat's Not Green" leaflets at your local Earth Day festival or any event in your city where a crowd of people will be around. Order leaflets directly from our site and check out our leafleting tips, and you'll be on your way to raising awareness of the correlation between the environment and factory farming.

5. Go vegan. Raising animals for food currently takes up 30 percent of the Earth's entire land surface, and it takes up to 16 pounds of grain to produce just 1 pound of animal flesh! Eating meat is destroying the planet, but there is a quick and easy solution: Go vegan! By going vegan, not only will you be helping animals and your health, you'll also be giving Mother Nature something to smile about.

Are you already vegan? Encourage your friends, family, and coworkers to help animals by asking them to take PETA's Pledge to Go Vegan for 30 Days.

Want to help animals on more than just Earth Day? Join our Action Team, and we'll send you e-mail alerts on ways that you can help animals as well as alerts about local demonstrations that you can participate in!

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

Breaking Investigation: Horses' 36-Hour Journey to Slaughter Exposed

https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=4089&autologin=true&utm_campaign=0412%20Horse%20Slaughter%20Investigation%20Action%20Alert&utm_source=PETA%20E-Mail&utm_medium=E-News

Every year, tens of thousands of American horses are killed for their flesh. Worse still, they are forced to endure journeys of hundreds of miles in cramped trucks—often in extreme weather without food or a drop of water—before reaching slaughterhouses in Canada and Mexico. It is a cruel industry that has been hidden from sight—until now.

This spring, PETA investigators rode with and followed a transporter from a meat buyer's property in Iowa to the Les Viandes de la Petite Nation Inc. slaughterhouse in Québec. U.S. law permits horses to be hauled for 28 hours and sometimes longer without being off-loaded. PETA's investigator witnessed how the 33 horses aboard the transporter endured a 1,100-mile, 36-hour journey in subfreezing conditions and were never given food, water, or a chance to unload.

This long, grueling ride is only a small part of the torment that many tired, injured horses endure. Panicked horses—including thoroughbreds, standardbreds, quarter horses, and draft horses—are crowded inside "kill pens" at livestock auctions across the country. At an auction in Iowa, horses waited for hours before they were corralled toward the auction ring, weighed, and finally sold. The heavy hydraulic gates used to separate the horses as they entered the auction area frequently slammed shut on their heads and necks—just one more ordeal in the long and traumatic journey to their deaths.

PETA investigators found ex-racehorse Royale With Speed, the grandson of Triple Crown winner Secretariat, packed inside a "kill pen" in Kalona, Iowa. By the time investigators saved him, Royale With Speed had been purchased by a meat buyer and was hours away from a harrowing ride to slaughter. He was severely exhausted and running a fever, and his lymph nodes were swollen and later burst with pus—yet he was still scheduled to be killed for human consumption. Following weeks of intensive care, Royale with Speed fully recovered. He was purchased by animal advocate and fitness trainer Jillian Michaels and then adopted by a PETA patron in New Mexico. He will lead a wonderful life.

Royale With Speed was saved from the slaughterhouse, where he would have faced a terrifying death. Undercover video footage taken inside the Québec facility revealed that at least 40 percent of the horses were still conscious after receiving a captive-bolt shot to the head. One horse suffered through an agonizing 11 shots before finally collapsing. In another instance, a worker was taped waving good-bye mockingly to a dying horse. In February, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency temporarily closed the slaughterhouse, but the plant resumed operations just days later and is now attempting to use rifles in place of captive-bolt guns, even though they have been shown to be a cruel and ineffective way to stun horses.

Your voice is needed today!

If you are an American citizen, voice your support for the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act of 2011, which would prevent U.S. horses from being transported to slaughterhouses, effectively ending the slaughter of U.S. horses for food. The bill is currently sitting in committees in Congress and may fall through the cracks if we don't act fast. Jillian has penned letters to the committee chairs urging each to consider the bill. Join her in contacting the committee chairs and sign your letter below.
If you are a Canadian citizen, voice your support for C-322, which would ban the import and export of horses for slaughter for human consumption in Canada.

Recipients
Mary Bono Mack
Frank D Lucas
John D. Rockefeller IV
Thomas J Rooney
Fred Upton
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* First Name
* Last Name
* Your E-Mail

Message
* Subject
Dear [Decision Maker],

* (Edit Letter Below) I was appalled to learn that even though 80 percent of American voters oppose horse slaughter, 130,000 U.S. horses continue to be shipped to foreign slaughterhouses each year and that Congress recently reinstated funding that would allow horse slaughterhouses to reopen here in the U.S.

Horses killed for their flesh are transported hundreds of miles in cramped trucks--often without food or water--before finally reaching slaughterhouses in Canada and Mexico. Once they arrive, the horses are shot with a rifle or captive-bolt gun or are stabbed repeatedly in the spine before finally having their throats cut.

I respectfully urge you to support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act of 2011, which would prevent the reopening of domestic slaughterhouses and ban the export of American horses for slaughter.

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

APRIL 20 , 2012

Stop Cruel Rabbit Farming in Europe

Millions of rabbits in the EU are raised in appalling conditions, crammed into bare cages with no more space than a battery hen. Barren battery cages for hens might be banned, but rabbits are still suffering intensely. »
Most rabbit meat comes from factory farms, with the average system allowing no more space per rabbit than an A4 piece of paper.
The rabbits can't move more than a few inches and they don’t have places to sleep, bedding or any other of the most basic things a rabbit needs.

This cruelty cannot continue in the EU. Click to automatically add your name to stand up for factory-farmed rabbits. »

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

AUGUST 19 , 2011

Will You Help Us Speak for Farmed Animals?
During the course of a busy day, an average American may be influenced by dozens of advertisements promoting meat, milk, eggs, and other products that result from outright cruelty to animals. But imagine what a different world it would be if consumers were able to regularly hear the animals' side of the story—animals like Peter and Jerry, two calves who were suffering greatly and close to death before being whisked away to a wonderful new life because of a PETA undercover investigation.

By making as generous a gift as you can afford right now, not only will you be helping PETA's work to spare millions of individual animals like Jerry and Peter from the worst abuses on factory farms, you'll also be aiding us in bringing about a better life for both animals and humans by encouraging people to adopt a compassionate, meat-free diet.

In my e-mail last week, I told you how PETA is exposing the horror that is factory farming and bringing about important animal welfare reforms that are saving animals' lives. While pressuring restaurant and grocery chains to make changes that will relieve some of the suffering of animals slaughtered for these businesses, our effective outreach campaigns also let consumers know that the fastest way for anyone to help animals directly is to stop eating them!

By harnessing the star power of celebrities, such as Sir Paul McCartney and Alec Baldwin, and combining it with PETA's popular online campaigns, we've brought tens of millions of Web viewers face to face with groundbreaking undercover video footage of what really happens to animals who are raised and slaughtered for food. But simply being aware of the plight of farmed animals will not be enough for many consumers to switch to a healthy animal-friendly lifestyle. That's why PETA does all that we can to make sure that everyone knows how simple it can be to cut animals out of any diet.

One of our most popular tools to that end is our free vegetarian/vegan starter kit (VSK). This colorful guide persuades people who might otherwise not be reached to go vegetarian by showing them that a meat-free diet is easy, tasty, healthy, humane, environmentally sound, and popular. It includes information on weight loss, raising vegetarian children, eating while away from home, and making the transition to vegetarianism, as well as six pages of our very best recipes. In the last year alone, PETA has distributed more than a million copies of this useful guide both online and through magazine boxes throughout the United States.

The effectiveness of the kit cannot be overstated. Nearly 36 percent of those surveyed who'd received a copy of the VSK stopped eating meat after reading it. If an average meat-eater consumes more than 100 animals in a year, this single piece of PETA's well-rounded approach to helping farmed animals has saved more than 36 million animals in just the last year.

Will you help us save even more animals like Jerry and Peter by donating online right now?

PETA is the world's leader in convincing people to stop eating meat for good. By helping consumers make more animal-friendly choices in their diets, we're preventing millions of individual cows, chickens, turkeys, pigs, and other animals from experiencing the nightmare of life on a factory farm and death in a slaughterhouse that our investigations have uncovered time and time again.

But as effective as all our outreach efforts have been, none would be possible without the generosity of caring friends like you. Please help us continue our vital work to end the suffering of animals on factory farms by making a gift today.

Through your compassion and support, PETA is making this a better world for all animals. Thank you.

Kind regards,

Ingrid E. Newkirk
President

P.S. Every day, consumers hear dozens of voices encouraging them to consume animal products, but with your help, we can make sure that the voices of the billions of individual animals who are slaughtered for food are heard too. Through your support, we can fundamentally change how both companies and consumers treat animals.

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

AUGUST 11 , 2011

Animals on factory farms need your help

Few horrors compare to those endured by the billions of individual cows, pigs, chickens, and other animal victims who are slaughtered for food. Every single one of these sensitive animals who is raised to be a burger, chop, or nugget feels pain and fear just as we do. Yet their entire life—from birth on a factory farm to death at a slaughterhouse—is one of misery, mistreatment, and abuse.

Thankfully, these animals have a powerful ally committed to doing everything possible to stop their suffering. Will you support PETA's lifesaving work to relieve animals' suffering by making a generous online donation right now? PETA's eye-opening campaigns and groundbreaking undercover investigations have focused public attention on animals who suffer horrific cruelty for the meat and dairy industries, including the following cruel practices:
Chickens and turkeys are often drugged to grow so unnaturally large that their bones break under their own weight. Many will face being scalded to death in defeathering tanks at slaughterhouses.
Bulls are castrated and have their horns cut or burned off without being given sedatives to dull their pain.
Calves on dairy farms live short, miserable lives while forced to remain in dark, tiny crates where they are kept almost completely immobilized.
Mother pigs are forcibly impregnated and confined to filthy crates so small that they can't take a single step in any direction.
You can help us continue to expose—and stop—these types of abuses by making a tax-deductible gift today.

With the assistance of our more than 2 million members and supporters, PETA leads the fight for abused farmed animals. Our undercover work has brought about reforms that are changing some of the worst factory-farm practices and have resulted in convictions of factory-farm workers on charges of cruelty to animals. Through diligent negotiations and shareholder activism, we've helped to dramatically reduce the mistreatment of animals by many of the world's largest fast-food restaurants and supermarket suppliers. PETA's colorful demonstrations and widely distributed materials, such as our vegetarian/vegan starter kit, have inspired people around the world to adopt a healthy vegan diet—the quickest way that anyone can start saving the lives of farmed animals.

No other organization works as hard—or on as many fronts—for animals on factory farms as PETA does. But for every farmed animal we've helped to save, there are so many others who are still suffering all the painful abuses that I've described here … and more. By making a special donation now, you can help to ensure that we can continue fighting to bring an end to the suffering of animals who are slaughtered for food.

Together, we can stop even the worst abuses on factory farms and in slaughterhouses and make life better for the animals who suffer in the food industry.

Kind regards,

Ingrid E. Newkirk
President

P.S. PETA is dedicated to doing all that we can to reduce the suffering of the billions of individual pigs, chickens, cows, and other animals who are raised in abysmal conditions and slaughtered for a forkful of flesh. Won't you help our lifesaving work in behalf of all these animals by making a gift online today?

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

MARCH 29, 2012

PETA Undercover Investigations Update: Jerry and Peter

VIDEO

http://prime.peta.org/2010/03/peta-undercover-investigations-update-jerry-and-peter

Like On October 1 of last year, we published a blog about our undercover investigation inside a filthy dairy factory farm in Pennsylvania that supplies milk to Land O'Lakes. As a result of our investigation, the owners of the farm were charged with cruelty to animals. We received numerous e-mail inquires about the condition of the animals we rescued, so we asked Teresa Chagrin, a PETA animal care and control specialist who was lucky enough to visit the animals earlier this month, to give us a special update.

When PETA's undercover investigator first sent photos and video footage of Jerry and Peter to PETA headquarters, I was doubtful that the calves would live to experience clean earth beneath their feet, fresh air in their lungs, and warm sunlight on their fur. Jerry couldn't see, and Peter couldn't stand. They both were infested with lice and had ringworm infections and pinkeye. Peter was nearly drowning in the urine-soaked and feces-covered pen in which he was confined.

Both male calves were born on a dairy factory farm in Pennsylvania. Of course, the reason that female cows produce milk is to feed their own calves (not people!), which means that they must be impregnated and give birth before they will lactate. Although considered by their mothers to be beloved infants, male calves are considered by farmers to be inconvenient byproducts—just something to get rid of in the milk-generating process. Female calves are doomed to a lifetime of milk production.

On this particular factory farm, the conditions were so filthy that cows were forced to live ankle-deep in their own waste, and many calves went blind from painful pinkeye infections. Dead animals were left in a barn with live animals for days. In fact, one mother cow was left in a stall with the bloody body of her calf.

PETA's investigator purchased Peter and Jerry, and we rushed them to The Cow Sanctuary, which is run by Helga Tacreiter, an honest-to-goodness guardian angel to cows on Earth. With much love and medical treatment, both survived. I had the good fortune to visit Peter and Jerry last weekend in order to report on their progress. Their transformations are hard to believe and so heartwarming!

Jerry is a shy type. He will likely always be a sort of wall flower because of physical challenges caused by the diseases that plagued him and his mother on the filthy farm. His sight is impaired from pinkeye scarring, which may have heightened his sense of smell. It's precious the way that he walks along sniffing everything on the ground—the earth, plants, and rocks—much like a large hound dog. He seems to like to stand near fences, which might help him feel secure, and he is often found standing side-by-side with Peter, the other calf who was rescued from the dairy farm.

Peter always looks out for Jerry, but he also spends a lot of time with Victor, the smallest and youngest of the three babies at the sanctuary. Victor came to the sanctuary just a couple of days after Peter—he was rescued by a local animal control department from a religious family who was going to sacrifice him in a ceremony. The three boy calves comprise their own separate herd but play with the big cows when supervised. Peter and Victor interact with the big cows in much the same way that puppies and kittens do with adult dogs and cats—always trying to get them to play when the adults just want to rest. They love to get chin scratches and treats such as apples and bread, which are part of the daily routine.

Helga believes that Peter will one day be the herd leader because of his serious confidence and great personality. I agree, and it brings tears to my eyes when I remember the video and photos of him when he was first seen by our investigator. Not only did Jerry and Peter survive to know physical comfort and emotional stability, they are also both very happy.

And little Victor makes three. A perfect little herd of growing young steers who will live out a natural life—something that is extremely rare for cows today. By becoming a PETA monthly donor, you'll allow us to continue saving animals like Jerry and Peter through our groundbreaking investigative work. You can also help by letting your friends and family members know that laws covering animals used by the dairy industry are weak and by asking them to support our 12-point program and reduce their own consumption of dairy products.

Do you think that people know about the cruelty in the dairy industry?

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

JULY 21 2011

Stop the torture in European rabbit farms

Bloodied fur, chewed ears and watery eyes – the animals that are still alive are forced to live side by side with the corpses of their former cage-mates.

This is the fate of thousands of rabbits living in tiny, wire cages in rabbit farms. The animals resort to attacking and injuring each other due to the lack of space. Today, there are no Europe-wide regulations controlling the husbandry of rabbits in rabbit farms.

We are calling for a total ban of the caging of farmed rabbits and urge restaurants, supermarkets and consumers to stop buying rabbit meat. We are also planning to support a research project into the husbandry of rabbits, which will develop species-appropriate guidelines for keeping rabbits. We are committed to improving the welfare of farmed rabbits and as animal lovers, we know you are too.

Any donation you can spare, whether it is 15, 25 or 50 Euro, will contribute to helping farm animals in need.

Your FOUR PAWS team

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

Order Your FREE Vegetarian/Vegan Starter Kit!
.. More Sharing Services
...

.. ..Did you know that you could save 100 animals per year just by adopting a meat-free diet? That's right—going vegetarian saves lives! And if that's not appealing enough, it's easy too!

So, what do you say? Fill out the form below to receive a free copy of PETA's vegetarian/vegan starter kit, or view the online version or PDF version now. It will guide you through the transition to a healthier, happier, and longer-lasting life. It has everything from recipes and tips on eating out to health information and videos!

Know someone who is looking to make the switch but just needs a little assistance? Click here to order a kit for a friend.
..
http://www.peta.org/living/vegetarian-living/free-vegetarian-starter-kit.aspx

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

Animals Used for Food
From the meat industry's rampant abuse of animals and environmental devastation to the tremendous health benefits of a vegan diet to helping end world hunger and deplorable working conditions in slaughterhouses, there are countless reasons why more and more people are leaving meat off their plates for good and embracing a healthy and humane vegan diet.
Read More
.

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

june 12 , 2011

Brooklyn Rooftop party to benefit farmed animals

Hey friends and WFAS supporters! Join us for a party in Brooklyn, NY on June 23rd for our Rooftop Summer Solstice Party! Check out whose on our Host Committee and meet them in person, along with the founders and board of WFAS. We'll have lots of fun while raising money for some important farm improvements that need to be made to help improve the lives of the 200+ animals who call WFAS home.

Admin Nombre de messages : 21612 Date d'inscription : 17/05/2007

E-Moosletter March 2011

Bulletin from the cause: Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary
Go to Cause
Posted By: Jenny Brown
To: Members in Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary
E-Moosletter March 2011
LOTS of amazing news, videos and upcoming events at and for Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary! Check it out and share! And as always, thanks for your support of our life-saving work for farmed animals.

Call to Action
Link: Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary E-Moosletter March 2011
View Link