Animal rights activists want to inspect sheep ship

  • Breaking
  • 25/06/2015

By 3 News online staff

Fifty-thousand sheep and 3000 cows en route to Mexico from Timaru are due to arrive this evening in  New Zealand's largest ever shipment of livestock.

Save Animals From Exploitation executive director Hans Kriek says they've arranged for a local activist to try and meet the ship when it docks.

"We obviously are very concerned about the welfare of the animals, and they have just endured a 16-day journey on the open seas," he told RadioLIVE this morning.

"We understand that some animals have already died, but we have no idea about the numbers."

Mr Kriek admits it will be difficult to check the condition of the animals when they arrive however.

"This is an incredibly large port, so it may be not be possible to observe the animals from outside the port area. Because of the problems with drugs in Mexico, ports are normally off-limits for the public, but we are trying to get permission."

The Government has been urged to send veterinarians to Mexico to check on the condition of the animals, as the Ministry of Primary Industries does not have a monitor on board the ship.

The Green Party has called for a moratorium on live sheep exports until regulations have been strengthened.

"We know from the high number of deaths on live exports from Australia, where millions have died on these journeys, that it is highly likely that some of these sheep will starve on the journey over, unable to adjust to a diet of pellets instead of grass," MP Mojo Mathers said last week.

"Some may be blinded from the sea spray and pulverised pellet powder. Some will survive the journey but be so sick on arrival that they will be slaughtered instead."

The Mexican shipment coincides with a growing scandal surrounding a Saudi Arabian farm stocked with pregnant New Zealand sheep – it's believed around three-quarters of the lambs they gave birth to promptly died.

3 News

source: newshub archive