FOUR PAWS Belgium (EU)
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Death and Suffering During Live Animal Transports in Europe

FOUR PAWS urges the EU Parliament and the Council to revise the legislation on the protection of animals during transport and end needless animal suffering

10.10.2024

Vienna, 10 October 2024 – From beatings and force-feeding to starvation and fatal diseases, millions of unweaned calves and other farm animals are enduring immense suffering during their transports in Europe and beyond. Packed into unsanitary trucks and cargo ships, they face extreme temperatures, lack of water, and no medical care. But the cruelty starts well before the transport begins. Shocking footage recently aired by RTE shows personnel of an export facility in Kerry, Ireland using brutal methods like stomach-tubing or beatings to “prepare” calves for their long journey, while carcasses are left to rot in the open. With horrors like these happening too frequently, FOUR PAWS urges for a thorough revision of the EU legislation on the protection of animals during transport and stricter sanctions for its violation.

"Millions of unweaned calves and other farm animals are treated as mere commodities, shipped across EU borders and to third countries every year. Many do not survive the exhausting journey and helplessly die in export facilities, overcrowded trucks or cargo ships. Although the European Commission proposed reforms to the animal transport regulation last year, they lack the ambition to drive real change. We are seeing clear violations of existing EU laws, like the ongoing transport of unweaned calves from Ireland to France which continues without consequences. FOUR PAWS is urging the European Parliament and Member States to address the gaps in the current legislation by promoting stricter sanctions and by amending the EU Commission’s proposal to guarantee the welfare of animals during transport. It is crucial that the legislative framework is strengthened to prevent the suffering of millions of farm animals each year,”

Corinna Reinisch, Programme Lead Farm Animal Welfare at FOUR PAWS.

FOUR PAWS calls for:

  • Ban on live animal transports to third countries
  • Ban on live animal transports by sea
  • Ban on transport of unweaned animals
  • No animal transports in temperatures below 5°C or above 25°C
  • Restrict maximum transport duration to eight hours (four hours for poultry and rabbits)
  • Slaughter of animals at the nearest suitable slaughterhouse
  • Transport of meat instead of live animals

 

Read more about the work of FOUR PAWS against live animal transport here.
Access FOUR PAWS position paper on the EU Commission’s proposal on transport here.
Access FOUR PAWS solution concepts to end the transport of unweaned calves here.

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FOUR PAWS is the global animal welfare organisation for animals under direct human influence, which reveals suffering, rescues animals in need and protects them. Founded in 1988 in Vienna by Heli Dungler, the organisation advocates for a world where humans treat animals with respect, empathy and understanding. FOUR PAWS’ sustainable campaigns and projects focus on companion animals including stray dogs and cats, farm animals and wild animals – such as bears, big cats, orangutans and elephants – kept in inappropriate conditions as well as in disaster and conflict zones. With offices in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Kosovo, the Netherlands, Switzerland, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, the UK, the USA and Vietnam as well as sanctuaries for rescued animals in twelve countries, FOUR PAWS provides rapid help and long-term solutions. www.four-paws.org 

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