This is sheep country. In the spring, I watch the baby lambs growing, discovering their joy of life, their personalities developing - , the ones permanently with mum, lying nestled into the wool on her back, or mimicking her every move, never straying more than a foot away . The mischievous, gregarious ones who form little gangs and sneak out onto the lanes – but they of course, are always mindful of where mothers are. This is the time, now, when they are taken from their mothers, separated for fattening, and their wailing fills the valleys as they cry out for each other. Some, which were born in early spring are already ‘ fattened’. It’s a hive of activity, there are makeshift pens in the fields, many with small drifts of soft white belly clippings. abattoirs have recently instructed that all lambs should be presented for slaughter with shaved bellies. They are penned up usually the day before taking them to livestock markets. Most will never eat or drink again. Most livestock transporters ask that of farmers to keep the lorries clean for transportation. They are then penned in the livestock market for hours stressed, terrified, dehydrated, until their lot is called and they are herded into the sale room to be are auctioned. Then back to the pen while transport is organised to take them away, a long wait. The lucky ones will travel within the UK. For the others however,, their final destination could be the suburbs of Paris or Marseille or further. I have heard that 80% of abattoirs in France are halal, meaning, like kosher, that the animals are not stunned before being killed with the knife. Many of the lambs may go to Holland or Belgium to be re-traded and end up as far away as Turkey. The live export trade is regaining momentum after having diminished to almost nothing after the foot and mouth epidemic. Dover is the port they are leaving from. The shipment last friday had 5000 sheep on it. Some go to religious festivals. What these animals go through is unimaginable. Some of these lorries carry up to 1000 animals. They can barely breathe in summer temperatures here and on the Continent, no air, the mass heat of a thousand crushed, gasping, frightened little animals. I have friends who have witnessed this at the docks and they are haunted. No creature deserves this. Whether we eat meat or not is irrelevant. Live export is barbaric. This saturday, Compassion in World Farming has organised a march to demand a ban on live exports. Please, please try to come and support it, even if you just stay a short while, it will make a difference. Meeting 11.30am, on Saturday the 10th August, Covent Garden Market, London WC2E 8RB ( on corner of Henrietta St and Southampton St ).
Posted on: Thu, 08 Aug 2013 10:19:42 +0000
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