Information about animals
Shocking animal cruelty claims as vets blow whistle on export abattoirs
On-plant vets are an international trade requirement - but dozens have now spoken out about what they claim is Australia’s lax oversight of the export meat industry
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Veterinarians stationed inside Australia’s export abattoirs have revealed shocking instances of animal cruelty, including an incident in which more than 100 sheep died from hypothermia. Leaked documents also show government veterinarians have repeatedly blown the whistle internally about “profound problems” in the oversight of the export meat industry.
To protect animal welfare and satisfy major trading partners, the Australian government employs vets inside abattoirs that are licensed to export meat.
More than 100 sheep died from hypothermia and exposure after an animal transport truck drove for nine hours through heavy rain in 2022, according to leaked reports. One veterinarian whistleblower described the incident as “horrific”. It went unpunished.
Disturbing animal welfare breaches went unreported to state regulators, an explosive whistleblower disclosure alleges. In a direct complaint to a former agriculture minister, one whistleblower vet described finding a cow that had a decomposing calf stuck in its pelvic canal. Instead of reporting the incident as a welfare breach, he said his superiors apologised to the owners of the abattoir after the vet intervened to help the animal.
An understaffing crisis has left some abattoirs unmonitored for long stretches of time, according to whistleblower vets in New South Wales. In an extraordinary joint complaint filed by more than half the state’s export abattoir vets, the situation was described as so bad that it risked putting Australia in breach of its trade obligations.
Powers to detect and act on animal welfare breaches have been progressively watered down, including through rule changes restricting vets’ access to pens to inspect animals, according to multiple current and former vets.
At least one vet has been diagnosed with PTSD, saying they felt isolated and unsupported by managers, while others say they have been left vulnerable to bullying and intimidation, and unable to meet their legal and ethical obligations as registered vets.
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