Social media is the big elephant in the room

LAST Tuesday as I left my office for a day of visits to dairy farmer clients, my mind was pulling me in a million different directions. Did I put my laptop into the car; have I downloaded the relevant files and reports; who must I call en-route; and what time must I be back tonight for training? As I approached the first traffic light it turned red, I decelerated to a halt close to the car in front of me when, to my surprise, I was greeted with a large bumper sticker stating; ‘DAIRY takes babies from their mothers… GOVEGAN.IE’.

My immediate reaction was: ‘How dare they make accusations about my industry, what do they know, I bet they never even milked a cow nor fed a baby calf.’ This, I suggest, is a typical reaction for most of us working in the agricultural industry, after all in Ireland we have the best possible conditions for animal welfare with our grass-based livestock systems when compared to the more common confinement systems in the USA and continental Europe, where cattle often never see the light of day.

We do not have to slaughter two million calves just after birth (bobby calves) every year like the New Zealand dairy industry, so vividly exposed by Farmwatch, an animal welfare activist group in videos taken by undercover investigators last year.

In Ireland dairy farmers rear their calves well, farmers pride themselves in low disease and mortality rates, but the reality is baby calves are removed from their mothers within hours of being born so I asked myself is this animal cruelty and what motivates an organisation like GoVegan to spend vast amounts of money on advertising campaigns to portray their message to the public?

There are three categories of animals in Ireland. 1) Farm animals — dairy, beef, sheep, pigs and poultry. 2) Performance animals — race and sport horses, greyhounds, circus animals etc. 3) Domestic animals — dogs, cats etc.

Animal welfare activist groups see animals as sentient beings ie can feel pain and fear just like humans. International and Irish animal welfare legislation revolves around the five freedoms for animals:

1. Freedom from hunger or thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour.

2. Freedom from discomfort by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area.

3. Freedom from pain, injury or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment.

4. Freedom to express normal behaviour by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal’s own kind.

5. Freedom from fear and distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering.

At first reading these do not appear difficult from a farm animal perspective. In Ireland the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 is the main legislation governing the welfare of animals. It is a broad piece of legislation covering areas such as animal disease, welfare, codes of practice, levies, disposals, regulations, enforcement, local authorities, proceedings/ sanctions, tracing systems, marts, etc. This certainly provides the legislative framework for animals to be treated as sentient beings but the big question to ask; is it properly enforced?

In 2016 there were a staggering 16,312 calls made to the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA) helpline, 3,200 cases of animal cruelty were investigated and 32 were taken to court, these are largely domestic animals. It is difficult to know how many