Shocking footage of pig farm branded a ‘VISION OF HELL’
ANIMAL rights activists say they found rotting carcasses of dead pigs at a farm in Warwickshire in scenes they described as a “vision of hell”.
It is claimed that 15,000 pigs are crammed in to Hogwood Farm, near Stratford, and some of the swine were pictured eating the bodies of those that have died.
The sickening images were captured by activists from animal welfare group VIVA and include one that shows a rotting hog with a huge wound being eaten by another pig.
More than 30 dead piglets covered in flies are also seen in footage shot at the farm owned by Brian Hobill.
The shocking finds are a clear breach of guidelines with sick animals, which should be in isolation to avoid spreading disease, lying in a narrow walkway.
Nearly all are covered in their own muck and many bear scars.
VIVA founder Juliet Gellatley uncovered what she described as a “vision of hell” after a tip-off from a former employee.
Juliet – whose team walked through the farm’s open gates to shoot the covert film – said: “Hogwood hides a catalogue of pain and suffering, some of the worst conditions we have seen.
“Our footage shows cruel farrowing crates, which trap the pregnant sow in a metal pen when she could be walking over a field to make a nest out of twigs for her piglets.
“The other pens are overcrowded and the pigs show signs of stress. They are stuck in with dead and extremely sick pigs, dumped in gangways with no access to food or water.
“Others were dying in a filthy shed covered in cobwebs.”
Guidelines from DEFRA – the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs – and the Farm Animal Welfare Council say dead animals should be swiftly removed and diseased ones isolated.
Juliet added: “One of the most disturbing scenes was adults eating the pig corpse.
“Cannibalism is not natural behaviour for pigs and is caused by this bleak environment.
“In the same pen are two skulls, a jaw and a leg. Presumably from pigs that have been left there to rot.
“Basic sanitation is nowhere to be found. Water troughs are soiled and everywhere pigs are covered in their own excreta.”
DEFRA advises that water troughs are cleaned regularly and faecal matter removed.
Farmer Hobill said of the allegations: “The care of our animals is our top priority.
“These pictures taken by Juliet Gellatley, leader of an extremist vegan group, do not represent the general health of the animals on the farm.
“There does appear to be shortcomings on deadstock removal. However, we will review our policies and ensure these are followed.”
He claimed to have CCTV of Juliet “manipulating the scene”, adding: “Therefore we cannot be completely sure as to the accuracy or intent of this footage.”
Juliet replied: “The only pigs touched were a dying one which I comforted and a ‘runt’ piglet in distress which I gently moved to his mother’s teat.”