‘Emaciated and at the point of death’
Crown opens case against farmer in animal cruelty trial
Afarmer is on trial in the Rotorua District Court accused of keeping animals that were “malnourished, emaciated and at the point of death” in what the Crown has described as chronic underfeeding and overstocking practices.
Warren Koberstein, of Mangakino, is defending 21 charges including eight counts of wilful ill-treatment of animals, nine counts of reckless illtreatment of animals, three counts of failing to comply with obligations under the Animal Welfare Act and one charge of keeping an animal alive in unnecessary pain or distress.
Crown prosecutor Kris Bucher opened the case on Monday, saying the trial was about the chronic underfeeding of animals to the point of starvation and death.
The charges stem from a Ministry for Primary Industries notification in July 2019 after an alarm was raised by Koberstein’s vet about the condition of animals on the farm.
Animal welfare inspectors went to the farm in July and August.
“What they found was a case of seriously underfed sheep and cattle . . . Many were malnourished, emaciated and at the point of death.”
Bucher said 463 pregnant ewes were found near death or needing immediate remedial action.
Inspectors found dead sheep, malnourished cattle and what was described as a “gross feed deficit” from insufficient grass cover.
Bucher said a vet recommended one of several ewes with a peckedout eye be destroyed, given the low likelihood of recovery and to relieve the pain of the missing eye.
“Mr Koberstein disagreed with the vets and insisted the ewe be treated. He argued he had several one-eyed sheep, and they are fine.”
A video played in court showed a deformed ewe that could not move its neck properly and another that had suffered an injury and could walk only with the leg buckled inwards and on the knuckle.
Bucher said Koberstein had been a farmer for 40 years. The trial was specific to the state of animals on his farm in July and August 2019 and whether he’d breached the Animal Welfare Act.
Bucher acknowledged farming was a difficult job and could be affected by many things, including
floods and droughts.
“Sometimes animals die, that is a fact of life and a fact of farming. But this trial isn’t about that.”
Ensuring the animals were fed properly was in Koberstein’s control. He could have brought in more feed or sold stock, Bucher said.
Koberstein’s previous conduct
The Crown would produce evidence the ministry had frequently been in contact with Koberstein about the state of his animals, Bucher said.
The jury would hear that, in 2000, 2013, 2015 and 2016, Koberstein was formally put on notice the condition of his animals fell below minimum standards.
During this period, more than 80 dead sheep were found on his farm and others were ordered to be destroyed to end their suffering.
In 2016, the ministry ordered Koberstein to get a consultant to write a report. The report concluded his farming practices needed to change because of the farm’s feed deficit.
Bucher said the ministry had to obtain an order to get the report.
What the defence says
Koberstein’s lawyer, Fletcher Pilditch, gave a brief opening, asking the jury to keep an open mind.
He said it was alleged Koberstein embarked on a course of conduct knowingly, but a large issue for the jury would be what was in his mind.
“You have to be thinking did he illtreat these animals, what were his actions? What did he fail to do? What was he trying to do, if anything?”
Pilditch said the jury needed to assess Koberstein’s failures and whether he was trying.
The case was not about prejudice. “Most of us would rather not know where our steak comes from, where our burgers come from, where our lamb chops come from. A farm is an exercise in the management of animals for the purpose of production.”
Everyone would react if they saw a cast sheep, a dead animal or one that was weak and thin.
“But you can’t judge the issue on that basis, because that would be prejudicial.”
The trial, before Judge Tony Snell, is set down for two to three weeks.