• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • EYES ON ANIMALS – Watching out for their Welfare
  • English
  • Nederlands
  • Deutsch

Eyes on Animals

Watching out for their Welfare

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
DONATE
  • About us
    • What we do
    • Our team
    • Key Figures
    • Contact
  • News
    • Latest news
    • Good news
    • Bad news
    • Subscribe to our newsletter
  • Inspections
    • Farms
    • Markets
    • Transports
    • Slaughterhouses
    • Special projects
    • Other
  • Training
    • Police
    • Truck drivers
    • Poultry-catchers
    • Slaughter personnel
    • Training Material
    • Request a training
  • Industry Tips
    • Animal transport
      • Cattle
      • Pigs
      • Poultry
    • Slaughterhouses
      • Cattle
      • Pigs
      • Poultry
      • Ritual slaughter
    • Educational videos
  • Publications
    • In the media
      • Print
      • Television
      • Radio
      • Videos
    • Newsletters
    • Special reports
    • Training Material
    • Annual reviews
  • Future Vision
  • Help us
Home » Our inspections » market » Inspection of Leeuwarden cattle market and loading, NL

Inspection of Leeuwarden cattle market and loading, NL

August 7, 2014

06.08.2014_NL_Leeuwarden (3)Last night and today we carried out an unannounced inspection of the Leeuwarden cattle market and the loading of cattle onto trucks here. All cattle arriving at this market are destined for slaughter and thus many culled- cows from the dairy industry are present. The Leeuwarden cattle market has taken many steps to improve welfare over the past few years and we are very pleased with the managers- aside from plenty of bedding there are now many more group pens available where animals do not have to be tied up, water troughs everywhere, a mobile-milker to relieve cows with full udders, railings with chains welded on that are well spaced out and long so that the remaining tied-on cattle have enough room to lie down and stand up but without getting tangled in each other. As well, the market has a private veterinarian who is always ready to check and if necessary euthanize an animal that is suffering. In terms of facility and management, it has made the most improvements we have seen compared to other markets. Most of the traders on this day were also calm when moving the animals.

07.08.2014_NL_Leeuwarden (73)But some serious problems remain in the dairy industry; namely that some farmers and traders continue to attempt to transport culled-cows here that are clearly not fit for transport. These cattle should instead be humanely killed at the farm. According to EC 1/2005 transport legislation, animals must be able to walk unassisted and without pain. Many had swollen or open leg injuries and avoided putting weight on them, others were emaciated with clearly empty rumens, arched backs and hind legs stretched out backwards, and some were breathing rapidly and had cold hanging ears and acted lethargic… thus we argue that a number of them were not legally fít for transport. Unfortunately the trend still is “if she can walk, then she can be loaded” often regardless of her behavioural indications of pain.

On this market, 263 cattle were sold. During our visit the three most extreme cases were emergency killed on the spot (captive-bolt pistol and then bled out) or euthanized (via an injection), and the rest transported to slaughter in Holland, Germany and Belgium. The cow that was euthanized arrived with milk fever and mastitis. Another one was weak and fell down, seriously injuring her leg and no longer being able to get up.

07.08.2014_NL_Leeuwarden   (121)And another one was lethargic and breathing rapidly during the entire market, lying flat-out on her side. The cattle traders present insisted nothing was wrong with her, despite our concerns. But as expected, during loading she collapsed and fell down the ramp. We called the market director who had the veterinarian come who decided to humanely kill her where she was lying, shortly after the incident.

We are now working on how this type of problem can be avoided in the future. Aside from the standard follow-up procedures of alerting the head-authorities of the condition some of the animals arrived in, we will also meet with the boss of the transport company involved in the incident with the collapsed cow to discuss why it went wrong and what actions they will do to avoid such a thing from happening again. Additionally we will insist that the Leeuwarden market now invest in building permanent loading ramps at the market, so that the cattle do not have to climb up steep inclinations into the truck but rather can walk straight in.

 

  • share 
  • tweet 
  • share 
  • save 
  • email 

Filed Under: market, Our inspections Tagged With: cattle market, leeuwarden

Primary Sidebar

Search

Featured

Fine for VION pig-slaughterhouse in Boxtel due to long waiting times in summer heat

An enforcement request by Eyes on Animals resulted in a fine for VION pig slaughterhouse in Boxtel … [Read More...] about Fine for VION pig-slaughterhouse in Boxtel due to long waiting times in summer heat

Featured

Upright chicken catching project on German and French TV

ZDF and Arte recently televised EonA’s project to reduce stress, pain and injuries by catching hens … [Read More...] about Upright chicken catching project on German and French TV

Our most recent newsletter

Dear friends,

I first discovered the bad side of factory-farming and industrial slaughter when I was a young girl of twelve.
When I visited a livestock market I saw a pile of sick animals left for dead behind the building. At a huge industrial poultry slaughterhouse, I saw dozens of live chickens walking around the bloody floor…

 

Read more…

Subscribe to our newsletter

Eyes on Animals op Twitter

eyes_on_animals Eyes on Animals @eyes_on_animals ·
2h

📌🐓 Kijktip! #vogelgriep #pluimvee

Reply on Twitter 1641413136719785985 Retweet on Twitter 1641413136719785985 6 Like on Twitter 1641413136719785985 8 Twitter 1641413136719785985
houseanimals_nl House of Animals @houseanimals_nl ·
4h

Meeste Nederlanders willen wettelijke bescherming melkkoeien https://ift.tt/IyXfvBg #AnimalsToday

Reply on Twitter 1641382666212720642 Retweet on Twitter 1641382666212720642 3 Like on Twitter 1641382666212720642 6 Twitter 1641382666212720642
ethicalfarmie Ethical Farming Ireland @ethicalfarmie ·
5h

“We want to see calves flying out of this country,” the president of the Irish Farmers’ Association, Tim Cullinan. I want to see calves looked after on the farm they were born on, until they are weaned. So disappointing to see this nonsense again...
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/06/ireland-to-jet-calves-to-europe-to-cut-travel-time

Reply on Twitter 1641376638288949254 Retweet on Twitter 1641376638288949254 11 Like on Twitter 1641376638288949254 38 Twitter 1641376638288949254
Load More...

ANBI

Footer

Donate with Paypal

Paypal Eyes on Animals
One-time donation:
Monthly donation:

Reading Material

  • In the Media
  • Newsletters
  • Special EonA reports
  • Legislative texts
  • ANBI

Our Amsterdam Office

Amsterdam House Hotel
Eyes on Animals main office is in downtown Amsterdam, at the Amsterdam House Hotel. The generous and warm-hearted hotel owner donated to Eyes on Animals, free of charge, a beautiful room where our inspectors can work, hold meetings and store their material.

Copyright © 2023 · Eyes on Animals | Website by Webkompaan