Yesterday EonA dropped by Gosschalk abattoir to take a look at the unloading and slaughter of cows that Dutch dairy farmers cull and send away. The unloading at Gosschalk went calmly, and the handling via the raceway was with respect. When necessary, the staff worker used a cleaning-brush as a driving tool- he stroked and tapped the backs or hips of the cows … [Read more...] about Unloading, handling and stunning of cattle at Gosschalk
animal welfare inspection
EonA meets with Denkavit to discuss L214’s exposure of mistreatment of calves at their testing station in France
Today we met with the managers of Denkavit’s headquarters in the Netherlands. Denkavit is a large Dutch company working internationally and producing white veal and feed for veal calves. The reason we asked for a meeting is that we had seen footage taken by the French NGO L214 showing very rough and disrespectful treatment of young calves at one of their feed-testing … [Read more...] about EonA meets with Denkavit to discuss L214’s exposure of mistreatment of calves at their testing station in France
Inspection horse market Hedel
Eyes on Animals visited the yearly horse market in Hedel this week. We joined the House of Animals’ team, who have been hiring professional bodyguards the last few years, in order to protect our teams against malicious visitors of this horse market. When we arrived around midnight, there were no horses/ponies yet, so we could get a good overview of the layout of … [Read more...] about Inspection horse market Hedel
Kipster puts practical ideas into place, but not all birds caught upright
Tonight the “spent” laying hens of Kipster in Beuningen were to be caught and loaded for transport. Kipster employees spent 5 hours installing wire fencing along the entire bottom of all of their aviaries to block the birds from going underneath the installation, so that upright catching could also be very efficient. Normally catchers have to go underneath the … [Read more...] about Kipster puts practical ideas into place, but not all birds caught upright
Slaughter of very young goat-kids to end in 2025
Partly because of our efforts the sector has drawn up a plan to put a stop to the transportation and slaughter of extremely young goat-kids. From 2025 dairy goat farmers will have to fatten all (100%) of their goat-kids up until a minimum of 2 weeks of age. In 2023 this needs to be at least 25% and in 2024 a minimum of 50%. Two weeks is indeed still too young and does not … [Read more...] about Slaughter of very young goat-kids to end in 2025
EonA and Welfarm Training of gendarmes in Hautes Alpes, France
Today, together with the French NGO Welfarm, we held a very effective training day for the gendarmes and official veterinarian services in the Hautes- Alpes department. After the 3-hr training course on the European legislation on the protection of animals during transport we went to the National roads and stopped 4 animal trucks carrying sheep and … [Read more...] about EonA and Welfarm Training of gendarmes in Hautes Alpes, France
Visit to Van der Linden poultry slaughterhouse in Beringe (NL)
Today we paid an announced visit to Van der Linden poultry slaughterhouse. Van der Linden took time out of their busy schedule to show us the process from beginning to end, and to answer all our questions. In the lairage, big fans with water-misters had been fitted on the ceiling. There were also fans on the floor. The water-misters help cool the air. However, in … [Read more...] about Visit to Van der Linden poultry slaughterhouse in Beringe (NL)
Visit to Westfort pig slaughterhouse in IJsselstein during extreme heat
Aufgrund der extremen Hitze besuchten wir heute den Schweineschlachthof Westfort in IJsselstein (NL). Die Wartezeiten zu Beginn des Tages (11:00-13:30) betrugen 20-25 Minuten. Das ist nicht schlecht für einen so großen Schlachthof. Die Lastwagen konnten innerhalb weniger Minuten nach ihrer Ankunft unter dem Vordach (Schattennetz) stehen. Unter der Überdachung befinden sich … [Read more...] about Visit to Westfort pig slaughterhouse in IJsselstein during extreme heat
Visit to Vion slaughterhouse in Boxtel during extreme hot weather
Today Eyes on Animals revisited Vion pig-slaughterhouse in Boxtel (NL) because of the extreme hot weather (30-33°C). When we arrived a few minutes before 4:00 pm the property was empty. The delivery of pigs had stopped. Even though we think a transport-stop during this hot weather (>30°C) should be standard practice, we are happy to see this in action. During our last … [Read more...] about Visit to Vion slaughterhouse in Boxtel during extreme hot weather
Gosschalk continues to improve animal welfare 
After Gosschalk was forced to shut down by NVW authority due to undercover footage exposing serious animal welfare issues, they have responded by implementing several improvements. Although we were hesitant to help at first (for years Gosschalk did not allow us in) after a few meetings with the director and the newly appointed welfare supervisor, we have the impression … [Read more...] about Gosschalk continues to improve animal welfare 
