Today was very hot out so we brought an unannounced visit to Westfort pig slaughterhouse in IJsselstein (NL) to check on the condition of the pigs being brought to slaughter there. We arrived at around noon when the temperature was approximately 28 degrees Celsius. We spoke to the manager and an animal welfare officer of the slaughterhouse and together checked on some of … [Read more...] about Visit to Westfort pig slaughterhouse in IJsselstein
pig slaughterhouse
Checking arrival of pigs at Vion Boxtel in summer heat, NL
Today was very hot outside and thus a team from Eyes on Animals made an unannounced visit to Vion slaughterhouse in Boxtel to check if the slaughterhouse was well prepared to protect pigs from heat stress. The outside temperature is 27 - 28 degrees and there are no clouds. We saw that Vion employees were spraying the asphalt under the waiting pig trucks to keep the asphalt … [Read more...] about Checking arrival of pigs at Vion Boxtel in summer heat, NL
Slaughterhouse Weidemark (Germany) makes changes to reduce heat stress
Eyes on Animals visited this pig slaughterhouse in the summer of 2016 (many Dutch pigs are slaughtered here) and noticed that many animals had to wait on board trucks, in the sun, for hours before being unloaded. We spoke with the director and insisted immediate measures be taken to reduce some of the heat stress risks. The first thing they should do is order industrial … [Read more...] about Slaughterhouse Weidemark (Germany) makes changes to reduce heat stress
MCS pig slaughterhouse, Mohacs/Hungary
A few years ago Eyes on Animals met with MCS to discuss their plans to close down their current slaughterhouse and build a brand new slaughterhouse in Mohacs. We discussed some "best-practices" we had seen in pig slaughterhouses in other countries and encouraged them to incorporate these ideas so that stress and suffering could also be reduced in their new plant. We also … [Read more...] about MCS pig slaughterhouse, Mohacs/Hungary
Slaughterhouse improves restraint box
On advice from Eyes on Animals, the slaughterhouse Heinen in The Netherlands has made improvements to the design of restraint box. The end of the raceway used to look like a dead end as the front side of the restraint-box was closed, causing pigs to be scared and to balk. Now they have opened up the front of the restraint box so that the pigs have the idea that there is an … [Read more...] about Slaughterhouse improves restraint box