Thursdays is the famous livestock market day in Tamale, Ghana. Hundreds of cattle, goats and fowl are sold and re-loaded for transport to slaughter. Conditions are loud and brutal and our team has been trying to raise awareness and improve facilities and handling there.
This past Thursday the WACPAW/EonA team gave an educational workshop to the Chicken and Guinea Fowl Traders Association about chicken welfare handling and transportation. Seventeen members including the chairman,vice chairman,secretary of the association and the Assembly Member for the Victory Electoral Area took part in the meeting. Some people, mostly buyers and other traders, also joined. We educated them on general welfare needs of chickens at the market and during transport such as adequate ventilation and air quality, protection from the sun, provision of food and water in the cages, a reduction of noise and unnecessary movements around them which cause fear and stress, and better handling and loading of the birds (see photo of current upside down method that we are trying to change).
They expressed their gratitude for the information and knowledge we shared with them. The chairman lamented on how they lose birds to heat stress and overloading and appealed for proper cages and better vehicles. They also requested for more of such eye -opening meetings. Animal-welfare if a new subject for many of them but it is not to say they are not interested.
Thank you to the Chicken and Guinea Fowl Traders Association for their cooperation.
