Action for lambs in Italy
Over the last few days, we have been traveling between Slovenia and Italy to inspect lamb transports. We checked a total of 9 trucks transportig lambs and two trucks transporting bopvines. Apart from minor violations—such as insufficient ceiling height or drinking troughs that are unsuitable for lambs—we did not find any serious violations. This is a pleasant surprise, as in previous years we have regularly documented massive problems around Christmas time. It shows that our work is having an effect.
However, the nature of the transports has also changed: this year, there were significantly fewer lamb transports on the road, and they came from different regions. Whereas transports from Romania to Italy are common, this time most of the trucks came from Hungary. The reason for this is the outbreak of Ovine pest (PPR) in Romania, which is why no transports are currently taking place from there.
Less lambs, more cattle?
However, it alarmed us that while the number of lamb transports appears to have fallen sharply, we observed a massive increase in cattle transports to Italy.
In one of these transports, we observed the most serious violation of the animal transport regulations: in a truck coming from Slovenia, a young bull was lying on the floor, seriously injured. The animal could no longer stand up, and other cattle were trampling on it. The drivers openly admitted that they were aware they were transporting an injured animal – and that they knew this was illegal.
After we informed the relevant authorities, our passports were confiscated on the spot without explanation and we were detained. The transporter was then simply allowed to continue on its way. In our view, this approach is unacceptable, especially given the seriousness of the violation that was detected. We have officially identified ourselves as animal welfare organizations.
We immediately informed the responsible veterinarians at the slaughterhouse and are currently waiting for feedback on what happened to the animal. We will be reporting this case to the authorities.
What we have seen in recent days shows once again that controls are essential – and they must not be hindered by arbitrary actions on the part of the authorities.
