Investigations by Topics:

14. March 2023

Ferdinand: Failure of the competent authorities to protect animals during transport

Ferdinand, Summer 2020.

Drei Jahre ist es her, dass der Jungbulle Ferdinand im Hafen von Cartagena, Spanien, schwer misshandelt wurde. Der Fall Ferdinand kam nur ans Licht, weil unsere Teams einschritten. Einer der wenigen Fälle, die bei Tierschutzverbrechen überhaupt vor Gericht verhandelt wurden.

28. February 2023

Round table in the EU Parliament: end in sight for live exports?

Brussels: We are demanding an end to live exports.

At the invitation of the EU politician Thomas Waitz, our team makes its way to the EU Parliament in Brussels. There we will discuss the requirements for the new EU animal transport regulation at a round table with politicians from all parties and other animal welfare organisations. When we started with our investigations, we would never have dared…

08. February 2023

Investigation in France: Calves remain hungry at EU supply station (control post)

Our team is inspecting the condition of the young animals and the loading situation.

The police stop a truck with 200 hungry calves near Besancon (France). This police action is possible due to our cooperation with the French NGO Welfarm and the EU politician Caroline Roose from the Green party.

The night before our investigation team observes the calves from the Czech Republic being unloaded at a supply station in the Alsace.…

31. January 2023

Investigation with the Polish Road Transport Inspection (ITD)

Together with the Polish Road Transportation Inspection (ITD) our team is on the lookout for live transports.

Our team is driving to Wroclaw in Western Poland to support the Road Transport Inspection (ITD) with the inspection of live transports in this area. Surprisingly, this time we do not get to inspect any truck with animals on board. Moreover, we do not observe a single livestock truck (even an empty one) for two consecutive days.

It may seem…

14. December 2022

Poland: Live transport inspections together with the Road Transport Police (ITD)

Our team watches the road for live transports together with the Polish road transport police (ITD).

Our team again joins the Road Transport Police (ITD) for animal welfare inspections of live transports. This time we are inspecting live transports crossing Eastern Poland. Two days of joint inspections resulted in interesting observations. Despite very cold weather we inspected national as well as and long-distance transports of live animals.

The…

03. November 2022

How the scandalous livestock carrier ELBEIK became a ghost ship

In March 2021, the livestock carrier ELBEIK made international headlines: with almost 1,800 young bulls on board, the vessel wandered the Mediterranean for almost three months. The animals were detained on the ELBEIK because of suspected bluetongue virus. 179 animals did not survive the cruel transport, the remaining animals were taken to the…

25. October 2022

BTSF: Training for official veterinarians in the EU on live transports

Our project manager and BTSF-tutor Maria Boada Saña knows from her experience in the field what official veterinarians need to considered during live transport inspections.

This week we were working for the animals as trainers tutors at the Better Training for Safer Food (BTSF)  a European Commission training initiative aimed to improve knowledge about animal welfare. BTSF trains official veterinarians so that they can ensure compliance with and monitor animal protection laws regarding live transports.

Our project…

19. October 2022

Joint live transport inspections with the Polish road transport police (ITD)

Together with the Polish road transport police IDT our team is on the lookout for live transports.

Our team is driving to Gorzow in Western Poland to join the road transport police (ITD) for animal welfare inspections of live transports. During two shifts, we inspect six vehicles in total.

Among them, two trucks with German pigs being transported for slaughter, two vehicles with Danish piglets on board on journeys exceeding 8 hours for further…

21. September 2022

800 young bulls stranded in the Mediterranean Sea. Is their emergency killing now imminent?

Recordings from our investigations: Animals are being loaded on the vessel NADER-A in a European export port.

Almost three weeks ago, the animals were shipped from France to Algeria. There, the unloading of the animals was refused due to a bureaucratic problem. Since then, the bulls have been wandering the Mediterranean, penned up on a 45-year-old junk ship, the Nader-A. Up until now we do not know how many animals are still alive. We suspect that the…