The National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) code of practice for the care and handling of dairy cattle has been updated and published on March 30th. Some notable advancements in this new Code include improved social interactions for dairy cattle and a path to eliminating tie stalls, as well as requirements for farmers to take action when they see signs their herd is not doing well overall.
While we're pleased with the new requirements, it is challenging that this progress happens so slowly. We would like to see agriculture in Canada become more sustainable overall, including more humane. These changes need to happen at a more urgent pace, and we hope farming industries will be more proactive.
In other animal news, Octopuses may not be the first to come to mind when we say ‘farmed animals’ but these intelligent creatures need our help. We urgently need to spare octopuses from captivity and suffering due to farming.
Did you know that the first ever industrial-scale farms are being developed around the world to breed and slaughter cephalopods, like octopus, for human consumption? Each farm has the potential to slaughter up to 60,000 animals per year.
Octopuses are intelligent, complex animals who experience pain in a similar way to mammals, and mass-farming poses a significant risk to their welfare. Due to multiple on-farm diseases and unknown pathogens, these farms also pose serious health risks to the local human and animal populations, as well as the environment.
A House of Commons e-Petition was launched to speak up for the tens of thousands of cephalopods facing a cruel and inhumane future. This petition recently closed with over 17,000 signatures asking to ban the importation of farmed cephalopod products into Canada and prohibit the breeding or raising of cephalopods in captivity on Canadian territory.
We thank you for your continued support of Humane Canada and for speaking up for those who cannot speak for themselves. Keep an eye out for GlobalGiving's upcoming July Bonus Day where a portion of donations $100 and over are matched to double your impact and support. Thank you.
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Hello,
Thank you so much for your continued support of the Humane Treatment of Farmed Animals. Did you know that Canada is one of the largest exporters of live horses for human consumption in the world? Horse meat is exported to Japan and other countries from facilities and by live horse exports from Canada.
In December, a shipment of more than 100 horses left Winnipeg airport, with up to 6 horses crammed into each crate. The shipment was delayed 10 hours, forcing the horses to endure additional wait time, on top of usual travel time, without food or water. Legally, horses can be transported up to 28 hours without food or water.
Petition e-4190 is calling upon the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food to halt the live export of horses for slaughter and is sponsored by Jann Arden. The petition to build significant support of this important issue, closes on February 7th.
The Liberal Party of Canada committed to banning the live export of horses for slaughter in its September 1, 2021, election campaign platform and in his December 16, 2021, mandate letter to the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau directed the Minister to deliver on the commitment to “ban the live export of horses for slaughter.”
According to Statistics Canada, since September 2021, more than 2,000 horses have been shipped by air from Canada to Japan for slaughter for human consumption. We know that Canadians agree that this cruel and inhumane practice needs to end
We will continue to keep you updated on this inhumane practice and further developments. Thank you for your using your voice for animals in Canada, and your generous support of Humane Canada.
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The Government of Canada has announced they will be investing in the welfare of animals, as well as the tracking of animal welfare. The Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced nearly $3 million to three national organizations. The organizations receiving these funds include:
Animal Health Canada will receive up to $2.9 million to update national codes of practice for the livestock sector, including the code for the safe and humane transportation of livestock.
The Canadian Cattle Identification Agency will receive up to $52,140 to evaluate the use of ultra-high frequency (UHF) scanners to read cattle identification tags to quickly trace the movement of animals in the event of a disease outbreak. Those tag readings are recorded in a database that can help ascertain the scope of a potential outbreak, protecting animal and human health.
The Canadian Poultry and Egg Processors Council will receive up to $35,750 to update its animal welfare program for hatcheries to meet the requirements of the National Farm Animal Care Council's Code of Practice for the care and handling of hatching eggs, breeders, chickens and turkeys.
Dr. Kendra Coulter and Jessica Scott-Reid recently published an op-ed in the The Toronto Star (linked below) highlighting the Canadian government’s role in animal welfare and what should be done for animal protection.
Here’s an excerpt:
“Even though animal abuse is outlawed in the Criminal Code, there is no dedicated federal animal protection infrastructure or investment. There are no federal animal cruelty investigators. There is no national hotline to report suspected cruelty. There are no transfer payments to provinces for humane law enforcement, cruelty prevention or humane education. And there is no minister of animal welfare or federal watchdog empowered to defend animals’ interests”.
In other news, as we change seasons, we reflect back on summer rodeo events. In July, the Calgary Stampede had its first horse death since 2019 despite its new safety measures. A chuckwagon racehorse was euthanized on July 14th following a serious injury sustained during the Rangeland Derby event. The death comes in the wake of revised rules meant to improve safety after six horses died during the same event at the 2019 Stampede.
The new safety measures include a decrease from four wagons to three competing in each heat, and custom-made delineator arms added to create extra space between the track rails and wagons. Stampede organizers maintain that the safety of animals and people is their priority and have undertaken enhanced veterinary inspections and ongoing studies at the University of Calgary that focus on chuckwagon races.
Several animal rights advocates have called for an end to the animal-related events hosted by the Calgary Stampede, while the Calgary Humane Society has found that it is in a better position to protect animal’s interest by maintaining an open dialogue with the Stampede Board regarding animal welfare. While the Calgary Humane Society fundamentally opposes high risk rodeo events and the use of animals for any form of entertainment, they continue to raise awareness of animal welfare with the organization’s Board.
Humane Canada opposes the use of animals in all forms of entertainment or displays that may cause them to suffer. We oppose in principle the rodeo and are working towards the ultimate abolition of this activity, specifically events which cause the suffering of animals.
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Hi there,
Thank you for your continued support and interest in Farmed Animal Welfare. We are happy to share with you the most recent developments in the work to improve the lives of farmed animals in Canada.
We can report that the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) draft Dairy Code has recently received its most comments ever in NFACC’s history.
Almost 6000 individual responses were received plus 50 organizational responses. The majority of respondents were from Quebec and 40% of respondents identified as dairy farmers, 31% identified as concerned citizens or animal welfare advocates, and 27% identified as consumers.
Canada’s Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Dairy Cattle revisions for public consultation included the following key issues of concern:
The topic of housing for cows and calves received the most comments.
Could Canada be the next country to require mandatory video surveillance in slaughterhouses? France, Spain, Israel, England, Wales, and Scotland all require mandatory video surveillance in their slaughterhouses.
Many Canadians wish to be better informed about the living conditions of animals raised for food. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has recognized that video surveillance could be a good complement to the on-site surveillance by its agents in federal institutions.
To support law enforcement and to ensure transparency, our member societies the Montreal SPCA and Vancouver Humane Society, along with other organizations ask that the government of Canada make video surveillance systems mandatory in all slaughterhouses under federal jurisdiction. Deputy Nathaniel Erskine-Smith has tabled this in the House of Commons.
A new rodeo is being proposed in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland. Not only are many Canadians opposed to rodeos, but so are most animal welfare organizations. As Canada’s Federation of SPCAs and Humane Societies, Humane Canada® is opposed in principle to rodeo and is working towards the ultimate abolition of this activity. Rodeo is banned in the U.K, Holland, and several other U.S and European jurisdictions. It is opposed by the American SPCA, the Royal New Zealand SPCA, and the Australian SPCA.
According to our associate Vancouver Humane Society, many rodeo events put animals at unnecessary risk of injuries, such as broken bones, neck injury or internal damage, which can lead to euthanasia. They add that animals used in many rodeo events experience fear, stress, discomfort, and pain when chased, roped, and wrestled.
On to rodeo in another province, on May 20th, 2022, Droit Animalier Québec, an organization dedicated to the advancement of animal rights in Quebec, filed an unprecedented lawsuit against the St-Tite Western Festival. The goal is to obtain a permanent injunction to prohibit the lassoing and tie-down roping of calves (baby cows) as well as the pinning and wrestling of steers to the ground (adolescent cows).
We will continue to keep you updated on Farmed Animal Welfare in Canada and we thank you for your generous support of this work.
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Hello,
We are pleased to share an update with you on what we are working on here at Humane Canada to support the Humane Treatment of Farmed Animals.
This past December in a new mandate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called on the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, to ban the practice of live horse exports for slaughter, in addition to other climate and agriculture requests. Trudeau has overwhelmingly heard from Canadians on this issue and the inclusion to stop the export of live horses for slaughter, as well as seeing animal welfare in political platforms in the last election, is a tell-tale sign that politicians are listening to Canadians on these issues.
Earlier this year, we asked Canadians who care about the protection of farmed animals to sign a petition to the federal Minister of Agriculture, that any further delay to the full enforcement of transportation regulations is not acceptable. Transport of farmed animals is one of the few areas of federal oversight for animal welfare.
More than 800 million animals are farmed in Canada for food every year. Transportation, most often from farm to slaughterhouse, is the most stressful time in their short lives. In February 2020, Canada implemented long-overdue updates to the Health of Animals Regulations for Transport of Animals. However, the government indicated there would be a two-year delay to full enforcement. The compliance promotion period is ending this month on February 20, 2022 and we are happy to report that the government is not going to further delay.
Another area of concern, the treatment of Dairy Cattle, is being considered at this time. Canada’s Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Dairy Cattle is being revised and recently underwent a public consultation. Humane Canada highlighted many issues, including the following key concerns:
Humane Canada will continue to advocate for strong enforcement approaches and more humane treatment of animals on the farm and during transport.
In late 2021, Canada released its first Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Farmed Salmonids. This is an important first step to safeguard the welfare of fish in aquaculture.
It is encouraging to know that Canada is working toward better requirements for the humane treatment of farmed animals. These changes can be slow and steady, but we are seeing improvements happening. As always, we advocate for positive progressive change in animal agriculture in Canada, including improved animal welfare practices, stronger oversight and increased transparency and accountability.
Thank you for your continued support on these important issues.
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