GEORGE TOWN, Feb 13 —The Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry Ministry needs to draft a Farm Animal Welfare Act because of the poor treatment of livestock in farms throughout the country.
Penang Consumers Association president S.M. Mohamed Idris said the Act was timely and should conform to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act as animal cruelty in farms was rampant.
“The proposed Act should contain requirements for best practices and protection of animal welfare,” he told a press conference yesterday.
Mohamed Idris said livestock was being kept in small and confined spaces in many farms.
“The animals are kept in cramped areas without room for movement. They cannot even stand or spread their legs and wings,” he said.
“They lie in their faeces and urine. They are not exposed to fresh air or sunlight.”
He said the animals were also pumped with hormones and antibiotics.
Mohamed Idris said animals confined in cramped conditions were prone to attacking each other and because of that, they were debeaked, dehorned or had their tails docked to prevent injuries.
“This clearly violates the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1953 (Revised 2006),” he said.
He said aimals were also being transported in bad conditions. Chickens especially were packed tightly into plastic crates and stacked high on top of each other and transported to distant destinations without food or water.
He said in other countries, farmers took the initiative to have healthy and safe animal farming methods.
“For instance, European Union countries have banned hen cages on the basis of unacceptable cruelty as of Jan 1, 2012. In India, the Animal Welfare Board and most husbandry departments have advised all state governments and poultry farmers that battery cages should not be used and existing ones be phased out by 2017,” he said.
