Not every mother in New Zealand gets to celebrate motherhood
New Zealand Open Rescue Mother's Day rescue, piglets saved from horror
New Zealand Open Rescue conducted an undercover investigation into an intensive piggery in Auckland to coincide with Mother's Day, uncovering gruesome evidence and rescuing two female piglets.
"Our investigation revealed death, cannibalism and immense suffering," says New Zealand Open Rescue spokesperson Deirdre Sims.
"We witnessed sows in farrowing crates anguished in extreme confinement.These mother pigs were unable to walk or turn around, let alone able to interact with their babies. Our team also documented many dead piglets,one of which had been severely cannibalised.
'We rescued two female piglets from this horror, placing them into a wonderful new home. We did this so that these young females will never have to endure the suffering and deprivation that their mothers experience.
"This Mother's Day weekend, we urge the New Zealand public to spare a thought for sows imprisoned on intensive piggeries across the country. Boycott pork and help bring an end to this cruelty", says Ms. Sims.
SAFE has received disturbing new footage taken last month inside an intensive piggery in the Auckland area.
The footage shows frustrated and depressed sows as well as sick, dying and crippled piglets. Many of the breeding sows had sores or suffering from badly infected teats.
The footage was taken by members of Open Rescue who openly identify themselves and take full responsibility for their actions, despite any possible legal repercussions which may arise. Open Rescue volunteers are active in Australia, Europe, United States and New Zealand.
Open Rescue investigator Deirdre Sims says her team are ordinary people acting with compassion in the face of suffering. "We hope showing this evidence of atrocities taken on a New Zealand farm will help end this abuse. If people boycotted pig meat it would help pave a way to the freedom of these poor suffering animals", she says.
