Sentient, The Veterinary Institute for Animal Ethics

31/12/2024

Happy New Year from Sentient. We look forward to another year of advocating for the interests of animals and wish to thank all our members for their support and all those who have liked and shared our posts. Sentient is an independent veterinary association dedicated to promoting the understanding of animal sentience and offering evidence-based solutions to improve the welfare of animals. If you would like to join us as a veterinary, associate or student member, please use the following link. Thank you!
https://www.sentient.org.au/membership
Beautiful roo image from iStock Getty Images

26/12/2024

Former live export veterinarian Dr Lynn Simpson provided independent evidence at the recent Inquiry into the impact of the phase-out of Australian live sheep exports by sea on NSW. This inquiry was politically driven but unnecessary, as NSW no longer exports sheep by sea, but Dr Simpson's evidence as usual was both expert and powerful as to why the trade needs to end. She spoke about the age of the current ships, the impossibility of replacing them with new ships within 5 years, the lack of evacuation possibilities for sheep in case of disasters, such as fires breaking out, and most of all, the terrible suffering of these animals onboard. As Dr SImpson stated: "they don't have to die to suffer", challenging the industry's focus on mortality rates without addressing morbidity. Sentient agrees with Dr Simpson that live export is "just a draconian old trade" that needs to go, and in fact, has disappeared by natural attrition to the tune of 99% already.
This footage can be view on the following link from 1 hour, 45 mins and 14 secs.

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26/12/2024

Sentient supports this petition to replace traditional firework displays with eco-friendly drone-shows that do not have a negative impact on animals. Fireworks release toxic chemicals into the environment. They also cause distress to both domestic animals (many of whom run away) and to wildlife, particularly roosting birds, due to the unpredictable and sudden explosions of loud noise. IIt's time to embrace new technology so we can enjoy harm-free celebrations. Please sign and share, and have a happy and safe new year.

Petition to Replace Fireworks with Eco-Friendly Drone Shows for the Sake of our animals

24/12/2024

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Sentient and thank you to all our members for your support of our advocacy. This year, apart from lobbying via letter writing, Sentient made the following formal submissions to urge better conditions for animals, including by a ban on rodeos, animal racing and live export:
• Draft Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Regulation 2025
• National Statistics on the Use of Animals in Research and Teaching in Australia Options Paper
• Inquiry into the management of cat populations in NSW
• Victorian jumps racing review 2024
• Inquiry into greyhound racing in NSW,
• Inquiry into the impact of the phase-out of live sheep exports by sea on NSW
• Wildlife (Game) Regulations 2024 and Regulatory Impact Statement Consultation
• Inquiry on the proposal to develop Rosehill Racecourse
• Inquiry into Export Control Amendment (Ending Live Sheep Exports by Sea) Bill 2024
• Crocodile Code of Practice Review
• Inquiry into pig welfare in Victoria

We look forward to another active year in 2025 and welcome new members, so if you would like to support our work, please go to the following link: https://www.sentient.org.au/membership

Image by Getty

21/12/2024

Sentient condemns the recent policy decision by the City of Moreton Bay to ban homeless individuals from owning pets. Australia is facing a cost of living crisis and homelessness is a tragic situation faced by many. These people and their pets need support, not to be forcibly separated. This decision is callous and will do great harm. Instead, policies should aim to prevent homelessness and establish services that support homeless people and their animals to stay safe and well. Pets in the Park is a credit to the veterinary profession, offering free veterinary treatment through clinics that include the City of Moreton Bay. Please sign and share this petition, particularity if you are a Moreton Bay resident.

Pets In The Park strongly condemns the recent policy decision made earlier this week by the City of Moreton Bay to ban homeless individuals from owning a pet.

Australia is not a country that kicks the little people; rather, we are a society that lends a hand to help people when they are downtrodden. This does not appear to be the case in the City of Moreton Bay, however, where Council is now targeting some of the most marginalised members of its own community.

People suffering the devastating effects of homelessness live a very difficult, exclusionary existence. In many cases, their pets are their entire world. It's a reason for them to get up in the morning. A reason to feel loved. Companionship during lonely days. Security on dark unsafe nights.

Homelessness can and does happen to ordinary people in Australia with frightening ease. Whether it’s sudden job loss, relationship breakdown, family violence, faulty financial products, medical episodes, natural disasters – there are myriad ways in which a person can suddenly and very unexpectedly find themselves without stable housing. This decision carries dangerous implications for all Moreton Bay residents. If any resident were to face the unimaginable – losing their home – they too would fall victim to a Council policy that is designed to persecute, rather than assist.

Government policies have real-world consequences, and the decision by the City of Moreton Bay to outlaw pet ownership for people experiencing homelessness will simply deepen their hardship. At Pets In The Park’s free veterinary clinics, including our Caboolture clinic within the City of Moreton Bay area, we witness firsthand the lifesaving bond between vulnerable individuals and their pets – companions who provide emotional support, unconditional love, and a sense of hope and purpose during a person’s hardest times.

Our dedicated volunteers work tirelessly to offer compassionate care to both people and their animals, ensuring their wellbeing. A more caring approach from the council, recognising and valuing this important bond, would not only support those in need, but also honour the hard work of volunteer-led charity organisations like ours that are committed to serving the Moreton Bay community.

We urge the residents of Moreton Bay, and the broader Australian community, to voice their compassion and concern for these vulnerable people and pets. Demand a reversal of this cruel, short-sighted policy decision. Demand real solutions that address the complex problem of homelessness with dignity and genuine care.

www.petsinthepark.org.au

20/12/2024

Believe it or not, Channel 9 has announced a rodeo will be held on St Kilda Beach in March. Please sign this petition to oppose such cruelty. Rodeos are outdated forms of 'entertainment' that are based on terrifying and cruelly handling animals who may be severely injured or killed. The majority of people in the community oppose rodeos, including those living in regional areas. Please sign and share this petition and if you can, attend the rally on March 1 at the St Kilda Town Hall.

Stop The Rodeo St Kilda

13/12/2024

Wonderful news from our friends in New Zealand! The government has announced that greyhound racing will be banned from 2026 due to “unacceptably high” rates of injuries and deaths among the dogs, the government has announced. Multiple independent reports have found a high number of healthy dogs had been euthanised by their trainers or suffered serious injuries on the track, and in 2021, the then Labour government put the industry on notice to either make improvements or face closure. Clubs and tracks will be closed by the end of 2026.

Greyhound industry group says government hasn’t recognised its work to address welfare issues that have plagued racing for years

04/12/2024

A group of Tasmanian vets and vet nurses is calling for an end to taxpayer funding of greyhound racing in Tasmania by 2029 on the grounds of the appalling welfare of these wonderful dogs. Sentient supports their stance and we look forward to further publicity on this issue.

The veterinarians argue that greyhound racing is cruel and outdated…

02/12/2024

The University of Cambridge’s prestigious veterinary course could be stripped of its professional accreditation unless sufficient improvement is made by September 2025. Investigators from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) found that isolation facilities for the veterinary medicine department’s larger animals were not fit for purpose and that ethical concerns had been raised by multiple sources about “automatically” putting down farm animals presenting with symptoms requiring isolation. There are also reports of students not being protected from racism during extra-mural rotations and of student complaints being actively discouraged. Sentient's view is that these students are the future of the profession and we commend any students or university staff members for speaking out on behalf of both human and animal abuse.

Worries about animal euthanasia and mishandling of complaints from students about racism among concerns

02/12/2024

A Meander Valley man is facing animal cruelty and fi****ms charges after a bull was allegedly shot and killed at the Gladstone Hotel Rodeo in Tasmania earlier this month. There are minimal details available at this stage but we do know the bull was shot after breaking his leg, which is enough reason for rodeos to be banned. This is always a potential outcome in this vile 'sport'. We will post further information about the animal cruelty charges when they are released but suffice to say, rodeos are a form of animal cruelty in themselves and should not be granted exemptions by animal welfare legislation.

Police executed a search warrant at a local property, seizing over 30 fi****ms…

16/11/2024

Sentient supports this petition to the NSW parliament to advocate that rodeos no longer be exempt from animal cruelty legislation. This month, the University of New South Wales Law Journal published a paper highlighting the discrepancy between the treatment of racehorses and horses used in rodeos in regard to the use of electric devices. While race horses are protected from such treatment, electric prods can be used on horses in NSW rodeos and these cause pain, fear and suffering. This is just one of the welfare problems faced by rodeo animals. Please sign and share.

End Rodeo Cruelty in NSW

14/11/2024

Former live export vet Dr Lynn Simpson's latest article explains why it is fruitless to fight the upcoming ban on live sheep exports by sea, which will come into effect in May 2028. The reality is, the live export trade is dying a natural death. Australia now has 17 live export ships, down from 80 in the 1990s, and these are already in use for the short-haul beef cattle trade, so will have to be shared with live sheep exports until the ban takes effect. With an increased uptake of refrigerated meat, it is unlikely the current fleet will be replaced as it ages. Globally, live export ships will increasingly be on the scrap heap due to structural or mechanical failures or failure to meet regulatory guidelines. Live export is a poor investment. 90% of the live sheep trade from Australia has disappeared over the last 20 years. Well and truly time to move on.

What happens to a live export trade when the ships don’t return? Dr Lynn Simpson, a well-known former live export veterinarian, makes her Splash return today. In the age of refrigerated sea and air cargo, how long will modern-day practices condone mass numbers of live animals becoming unwitting se...

13/11/2024

We agree with MP Emma Hurst, the chair of a NSW upper house inquiry into the aerial shooting of feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park that its final report is "biased". The committee's main recommendation was for the aerial shooting of brumbies to continue "to protect the natural environment". Sentient's concern is the overt cruelty involved, particularly with horses being shot in the chest, which does NOT cause an instantaneous loss of consciousness. The commitee failed to acknowledge this, despite numerous representations by veterinarians and other animal advocates of evidence to the contrary. This is all about the NSW government reaching their 'legislated target' to reduce the number of horses to 3,000 by mid-2027.

A NSW inquiry into the aerial shooting of wild horses in Kosciuszko National Park has recommended the practice should continue, but the chairwoman who led the inquiry's committee says the final report that has been released is "biased".

13/11/2024

In October 2023, Sentient submitted to the inquiry into the 'Proposed aerial shooting of brumbies in Kosciuszko National Park' and our committee member Dr Catherine Tiplady presented strong evidence against this proposal at the hearing. The Committee's Animal Welfare Commitee has just released its report, which supports ongoing aerial shooting, despite evidence that most horses receive chest shots and are at risk of a death that is painful and far from instantaneous. This decision was a majority one and we commend Emma Hurst, Chair, for her dissenting report. The Committee did recommend that the National Parks and Wildlife Service further investigate the effectiveness of fertility control as a control method, which we support, but this is a longer term solution and will require significant funding. The Government's response is due in February 2025 but no doubt, this brutal practice will be supported, all to meet the NSW Government's self-imposed target of reducing brumby numbers in the park to 3,000 by 2027. This is all about politics, not science, and certainly not animal welfare.
https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/committees/inquiries/Pages/inquiry-details.aspx?pk=2991 -reportsandgovernmentresponses

05/11/2024

We love this posting on Nup to the Cup. Please share.

Last season, at least 151 racehorses died on Australian racetracks.
That's why we’re saying
Today in Mumbrella, Seven Communications' Patrice Pandeleos reported that, ‘By supporting movements like ‘Nup to the Cup’ and exploring alternative events, companies can not only strengthen their brand loyalty, but resonate with a new generation of conscious consumers, contributing to a more ethical and inclusive society.’
So, where does your workplace stand? Will it say 'Nup to the Cup'?
https://bit.ly/40xkoi6

04/11/2024

Tomorrow is the Melbourne Cup, so yet again we are bracing ourselves and hoping that no horse will be seriously injured or killed. This is also a good time to educate ourselves about the everyday lives of racehorses. This excellent article explains the difference between care, such as being housed, fed, access to veterinary treatment as needed etc and actual welfare, which is about how an animal feels, and the verdict is very poor for the welfare of racehorses. They are largely kept isolated in stables for up to 23 hours per day, have very little chance to express natural behaviours such as grazing, exercising of their own volition or socialising with conspecifics, are fed a concentrated diet that leads to gastric ulcers, are exposed to whipping, the pain of bits, tongue ties and nosebands, and the risk of serious injury when racing, and often develop stereotypic behaviours due to stress. These horses need more than good care - they need choices and the freedom to lead a more natural life. We say no to horse racing and definitely NUP TO THE CUP.

Racehorses take centre stage during the Spring Racing Carnival but how exactly are they treated during their daily lives?

03/11/2024

Leading up to the horrendous Melbourne Cup, we recommend this great podcast from RSPCA Australia about the risks to racehorses, especially the practice of racing young Thoroughbreds who are skeletally immature.

31/10/2024

A group of animal welfare organizations have written an open letter to Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, asking her to stop the live export of cattle to war zones. There have been over 100 shipments of cattle and sheep from Europe to Israel so far this year and an unknown number of livestock exported to Lebanon since the fighting expanded in that region. Ethical Farming Ireland says sources at Haifa port have informed them that every day barrages of rockets fall on the port and surrounding areas where the quarantine centres and fattening farms are. The rockets are mostly intercepted by the dome, but some of the rockets also get through, risking injury and harm to the animals and port workers.

A group of animal welfare organizations have written an open letter to Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety…