The millions of Australian sheep who have died on gruelling voyages en route to Middle East may well have been the lucky ones. The peak season for live animals to be exported to countries with no animal welfare laws is the Eid al Adha – the Festival of Sacrifice. Those who survive the voyage will routinely endure brutal handling and horrific slaughter that would be rightly illegal in Australia. Please call on the Australian government to end this cruel trade.
The Festival of Sacrifice in the Middle East marks one of the darkest times on the animal welfare calendar. Tragically, hundreds of thousands of exported Aussie animals are amongst the millions who are sacrificed during these religious celebrations.
Just as Christmas has become the worst time of animal suffering in the West with millions of pigs, turkeys and chickens slaughtered for Christmas celebrations, the Festival of Sacrifice is the worst time of animal suffering throughout the Middle East.
Islamic teachings speak of humane treatment of animals, but the sheer numbers of animals bought and sacrificed often leads to cruelty on a massive scale. The welfare of each individual animal is forgotten.
Animals Australia investigators returned to the Middle East for the 2010 Festival of Sacrifice and again documented brutally cruel treatment of Aussie sheep and cattle. Confused and exhausted sheep were routinely bound with wire, shoved into car boots or loaded onto the back of utes, before suffering a terrifying death - their throats cut whilst fully conscious.
Despite the evidence, the Australian Federal government has not faced up to the reality that live animal exports are cruel and must be stopped. Enough's enough! Call on the Aussie Prime Minister, Julia Gillard and the Agriculture Minister, Joe Ludwig to help put a stop to this cruel trade.
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