Rspca Found Negligent After Slaughtering 131 Cattle

[Steve]

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/rspca-found-negligent-after-slaughtering-131-cattle-with-indecent-haste-20140808-101tr1.html

The RSPCA has been found to have been negligent in slaughtering 131 head of prime cattle on a farm outside Warrnambool in 2003.

A judge of Victoria's County Court ruled that the stud Murray Grey cattle - including two bulls and three calves - were shot by an RSPCA inspector with "indecent haste".

Judge John Bowman on Friday said that the herd was put down without consultation of its owners, James Holdsworth and Heather Ellison.

The pair sued the RSPCA for damages - reported at more than $2 million - after its inspector Jason Nicholls shot the cattle in the presence of colleague Mark Roberts following a complaint about starving animals.

Mr Holdsworth and Ms Ellison argued the cattle were not in a condition that required destruction while the RSPCA denied negligence.

It argued the cattle were abandoned, neglected and in an emaciated condition. In his summarised key findings, Judge Bowman said when Mr Nicholls rang Mr Holdsworth on May 27, 2003, Mr Holdsworth told him he was part owner of the cattle.

He arranged to meet Mr Nicholls on May 30 and that Mr Holdsworth was "not aware of the urgency of the situation or that the killing of the cattle had commenced".

The judge said that Mr Nicholls did not contact Mr Holdsworth on May 28 when he had "put down a few animals and made arrangements for a major assessment of the herd the following day".

On May 30, he said, Mr Nicholls, who at all times was "in control of the situation and the operation", started the "assessment process which was effectively a culling of the herd".

Judge Bowman continued: "If any doubt existed as to the ownership of the cattle, this had been removed before the assessment process began ... Nicholls having been provided with the results of the business name search."

At an earlier stage, before the killings, a contractor working for the Framlingham Aboriginal Trust - which owned the property where the cattle were agisted - spoke to Mr Nicholls about Mr Holdsworth coming for a meeting on May 30.

Judge Bowman also found that Mr Nicholls at not stage clarified the "ownershi p situation" with a veterinarian Dr Callum Irvine who attended the property and met with Mr Nicholls.

"Had Dr Irvine known that the ownership of the animals was something of which Nicholls was aware and an owner would have been a available on Friday, 30 May, to discuss the matter," the judge said, "that would have absolutely made a difference to the course of the action".

Judge Bowman said that "in controlling the situation, Nicholls effectively did not permit the treatment of individual animals."

He continued: "The whole operation conducted by Nicholls on behalf of the (RSPCA) ... seems to have been conducted with what could be described as indecent haste.

"There is effectively no reason why that whole operation could not have been put on hold for at least a day so that Holdsworth (and Ellison) could have been consulted in relation to what could be done with the cattle." The case was adjourned for the question of damages to be argued.

[Cody]

Why does that not surprise me.

[OSoSwift]

Heard very much the same stories involving cattle before. They have no idea.

I hope they are fined heavily so in future they stop and think before needlessly slaughtering animals.

[Little Gifts]

What I don't get is the inconsistency regarding livestock and companion animals. They will warn and give the owners of puppy farms and large BYB's every opportunity to comply with minimum standards (while said companion animals become less and less suitable to be rehomed without intensive work) but here they just cull sick cattle (whose purpose in life may have been to be meat on our tables anyway), without endlessly encouraging the owner to do the right thing? I guess they think they can get away with shooting a bunch of cows out bush and let's face it, they wouldn't want to transport cattle to a shelter for care and treatment given they are moving out of the shelter business. Starving cow pictures don't rake in the donations like emaciated dog pics do.

I'd care a lot less if they shot a few deliberately neglectful owners.

[OSoSwift]

The thing is many people think that cows should be filled out and covered like horses. The shouldn't. NO they shouldn't be skinny but a cow can be covered and its hip/pin bones should be easily visbile. Some people think they need to be round and shiney like a horse.

Milking cows quite often look boney but theya re well fed and glossy and they don't carry extra weight as they put all the extra into producing lots of milk.

A smiliar story occured when a farmer had put his dairy herd onto pasture while having a break from the dairy - I think they were having a break before being mated or some such thing. Anyway they were in normal lean dairy cow condtition. The RSPCA decided they were starving and the farmer turned up as they shot the last of them. They were prime cows put out for a break. Bastards. the have no bloody idea and play god. A worrying combination.

[juice]

And all this has taken over 10 years, the emotional stress to the owners must have been immense

They do seem to use the law when it suits them and they have no consistency.

[Steve]

They need outside accountability and while ever they decide that second opinions and including the owners isnt policy its bound to keep happening.

[_PL_]

Reminds me of the Ruth Downey cattle farce.

Not enough accountability.