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criteria is likely to be problematic, due to the practical aspects of whaling operations andfurthermore, it is feared these criteria may be inadequate, and may be responsible for underestimatingtime to death during whaling operations (chapter 11). For example, using these criteria it may bepossible to judge a live whale, that is suffering from paralysis due to injury, as dead. Furthermore,Kestin (1995) argues that in practice, there will be a time lag between striking the whale and makingan assessment. ‘Instantaneous death’ during commercial whaling operations, is likely to equate to awhale that, according to the IWC criteria, shows no signs of life some 10 seconds after the harpoonhas been fired.Welfare potential of whaling operationsA killing method that is truly painless and causes minimum distress to the animal can be classified ashumane slaughter and therefore a process with the potential for high welfare. The basic principlesthat must be addressed to protect the welfare of livestock animals at slaughter provide a usefulframework with which to compare the welfare potential of current whale killing methods. From theanalysis above, it is clear that there are a number of factors inherent in current whale killing methodswhich limit the potential for high welfare. These include the initial pursuit, and the difficultiesinvolved in hitting a distant, largely submerged, moving target from a moving platform at sea. Thekilling methods themselves are often not well adapted for the species taken, or the variability of sizebetween individuals of the same species according to age, sex and season. The significance of thesevariables and the inadequacies of the methods used are reflected in the poor instantaneous deathrates, the average times to death and the need for secondary killing methods during all types ofwhaling operation.DiscussionThe often poor instantaneous death rate and mean and maximum times to death (see chapter 6)reflect the lack of welfare management and enforcement in the whaling industry. The only provisionsrelating to welfare that currently exist in the schedule to the ICRW 1946 are provided in Table 1.Note also that the schedule refers only to the killing of whales for aboriginal subsistence need inrelation to mean sustainable yield of the stock (article III, paragraph 13a) and no provisions aremade, within the schedule, to specifically address the welfare issues associated with this particularcategory of whaling. Even the IWC definition of ‘humane killing’ is ambiguous 7 . This definition,although suggested as an ideal, does not require any compliance, nor is it followed with anyregularity.A COMPARISON BETWEEN SLAUGHTERHOUSES AND METHODS USED DURING WHALING99The extent and quality of legislation currently enacted in many states for the protection of animals atthe time of slaughter, contrasts with the almost complete lack of regulation on the methods usedduring whaling operations. Historically attempts have been made within the IWC to address thisissue and a number of resolutions and recommendations have been adopted by the IWC (chapter 5).Despite these resolutions and recommendations, the quantity and quality of data presented at theWorking Groups and Workshops on Whale Killing Methods and Associated Welfare Issues remainspoor. St Vincent and the Grenadines, for example, failed to submit any data on humpback kills atthe 2003 workshop and Japan has consistently failed to submit any data on the slaughter of spermwhales in the North Pacific.The meagre requirements in the schedule for data collection represent the only guidelines to which
Table 1 Animal welfare and the Schedule to the InternationalConvention for the Regulation of WhalingArticle Para TextIII(Capture)6 The killing for commercial purposes of whales, except minke whalesusing the cold grenade harpoon shall be forbidden from the beginningof the 1980/81 pelagic and 1981 coastal seasons. The killing forcommercial purposes of minke whales using the cold grenadeharpoon shall be forbidden from the beginning of the 1982/83pelagic and the 1983 coastal seasons 8 .III14&17It is forbidden to take or kill suckling calves or female whalesaccompanied by calves. [Paragraph 14 refers to baleen whalesand paragraph 17 refers to sperm whales].VIInformationRequired25a All contracting governments shall report to the Commission for allwhale catchers operating in conjunction with factory ships and landstations the following information:1) methods used to kill each whale, other than a harpoon, and inparticular compressed air2) number of whales struck and lost100A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICATIONS OF MODERN WHALING ACTIVITIES25bA record similar to that described in sub-paragraph (a) of thisparagraph shall be maintained by vessels engaged in “small-typewhaling” operations and by native peoples taking species listedin paragraph 1, and all the information mentioned in the said subparagraphshall be entered therein as soon as available, andforwarded by Contracting Governments to the Commission.VI 27 Notification shall be given in accordance with the provisions ofArticle VII of the Convention with regard to all factory ships andcatcher ships of the following statistical information:a) concerning the number of whales of each species taken, thenumber thereof lost, and the number treated at each factoryship or land stations, and ...VI 28b The information required under paragraph (a)(2)(iii) should also berecorded together with the following information, in the log bookformat shown in Appendix A 9 , and forwarded to the Commission...whalers, taking cetaceans under the auspices of the International Whaling Commission, must adhere.Furthermore, there is no enforcement of this data collection process. Therefore, any reportingundertaken in adherence to Article VI of the schedule is at the discretion of the whalers, or nationalinspectors onboard. There is also no independent verification mechanism for ensuring the qualityand accuracy of these data.
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ForewordWhales are highly evolved a
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1 Executive SummaryThis review exam
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2 A background to whalingPhilippa B
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y the weapon’s enormous recoil, w
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Japan currently whales in the Antar
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Otto, K. 1997. Animal Pain Behaviou
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Protecting the welfare of animals i
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Toothed whales (Odontoceti)Toothed
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Social behaviourMother-calf pairsOn
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to store and pass on information to
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Communication in great whalesThe mo
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Self-awarenessOne of the most compe
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J.G.M. Thewissen), pp. 158-162. Aca
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Whitehead, H., Waters, S. and Lyrho
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humanitarian purposes the time take
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Welfare and the modern IWCFrom 1980
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1996 UK proposes guidelines for col
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Section TwoWhale killing6 Commercia
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Table 1 Commercial, special permit
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It can be argued that the figures f
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Since struck and lost whales can in
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equipment to Russian subsistence wh
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This is the time from the throwing
Page 54 and 55: Table 3 Aboriginal Subsistence Whal
Page 56 and 57: International Aid For Korean Animal
Page 58 and 59: 29 In Resolution 1999-1, the IWC no
Page 60 and 61: For example, Greenland and the Faro
Page 62 and 63: the past they made an important con
Page 64 and 65: however, has been made on the exten
Page 66 and 67: hunt indicate that the whales are s
Page 68 and 69: 8 Weather, sea condition and shipmo
Page 70 and 71: chance of fog decreases from 15 to
Page 72 and 73: experienced in December, or y could
Page 74: 9 The potential stress effects ofwh
Page 77 and 78: Both chase and pursuit cause stress
Page 79 and 80: and manifest in a series of lethal
Page 81 and 82: Ridgeway, S. H. (1966). Dall porpoi
Page 83 and 84: 10 Euthanasia of cetaceansPhilippa
Page 85 and 86: for the task. The correct target ar
Page 87 and 88: whales the size of minke whales (Ø
Page 89 and 90: 11 Review of criteria for determini
Page 91 and 92: It is apparent from Figure 1, that,
Page 93 and 94: interpreted criteria, comparisons o
Page 95 and 96: 90A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICATI
Page 97 and 98: 12 A comparison betweenslaughterhou
Page 99 and 100: include levels of premature mortali
Page 101 and 102: the emphasis during some whaling op
Page 103: affect an immediate and thereby law
Page 107 and 108: CIWF Trust, 2002. Farm Assurance Sc
Page 109 and 110: 13 Ethics and whaling under special
Page 111 and 112: Table 1. Consideration of the 3Rs i
Page 113 and 114: skin samples, without the need for
Page 115 and 116: IWC (2001) Report of the Scientific
Page 117 and 118: Whales and the lawCetaceans (and wh
Page 119 and 120: scientific and technical committees
Page 121 and 122: ASCOBANS came into force in 1994. F
Page 123 and 124: The Treaty of the Panama Canal, ena
Page 125 and 126: 2 As a result, their need for prote
Page 127 and 128: law says, but also the extent to wh
Page 129 and 130: 15 Whaling and welfarePhilippa Brak
Page 131 and 132: commercial whaling. Times to death
Page 133 and 134: eath). Using the current criteria t
Page 135 and 136: possibility of establishing a simil
Page 137 and 138: international customary law and exi
Page 139 and 140: 16 Summary of conclusionsModern day
Page 141 and 142: Glossary136A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE
Page 143 and 144: 138A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICAT
Page 145 and 146: Appendix IIColour plates©Mark Voti
Page 147 and 148: 142A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICAT
Page 149 and 150: Figure 13. Processing minke whales
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TROUBLED WATERS - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

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