TROUBLED WATERS - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

international state practice or customary norm whereby animals that are slaughtered commercially formeat must not suffer at the time of death, must be rendered immediately insensible, and are requiredto be stunned or anaesthetized before killing (Gregory and Lowe 1999). Some of these laws havebeen in place for many years. Moreover, these laws are relatively consistent. In Gregory and Lowe’s1999 study, 27 countries surveyed required instantaneous insensibility before death. In most cases,this required a ‘stunning’ process which when applied to an animal, caused immediate loss ofconsciousness that lasted until death 1 . Furthermore, most states specified the equipment to be usedfor stunning and further required that slaughter personnel were specially trained. Gregory’s researchalso demonstrated that regulations concerning slaughter were sometimes more stringent when themeat was exported than when it was consumed locally, indicating that, even when local standards arelaxer than the international norm, a clear international norm is recognized.The World Organization for Animal Health or OIE (Office International Des Epizooties) is an intergovernmentalorganization set up under an international agreement on 25 January 1924, originallysigned in Paris by 28 countries. By May 2001, the OIE had a total of 158 members. The OIE hasrecently adopted a resolution on animal welfare 2 . It has set up the Working Group on AnimalWelfare to develop international standards for humane slaughter, transportation, and housing andmanagement for animals used in agriculture and aquaculture.The European Union has also passed Community-wide legislation on the protection of animals,which includes mechanisms for safeguarding their welfare at the time of slaughter (EU 1993).These international and national legal developments in humane care for animals indicate that there isan emerging international customary norm regarding the slaughter of animals sold commercially asmeat; and that, this practice may be sufficient to have become customary law. However, theInternational Whaling Commission (IWC) does not yet have specified rules governing thecommercial slaughter of whales.A COMPARISON BETWEEN SLAUGHTERHOUSES AND METHODS USED DURING WHALING93An assessment of the welfare potential of livestock slaughter andwhale killing methodsScientists have defined the term ‘suffering’ in animals to mean a “wide range of unpleasant emotionalstates” (Dawkins 1980) including fear, frustration and pain. ‘Pain’ has been defined as an aversivesensation and feeling associated with actual or potential tissue damage (Broom 2001, Iggo 1984).Physiological, behavioural and learning responses show that feelings of pain exist in many species(Broom 2001). An assessment of the welfare potential of a husbandry system or practice isincreasingly used to evaluate different methods of keeping and handling food animals (e.g. Tansey &D’Silva 1999, CIWF Trust 2002, WSPA 2003). Major concerns for animal welfare arise fromhusbandry practices with low welfare potential i.e. those that fail to meet the behavioural andphysical needs of the animal and thereby have the potential to cause pain or suffering.The welfare potential of any husbandry or slaughter practice is based upon the level to which it fulfilsbasic determinants of animal welfare. A determinant is a factor that is built into the system toinfluence its welfare impact. Examples of key determinants – building blocks of a good system – forthe slaughter of farm animals include the use of appropriate equipment and an effective process toachieve an immediate pre-slaughter stun. Determinants should not be confused with welfareindicators. Indicators measure outcomes from the performance of a system. Examples of indicators