Day 109 - 28 Mar 95 - Page 07

     
     1
     2        I cannot possibly speak for Sun Valley catching, but I
     3        would be very surprised indeed if they were acting at
     4        something like half the speed of the catching procedure we
     5        saw in "Here's the catch", because everything I have ever
     6        heard about it implies that it is a rough and ready
     7        procedure.  The sort of people that do it must, I believe,
     8        switch off their feelings for the animals because it is a
     9        very unpleasant procedure all round.
    10
    11   MS. STEEL:  I think Dr. Pattison said there would be about six
    12        people loading between 4 to 6,000 birds in round about 45
    13        minutes.
    14        A.  Well, that sounds very, very rapid to me, but I cannot
    15        work it out and, of course, it is common practice and
    16        Dr. Pattison accepted that totally, that they are picked up
    17        by one leg and several to a hand.  As we have been hearing,
    18        the incidence of leg weakness, of whatever degree, is very,
    19        very broad, very wide and very common, and this procedure
    20        must be painful and stressful, and the birds are, for the
         higher modules, they are sort of raised and slung into
    22        them.  I think this is disturbing, obviously, but
    23        I obviously cannot speak for Sun Valley, not having seen
    24        it.
    25
    26   Q.   How should you pick up a bird?  Do they mind being carried
    27        upside down?
    28        A.  Yes, I remember that this was at the FAWK
    29        prepublication discussion, and I remember it coming up that
    30        the humane way to pick a bird up is underneath, keeping its
    31        wings contained and that is the humane way that anybody
    32        would pick up a bird if they were thinking of the bird's
    33        feelings, but it would not accord well with loading up
    34        40,000 birds.
    35
    36   Q.   Right.  If, as Dr. Pattison said, the incidence of leg
    37        problems and leg weaknesses was more prevalent prior to the
    38        introduction of antibiotics and the starter rations, would
    39        that be something that would affect the rate of injuries on
    40        catching in respect of legs?
         A.  Yes, clearly, if it is better now, it was worse
    42        before.  It is bound to -- leg weakness and leg problems
    43        are quite often painful or very painful.  They are detailed
    44        in the FAWK Report as some of them are extremely painful
    45        conditions.
    46
    47   Q.   But in terms of when the birds are picked up, if there are
    48        more leg weaknesses, does that create more problems during
    49        handling?
    50        A.  On catching?  Yes, I am sure it does, because pain is 
    51        exacerbated by being picked -- well, you can imagine, it is 
    52        not hard to imagine, being picked up, the bird being picked 
    53        up by one leg, putting strain on the hip joint and strain
    54        on the leg that is being held, yes, the pain would be
    55        greater.
    56
    57   Q.   Do you have any other concerns about the catching
    58        procedure?  I just do not know whether I have missed
    59        anything else.
    60        A.  No, I think it is simply the handing and the placing or