Animal advocates call for better rules to prevent animal cruelty
Chilliwack Cattle Sales Farm is run and owned by the Kooyman family and is home to more than 3,500 cattle. Jeff Kooyman told us his family is deeply disturbed and plans to make changes.
We're going to be working very closely with the local SPCA...and our local veterinarian also, to ensure that the safety of our animals...that they are safe.Jeff Kooyman
The B.C. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals wants criminal charges laid against the eight workers seen in the video. They've been fired from their jobs.
In the video, we see wounds on the cows, allegedly caused by the abuse. But Dr. David Dykshorn, one of the veterinarians who cares for the animals on the Chilliwack Cattle Sales farm, says even if he'd seen those wounds, he wouldn't have been able to know their cause.
Cows are gonna get injured. They're big animals, they play rough...So, injuries of this nature that we're seeing on the video can happen day-to-day on any dairy farm.Dr. David Dykshorn
- Barbara Cartwright is the CEO of Canadian Federation of Humane Societies.
- David Weins is dairy farmer. He's also a spokesperson for the Dairy Farmers of Canada.
Do you think animal cruelty laws need to change?
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This segment was produced by The Current's Elizabeth Hoath, Marc Apollonio, and intern Sam Colbert.