In a statement released recently, the NSPCA said it had been raising the matter of the humane culling of diseased birds with both government and the South African Poultry Association (SAPA) since mid-2016, the Randfontein Herald reported.
“Our concerns, together with a request for a humane system to be agreed upon and tested, have fallen on deaf ears,” said Marcelle Meredith, Chief Executive Officer for the NSPCA.
Meredith continued, saying, “On 22 June 2017, the NSPCA was approached by Astral, who alerted us to a confirmed outbreak on one of their farms in Villiers and requested that we assist them to humanely cull their affected birds.
“NSPCA inspectors and personnel from various SPCAs assisted in the humane culling of approximately 22 000 birds to prevent further suffering. We salute Astral for their approach and their forward thinking. Astral has now implemented a system which will speed up the procedure of humane culling.
“The virus affects the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts of affected birds, can spread rapidly and causes high mortality in infected poultry.”
