South Africa is the world’s leading producer of mohair.
A shocking report by PETA Asia shows for the first time the full horror behind the scenes of the South African mohair industry. Workers dragged goats to and fro, threw them to the ground, mutilated them, and even cut the throat of the animals with full consciousness. Some yelled out loud. The groundbreaking footage shows only part of the abuse found on all 12 eyewitness-visited angora farms.
Systematic animal suffering
Many goats were pierced with a pair of pliers sharp needles through the ears. The animals are in great pain. According to a farmer, the animals are supposed to scream terribly.
Another farmer said his goats “scream and roll around” when neutered without anesthetics. After all, it was “damn painful.” Another farmer explained, “We … cut … [the ear] just off” if there is any suspicion that it has cancer. A farmer cut a goat’s head – apparently without painkillers – with a knife. So, she wanted to drain the liquid from what she called an “abscess” !!!
Thousands of dead animals before and after the shearing
One farmer said that in some farms, at least 25 percent of goats would die before the first shearing. The first shearing is usually done at six months.
The Shearing robs the goats of their natural cold protection. Farmers admitted that many goats freeze to death after the shearing, when it’s cold, windy and rainy. One man said that in South Africa, 40,000 goats died of hypothermia in just one weekend. Another said that on some farms up to 80 percent of goats would die after the shearing. Other goats succumbed to their injuries or died of dehydration because they got stuck in thorns during foraging in the pasture. The workers even shaved the wool from the rotting corpses!!!
Bathed in chemicals and pressed under water
The fur of some goats was smeared with feces. To clean the mohair before the shearing, a farmer dipped goats into pelvis with cleaning solution. He dipped their head under the water and admitted it poisoned the animals if they swallow the solution.
Clippers are paid per piece, not per hour.
This promotes rapid and therefore murderous work. The goats have cuts on them and often bleed on the face and ears. The clippers cut off whole pieces of skin and, according to a farmer, even teats. The animals did not receive any painkillers before the workers began to sew their wounds on the filthy soil.
Unprofitable goats died a painful death
The goats that survive the repeated scissors are exploited for five or six years because of their hair. About 90 percent of the South African Angora goats who lived so long are then sold for slaughter. Slaughter is often not in approved establishments, but privately. On a farm, a worker with goats fully consciously cut his throat with a blunt knife and then broke his neck. He immediately chopped off an animal’s head. Another animal was conscious for over a minute after the first cut and kicked.
Other goats end up in the slaughterhouse. In the battlefield the eyewitness visited, the goats received an electric shock and were hung upside down on one leg. Then they slit their throats, bleeding them, and skinned them.
Mohair is not a byproduct of the meat industry
The garment industry and individual companies state in part that the hair they sell, the skin and feathers are by-products of the meat industry. But Angora goats are only bred for their hair and many do not even reach the slaughterhouse.
What can we do?
We can best help the angora goats by not buying mohair! Always check the label in the store. Good check. If the word “mohair” is written on it, we leave the product on the shelf.
https://www.peta.org.au/action/mohair-industry-south-africa/
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | 1 Comment »
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