Pigs killed on a ship in Cairns

Megan Hughes reports


Article heading image for Pigs killed on a ship in Cairns

More questions are being asked of the Federal Department of Agriculture why they euthanised 12 healthy pigs on a boat docked in Cairns.

It's believed the animals were purchased by sailors from an Innisfail farm and were intended to be exported back to Micronesia, but the department stopped the export.

Cairns woman Tanya (who doesn't want to be fully identified in case of repercussions) says it was unnecessary to kill these pigs.

She wants to find out why they couldn't have been brought back off the boat.

It's believed the international ship was docked here undergoing repairs, when the crew brought the pigs on board.

In a statement a department spokesperson says:

"Should Australian animals of unknown biosecurity risk be loaded on a foreign vessel, they must be quarantined there, while an assessment determines whether the animals can be safely exported and meet the importing country’s requirements, or be euthanised."

While the department says it was the vessel owner's choice, Tanya doesn't believe they knew their options.

"If these men have done anything wrong, I do believe they have not been informed of that," She says.

Tanya now plans to take this further, and is contacting the relevant ministers and local members to enact change.

 

 

 

 

 

8 August 2018




Listen Live!

Up Next