increase font size
A South Auckland farmer was convicted for amputating the teats of seven cows.
A South Auckland dairy farmer has been fined $3,250 for unlawfully amputating the teats of seven cows using rubber rings as a tourniquet.
Pieter Nicholaas Smit, 60, was sentenced at the Morrinsville District Court for one representative animal welfare charge, after earlier pleading guilty. The case was brought to court by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI).
MPI Animal Welfare and National Animal Identification and Tracing (NAIT) regional compliance manager, Brendon Mikkelsen, says Smit failed to provide appropriate care to the animals.
“Teat removal is a significant surgical procedure. It should be undertaken by a veterinarian using anaesthesia.”
An animal welfare inspector visited Smit’s property at Waiuku on May 20, 2020, after a complaint was made.
He admitted to using the rubber rings on the cows when mastitis did not clear up after treatment with antibiotics. The offending occurred over a five-year period.
Teat removal is not a treatment for mastitis, and the practice is opposed by experienced veterinarians.
“In New Zealand, everyone must take responsibility for animal welfare. We strongly encourage any member of the public who is aware of ill-treatment or cruelty to report it to the MPI animal welfare complaints freephone 0800 00 83 33”,” says Mikkelsen.
An Ōpunake farmer with a poor effluent system has been fined $35,000 with a discount on the penalty discarded after he charged at a Taranaki Regional Council officer inspecting the ‘systematic problems’ on his farm.
The most successful catchment groups in NZ are those that have 'a source to sea' approach.
Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) Director General Ray Smith is giving a big shout-out to the horticulture sector, especially kiwifruit.
OPINION: The year has started positively for New Zealand dairy farmers and things are likely to get better.
Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) Director General Ray Smith believes there is potential for an increase in dairy farming in New Zealand.
The proposed retrenchment of Heinz Wattied's manufacturing presenced in New Zealand will be a blow to the wallets of more than 200 Canterbury vegetable growers.
The cost of running a New Zealand farm is now 27% higher than it was before Covid, putting sustained pressure on profitability acrfoss the sector, according to new ANZ research.
Rural contractors are getting guidance on how to deal with recent rising fuel prices.
An Ōpunake farmer with a poor effluent system has been fined $35,000 with a discount on the penalty discarded after he charged at a Taranaki Regional Council officer inspecting the ‘systematic problems’ on his farm.
The horticulture sector is under threat because of vulnerabilities of the country's transport infrastructure, according to a report commissioned by a collective representing a range of groups in the sector.
Silver Fern Farms chief executive Dan Boulton says the meat processor wants to find ways of getting product destined for Middle East markets into those markets as opposed to try and place them elsewhere.
OPINION: The good news keeps getting better for NZ dairy farmers.
OPINION: With export of livestock by sea dead in the water, opponents of the Gene Technology Bill think they can…
