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THE WOOL INDUSTRY

AROUND 90% OF THE 68 MILLION FLOCK ARE STILL MULESED IN AUSTRALIA EVERY YEAR

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THE MAJORITY OF THE WORLD'S APPAREL WOOL COMES FROM AUSTRALIA WHERE MULESING IS MOST COMMON

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THE CURRENT SHEEP THAT WE USE FOR WOOL ORIGINATED IN SPAIN IN THE 12TH CENTURY. THE MERINO WAS IMPORTED TO AUSTRALIA WHERE THEY WERE GENETICALLY MANIPULATED THROUGH SELECTIVE BREEDING. UNLIKE WILD SHEEP MERINO SHEEP DO NOT LOSE THEIR HAIR, IT JUST KEEPS GROWING...

AUSTRALIA IS THE LEADING PRODUCER OF WOOL AND IS ALSO THE LARGEST EXPORTER

CHINA AND USA ARE THE NEXT BIGGEST WOOL PRODUCERS

THE MAJORITY OF SHEEP ARE DUAL PURPOSE BRED TO PROVIDE BOTH MEAT AND WOOL

SO ESSENTIALLY THE MEAT AND WOOL INDUSTRIES ARE INTRINSICALLY LINKED

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THE WOOL INDUSTRY PRODUCES AROUND 1,160 MILLION KILOGRAMS OF CLEAN WOOL PER YEAR FROM A GLOBAL HERD OF OVER A BILLION SHEEP

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WITH ALL MASS EXPLOITATION AND COMMODIFICATION OF ANIMALS FOR PRODUCTS COMES EGREGIOUS WELFARE AND RIGHTS VIOLATIONS

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MULESING

THE SLICING OF TWO PATCHES OF SKIN ON EACH SIDE OF THE ANUS DOWN TO THE BACK OF THE KNEE OF THE LAMB SO THAT A SCAR OF STRETCHED SKIN GROWS BACK

MULESING IS BELIEVED TO HELP PREVENT FLYSTRIKE, BUT INCREASES THE CHANCES OF VULVA CANCER AND POSSIBLY TUMORS.

SHEEP UNDERGO PAINFUL MUTILATIONS OFTEN WITHOUT ANY PAIN RELIEF...THERE'S LITTLE TO NO MENTION OF PAIN RELIEF IN THE AUSTRALIAN GUIDELINES

HORN TRIMMING

BY EITHER DISBUDDING VIA HOT IRON OR APPLYING A CAUSTIC PASTE TO PREVENT GROWTH. OR, BY DEHORNING WHICH IS THE REMOVAL OF HORNS FROM A SHEEP’S SKULL, USING ANYTHING FROM KNIVES, WIRES, SAWS OR SHEARS

REMOVAL OF HORNS CAN CAUSE TISSUE DAMAGE

HORNS ARE NECESSARY FOR THE COOLING AND THERMOREGULATION OF AN ANIMALS BODY BECAUSE THEY REGULATE THE TEMPERATURE OF BLOOD SUPPLY TO THE BRAIN. WHEN HORNS ARE SLICED OR BURNED OFF, THIS NATURAL PROCESS IS HINDERED

THIS IS WHAT MERINO SHEEP LOOK LIKE IF THEY DON'T HAVE THEIR HORNS REMOVED

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TAIL DOCKING DOESN’T JUST HAPPEN IN AUSTRALIA, IN THE UK AND USA SHEEP TAILS CAN BE DOCKED TO PREVENT FLY STRIKE

THE UK GUIDELINES ALLOW FOR LAMBS TO BE DOCKED VIA RUBBER RING OR OTHER DEVICES THAT RESTRICT BLOOD FLOW WITHOUT ANAESTHETIC WITHIN THEIR FIRST WEEK OF LIFE

IN THE USA LAMBS UNDER 6 WEEKS CAN BE DOCKED WITHOUT PAIN RELIEF, VIA RUBBER RINGS, HOT IRON CAUTERY OR SURGICAL REMOVAL

IN 2015-16 THE AVERAGE SHEEP FLOCK SIZE IN AUSTRALIA WAS 2,857

AT MOST ANIMAL SANCTUARIES THE STAFF WILL NEVER MULES OR DOCK TAILS TO PREVENT FLY STRIKE. INSTEAD, THEY KEEP THE SHEEPS BOTTOM CLEAN, GIVE DAILY CHECKS, OFFER SHELTER FROM THE HEAT OR COLD AND USE FLYSTRIKE PREVENTION TREATMENTS

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TAIL DOCKING

REMOVAL OF THE TAIL BY PLACING A RUBBER BAND AROUND THE TAIL, CONSTRICTING BLOOD FLOW UNTIL EVENTUALLY THE TAIL FALLS OFF OR BY SLICING THE TAIL OFF WITH A HEATED SCARRING IRON (‘HOT KNIFE’)

IN THE AUSTRALIAN GUIDELINES, THE HOT KNIFE METHOD IS ADVISED FOR TAIL DOCKING DONE WITH MULESING

IT IS BELIEVED TO HELP PREVENT FLYSTRIKE BUT INCREASES THE CHANCES OF RECTAL PROLAPSE AND POSSIBLY TUMORS

ON SANCTUARIES THE RATIO OF CARERS TO SHEEP IS MUCH HIGHER, SO CARE AND ATTENTION IS MAXIMISED. CONVERSELY, BECAUSE OF THE LARGE SIZE OF FLOCKS ON LAMB AND WOOL FARMS, IT IS NEAR IMPOSSIBLE TO GIVE PROPER ATTENTION TO EACH OF THE ANIMALS, SO TAIL DOCKING AND MULESING ARE A WAY OF CUTTING CORNERS

SOURCE: ABS 

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CASTRATION

REMOVAL OF THE TESTICLES BY PUTTING A RUBBER BAND OVER THE SCROTUM, RESTRICTING BLOOD FLOW UNTIL EVENTUALLY THE TESTICLES DROP OFF, OR BY SLICING OPEN THE SCROTUM AND CUTTING OFF THE TESTES

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SHEARERS ARE PAID BY THE NUMBER OF SHEEP SHORN, NOT BY THE HOUR. THUS, SPEED IS PRIORITISED OVER PRECISION AND ROUGH HANDLING OF SHEEP RESULTS

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SHEEP ARE PREY ANIMALS, SO TO BE HELD DOWN AND ROUGH HANDLED LIKE THIS CAUSES EXTREME FEAR AND DISTRESS 

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Merino sheep are often cut more easily since they have wrinkly, folded skin

THIS IS BECAUSE THEY GROW EXCESSIVE AMOUNTS OF WOOL

IN 2016-17, IT IS ESTIMATED THAT OVER 74.3 MILLION SHEEP WERE SHORN IN AUSTRALIA

THERE HAVE BEEN MANY INVESTIGATIONS THAT HAVE EXPOSED THE GRUESOME RESULTS OF FAST SHEARING

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AN AVERAGE VOYAGE TO THE MIDDLE EAST CAN TAKE ANYWHERE FROM 3-5 WEEKS

THESE SHIPS ARE OVERCROWDED AND ANIMALS ARE CONFINED IN CLOSE QUARTERS IN THEIR OWN WASTE

TEMPERATURES CAN SOAR TO EXTREME LEVELS, SO SHEEP DYING OF HEAT EXHAUSTION IS VERY COMMON

SOME SHEEP ARE SHIPPED TO COUNTRIES WITH NO SLAUGHTER GUIDELINES

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MUTTON, WHICH IS MATURE SHEEP FLESH, IS NOT A HUGELY POPULAR MEAT IN AUSTRALIA SO MANY OF THESE SHEEP ARE SOLD INTO THE LIVE EXPORT TRADE...

 

IN 2019, 1.1 MILLION SHEEP WERE EXPORTED FROM AUSTRALIA

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THE PERMISSIBLE DEATH RATE ON SHIP BEFORE THE DEATHS HAVE TO BE REPORTED IS 1%. SO THIS MEANS THAT THOUSANDS OF ANIMALS CAN DIE AT SEA EVERY YEAR WITHOUT THE PUBLIC BEING MADE AWARE

IT IS IMPORTANT TO STATE THAT NO MATTER WHETHER THESE EXPLOITED WOOL SHEEP ARE SHIPPED AWAY ON BOATS OR STAY IN THEIR COUNTRY OF ORIGIN THEIR FATE IS MUCH THE SAME. THEY WILL ALL BE SLICED ACROSS THE THROAT, THEIR BODY CUT UP INTO PIECES AND SOLD FOR CONSUMPTION

IN AUSTRALIA IN 2019 9,344,000 SHEEP WERE SLAUGHTERED

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SHEEP ARE GENERALLY RENDERED UNCONSCIOUS VIA ELECTRICAL STUNNING. A LOW VOLTAGE ALTERNATING ELECTRIC CURRENT IS APPLIED BY MEANS OF TWO ELECTRODES

 

BECAUSE ELECTRIC STUNNING DOES NOT USUALLY CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE BRAIN, ANIMALS WILL REGAIN CONSCIOUSNESS IF NOT QUICKLY KILLED AND BLED OUT

SOURCE: ABS 

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THE VAST MAJORITY OF SPENT WOOL SHEEP ARE MURDERED FOR THEIR FLESH, GENERALLY AT AROUND 5-6 YEARS OLD

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THIS IS BECAUSE THE SHEEPS WOOL PRODUCTION STARTS TO DECLINE AND SO, IS NO LONGER PROFITABLE

 

A SHEEPS NATURAL LIFE SPAN IS 12 YEARS BUT LIVING AS LONG AS 20 YEARS IS NOT UNCOMMON 

SOME VEGAN ALTERNATIVES TO WOOL ARE; COTTON, ECO-POLYESTER FLEECE, BAMBOO FLEECE, HEMP OR LINEN

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SHEEP ARE MORE INTELLIGENT AND COMPLEX THAN COMMONLY ASSUMED

 

STUDIES SHOW THAT SHEEP PERFORM ON PAR WITH PRIMATES AT SEVERAL HIGH-LEVEL COGNITIVE TASKS

 

FOR EXAMPLE, THEY CAN DISTINGUISH AND IDENTIFY FACES OF OTHER SHEEP AS WELL AS HUMANS. THEY ARE HIGHLY SOCIAL ANIMALS WITH DISTINCT PERSONALITIES, DEMONSTRATING STRONG MOTHER-OFFSPRING BONDS

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