Horrific footage captures farmers BURNING the horns off baby goats with a scalding hot iron as the animals scream in agony
- Covert footage shows a farmed burning the horns off a baby goat with a hot iron
- The goat squirmed as it tried to escape the farmer during the 40 second process
- Removing a goat’s horns is legal in Australia but should be humanely done
Hidden cameras have captured a farmer sawing off a baby goat’s horns using a hot iron on a farm in Victoria.
In a video, supplied to Daily Mail Australia by Aussie Farms, the baby goat is screaming in agony as smoke comes from its forehead.
Removing a goat’s horns is legal in Australia but experts claim the way the farmer handled the animal was inhumane.
Pictured: Three baby goats after they had their horns cut off. The procedure is said to be painful
Aussie Farms, an animal welfare group, had its charity status revoked in November following months of disruptive demonstrations and protests.
In the video, the farmer scooped up the baby goats one at a time and burned off their horns while holding them to his lap as the others watched on in terror.
The goat squirmed and screamed throughout the entire 40 second ordeal before it was picked up by the scruff of the neck and dumped in a separate paddock.
It is unclear when the incident occurred, or where it happened.
Removing a goat’s horns is usually done days after it is born and is done so because they can pose a threat to human safety.
But the recommendation is that goats are put under some form of anesthetic before the procedure – and it is usually performed by a veterinarian.
The farmer put the animal over his lap in the footage and burned the horns off the goat
The process – known as disbudding – is controversial because it is known to cause pain to the animals, but is perfectly legal under Australian law.
Aussie Farms’ Alix Livingstone describes the practice as ‘legalised and systemic abuse’ in a statement provided to Daily Mail Australia.
She said: ‘This is just another well-kept industry secret that, as usual, has fallen on activists to expose.
‘Self-regulation does not work, it’s time for our state governments – starting with Victoria – to take responsibility and close the legal loopholes that allow these and other horrible things to happen every day in Australian farms and slaughterhouses,’ she said.
‘Goats and other ‘livestock’ animals are no less capable of feeling pain and fear, no less capable of suffering, than our dogs and cats, and it’s time they were given the same protection under the law.’
Pictured: One of the goats after it had already been disbudded and put back in its pen
The farmer has been slammed for using inhumane procedures to remove the goat’s horns
The RSPCA believes the most humane solution is to breed goats without their horns all together, or alternatively to only allow a professional to perform the disbudding.
‘As this is a painful procedure, a local anaesthetic must be given prior to disbudding each horn bud and pain relief must be given immediately following the procedure,’ a spokesman said.
Chris Delforce is the creator of the controversial Aussie Farms organisation, which garnered national attention for launching interactive map which names and shames livestock farmers and details their addresses, photos and even business numbers.
His organisation – until recently a registered charity – was branded a ‘despicable attack map for activists’ by Agriculture Minister David Littleproud following a spate of vigilante acts against farms.
Mr Delforce believes Australians would embrace veganism en masse if they learned the ‘inherent cruelty involved, the environmental damage and the detrimental effects on their own health’ from meat-eating.