Day 018 - 26 Jul 94 - Page 18

     
     1        birds.
 
     2        So, if you are carrying a bird by one leg and the bird
              starts flapping whilst it is being carried out of the shed
     3        or towards the crates where they are going to be -- which
              are going to be used to be transported, then there is
     4        tortion on the hip joint which causes it to dislocate.
              That dislocation results in haemorrhage and the bird dies
     5        from shock.
 
     6   MR. RAMPTON:  Before I come to the final question I want to ask
              about this, we notice, if we look up the table, at the
     7        "mean weight of dead birds" entry, do you see that?  It
              is about eight lines down the left hand column?
     8        A.  Yes.
 
     9   Q.   That is the mean weight of the dead on arrivals that you
              examined?
    10        A.  Yes.
 
    Q.   We see that plant D had birds which were relatively heavy
              at 2.5 kilograms per bird; is that right?
    12        A.  Yes.
 
    13   Q.   Mean weight.  But Sun Valley was slightly less heavy than
              that at 2.45?
    14        A.  Yes.
 
    15   Q.   If you look down the column then, under D, you see that in
              88 per cent of the cases for those relatively heavy birds
    16        the cause of fatal trauma was dislocated or broken hip?
              A.  Yes.
    17
         Q.   Whereas, as we noticed for birds almost as heavy at Sun
    18        Valley, that cause was only the cause in six per cent of
              the cases?
    19        A.  Yes.
 
    20   Q.   Do you draw any conclusion, though you did not see it on
              this occasion, about the care or the lack of care with
         which the birds were gathered at Sun Valley?
              A.  Dr. Pattison, when I was speaking to him, volunteered
    22        the comment that they put a lot of pressure on the
              catching team to handle the birds in a considerate and
    23        careful manner.  I think this goes towards showing that is
              likely to be the case.
    24
         Q.   From the animal welfare point of view, do you feel that
    25        these figures, so far as handling is concerned, are
              creditable to Sun Valley or not? 
    26        A.  I think they are commendable from the point of view of 
              hip dislocation.  Commendable. 
    27
         Q.   Notwithstanding that, the incidence of dead on arrival at
    28        Sun Valley was nearly, but not quite, it was nearly up to
              the mean, was it not?
    29        A.  Correct.
 
    30   Q.   It was 200th of a per cent less; is that right?
              A.  Yes.