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Animal Welfare and the Kangaroo IndustryThe kangaroo industry is often subject to claims from radical animal liberation groups that it is inhumane. These claims are rarely backed up with any scientific evidence, in the few cases where scientifically obtained data is cited it is invariably misrepresented. This paper reviews the regulatory controls over the kangaroo harvest, the evidence concerning its animal welfare outcomes and the claims often made by radical animal liberationists concerning it. The regulatory controls over kangaroo harvesting All kangaroos are harvested by professional shooters. Strict State and Federal Government controls ensure that no kangaroo can enter the commercial industry unless they have been taken by a licensed kangaroo harvester who has passed a TAFE accredited training course which includes training in the animal welfare aspects of kangaroo harvesting. In addition anyone wishing to harvest kangaroos for human consumption must undergo assessment of their accuracy with their firearm. The accreditation and competency assessment are controlled by State Government regulations in each State. All kangaroos must be taken according to the strict guidelines laid out in the Federal Government document ‘Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos’. This specifies the minimum high caliber firearms which can be used, it requires that all animals be head shot and documents procedures for the humane dispatch of any pouch young (CNCM 1990). The evidence concerning welfare outcomes The kangaroo industry has been subject to considerable scrutiny over the years with regard to animal welfare. In fact it has encouraged this. In 1999 the Kangaroo Industry Association of Australia (KIAA) successfully lobbied the Federal Minster for Environment, to fund a survey carried out by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) which audited current welfare outcomes in the kangaroo harvest. This is discussed further below. A similar report conducted by the RSPCA in 1985 states: " If achieved correctly, kangaroo culling is considered one of the most humane forms of animal slaughter. An animal killed instantly within its own environment is under less stress than domestic stock that have been herded, penned, transported etc." (RSPCA 1985)The report however did consider that the methods used at the time could be improved and made a series of recommendations. At the time they found 85% of kangaroo were head shot. The vast bulk of the remained were heart shot. The RSPCA commented that a heart shot could be considered a humane outcome, but was clearly less desirable than a head shot. With regard to the dispatch of pouch young the RSPCA concluded: " The dispatch of pouch young by professional shooters was generally by a sharp blow to the head or by decapitation. There is no reason to consider this as a cruel act." (RSPCA 1985)Since 1985 the industry has implemented most of the recommendations put forward by RSPCA to improve the harvest, as well as others which they didn’t think of. The accreditation and assessment of harvesters and an absolute requirement for head shot animals for meat production have seen major improvements. In 1999 the KIAA lobbied the Federal Government to fund a new audit to document the current outcomes. This was conducted during 2000. The report documents that in the modern kangaroo harvest 99.8% of kangaroos taken by licensed kangaroo shooters are dispatched by a high powered bullet either in the head or at the junction of the skull and neck exactly where the shooter aims (RSPCA 2002). The National President of the RSPCA is now on record as supporting the professionalism of kangaroo harvesters. Some very well informed organisations support the kangaroo industry for a wide range of reasons, mostly because they see kangaroos as a more environmentally friendly way to produce meat in Australia than introduced sheep or cattle. However the support of the Australian Veterinary Association is telling in recognition of the animal welfare outcomes of the harvest. The AVA reported to the 1998 Senate Inquiry into Wildlife Utilisation: " The Australian Veterinary Association believes that the Australian kangaroo population is a unique and valuable resource and that harvesting is a legitimate and humane use of that resource". (AVA 1998)Other professional bodies supporting the kangaroo harvest include,
The ‘evidence’ of cruelty Radical animal liberationists typically attack the kangaroo industry as ‘cruel and inhumane’, but rarely do they provide any evidence, typically the statement is simply a value judgment made by people who have rarely, if ever seen a kangaroo outside of a wildlife park. Where ‘evidence’ is presented it invariably misrepresents the studies referred to above. For example it is regularly claimed that, "an RSPCA report demonstrated 15% of kangaroos are not killed cleanly and crawl away to die of their wounds." This is a misrepresentation of the 1984 RSPCA study referred to above. The only place in it where the figure 15% is mentioned in the RSPCA report is stating that 15% are not head shot, it found that most of these were heart shot and that, whilst less desirable than a head shot, "any placement of a bullet in the chest cavity causes instantaneous death" (RSPCA 1985). Other evidence of cruelty often cited is a video of a kangaroo shoot obtained in 1986. This video was taken by a radical animal liberation group who encouraged a unlicensed shooter, who did not have permission to shoot on the property in question to commit gross acts of cruelty to kangaroos whilst they quietly stood by and filmed. The man has since been prosecuted, as probably also would have the animal liberation film crew if they hadn’t left the country. This video is portrayed as representative of the commercial industry, however the shooter was not supplying the kangaroo industry and not involved in it in any way. In the Court case it was revealed that he was actively encouraged by the film crew to commit his illegal actions, who told him they were from an American game shooting magazine. The final hearing of the case in which penalties were handed down was in Dubbo District Court 31 July 1997 NSW NP&WS v Eichner. Conclusion Kangaroo harvesting is a well regulated activity with strict controls to ensure the animal welfare outcomes are as humane as possible. In fact the RSPCA is on record as suggesting that kangaroo harvesting could be one of the most humane slaughter methods possible. They note kangaroos are killed by a high powered bullet to the head in their own environment without any of the stress of trucking, food deprivation etc. involved in beef or lamb slaughter. Against this is simply the poorly informed, emotive opinion of people who are opposed to any form of animal use. Unfortunately these well meaning people are often so passionate about their position that they clutch to and misrepresent anything which they think may strengthen their case.
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