Demand veterinarians accompany every live export shipment.

The world is once again reeling from revelations of yet another live export ‘disaster’ – this time in the form of more than 100 cattle deaths on a single shipment from Darwin to Indonesia. 

When the Brahman Express arrived in Indonesia in March 2023, authorities learned that more than 100 cattle had died in the ‘short’ 6-day journey from Darwin. As both industry and government scramble to explain how so many animals died in such a short space of time, it was revealed that there was not a single veterinary professional on board – and that this is not an exception, but the norm.

Speculation still surrounds the cause of death of the animals, with the industry suggesting the cattle died from a largely preventable bacterial infection known as botulism. If this is indeed the case, the suffering of those animals may have been considerable, and prolonged.

Botulism causes progressive paralysis, with affected animals experiencing hind leg weakness, leaving them unable to stand, and paralysis of the muscles of the face, jaw and tongue, which results in the loss of ability to eat or swallow. Ultimately, animals will suffocate to death when their respiratory system becomes paralysed and they can no longer breathe. 

Imagine being a cow suffering from this in a tiny pen on an enclosed live export ship… 

Now imagine there is not a single veterinary professional on board to properly identify what is wrong, provide any professional level of care – and importantly, to mitigate the inevitable suffering. 

This has been the reality for at least 100 cattle on the Brahman Express – and no information about whether euthanasia was provided, let alone how, has yet been provided by either industry or government. 

This distressing situation has once again highlighted the inherent risk and danger that animals are subjected to as part of Australia’s live export trade – but it also begs the question; how can so many animals be left completely vulnerable without any level of even the most basic veterinary care?

While current regulations stipulate that certain shipments must have an accredited veterinarian on board, there is no requirement for a vet or an independent observer to travel on voyages to Indonesia as they are considered ‘short-haul’. Australia exports hundreds of thousands of cattle to Indonesia for slaughter every year – all without on-board veterinary oversight. 

Even with veterinarians accompanying live export shipments, there is no way to eliminate the inherent stress, suffering and often death of animals. Especially given that there may be one veterinarian for tens of thousands of animals, effective and sufficient care is all but impossible in most cases.  

Any attempt to claim that Australia’s live export industry prioritises animal welfare is completely blown out of the water by the omission of even the most basic provisions for appropriate veterinary care, with dire consequences for the animals. 

To make it mandatory for veterinarians to accompany every live export shipment would be for the industry to fulfil the very minimum in its duty of care. It is the absolute least the live export industry can do for the living, feeling animals it too often treats as nothing more than ‘cargo’.

Despite the inherent risks and dangers associated with exporting live animals by sea – including the increased risk of injury and disease – thousands of animals at a time are left vulnerable to suffering and death without any veterinary assistance whatsoever.

Please write to your Federal MP urging them to make it mandatory that a veterinarian accompanies every live export shipment from Australia.