The owner of the blood farm also owns a stud farm where he breeds race horses and Criollos. We find him there and want to talk to him, but he is curt and sends us away, stating that he has nothing to do with the blood business.

Following this, we talk to one of the neighbours who lives in the vicinity of the blood farm. He says that the mares we…

Today we talk to a woman who works as a housekeeper at the estancia “Sarandí” of Roberto Mailhos in the Departamento Lavalleja. Her name is Valeria Cuello (name changed). Her son Leonardo (name changed) also worked there until 10 October 2016. Valeria says that Mailhos rents a lot of land for his mares in this area, but at the moment they are…

In the early afternoon, we arrive at the estancia “El Yatay” of the company Syntex in the hinterland of Treinta y Tres. After the blood extraction which takes place at the estancia “Loma Azul” in Florida, mares are brought here for recovery. Some give birth to their foals in order to ensure a steady supply of young mares for the production of…

In the evening, we meet with Alberto Jerez (name changed), an employee of the Spanish timber company Los Eucaliptus SA that leases land to Fernando Perdigón. Alberto is responsible of the eucalyptus plantations at the estancia “Don Alcides”. He explains that the mares were brought there mid-July of this year. It attracted his attention that they…

In the afternoon, we return to the estancia “Don Alcides” where Perdigón keeps some of his mares in large eucalyptus plantations. A pick-up truck with horse trailer is parked on the road near the farmhouse. We start a conversation with the man who is standing by the trailer and find out that he is not involved in the blood business. He is here with…

We return to the blood farm of Fernando Perdigón in the hinterland of Maldonado. On the way there, we see groups of horses grazing on forest clearings. Among the mares, there are also a few stallions. Spring is the time of the year when the mares are covered. The new extraction season is about to start and some mares already look pregnant. We note…

In the early morning, two gauchos on horseback move about 200 horses from the pastures into the holding pens of the blood farm. Another worker is observed hanging empty blood bags over a fence to dry. At 8:35, three employees start moving horses from the holding pens towards the building, using wooden sticks. They are hitting the horses repeatedly,…

At 8:00 in the morning, two gauchos on horseback arrive at the blood farm, herding 30 to 40 horses. Shortly after, two employees are observed moving the horses from the holding pens into the raceway leading to the extraction building. One of them is waving a long stick with a white flag on the end and the other a stick with a plastic bag attached.…

Today we return to the estancia “Las Marquesas” of Fernando Perdigón to conduct further observations on the pastures. Our first sight are three heavily pregnant mares crossing the road. They have yellow tags around their necks. We assume that these mares are used for breeding to ensure a supply of young mares for PMSG production.

Most horses we…