Investigations by Topics:

28. October 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn, Lagow| Monthly Report October: Cattle & Horse Markets

We will try to convince the owner of this female dog to neuter her.

Our team is inspecting the horse market in Bodzentyn. This time, we only see ten horses. They are being selected for an Italian trader. The animals present look healthy and the loading is carried out professionally and  properly. On another day, the market is empty. There is not a single horse.

During our inspection at cattle market, we notice two…

28. September 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn, Lagow | Monthly Report September: Cattle & Horse Markets

Walking with such overgrown claws is difficult and painful.

Whilst inspecting the cattle market we notice three cows with overgrown hooves. When we try to write down their ear tag numbers, we are blocked by the cows’ owner. He behaves nervously and loads his animals onto the truck. We are only able to take one picture and write down the registration number of one ear tag. We are going to report this case to…

12. September 2019

Poland| | Wloszczowa | Verdict in a case of an injured cow

Ingrown horns cause chronic pain. This cow suffered a lot.

Today we are in the court in Wloszczowa waiting for a judgment regarding a case of a cow with an ingrown horn in its head. We documented two injured animals at Lagow cattle market in September 2018. We sent a notification about the offence to the police. However, only one complaint was forwarded to the court by the police so far. The other case is…

31. August 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn, Lagow | Monthly Report August: Cattle & Horse Markets

We are verbally attacked by the trader who received a reprimand regarding the ban of tying cattle by the horns in the truck.

The Italian trader is back on the horse market. This time he only buys older horses. The younger animals go back home. At Bodzentyn cattle market we also re-encounter a trader that left almost a year ago. The subsidy time ends and beside the big traders there are no people willing to buy cattle.

We observe that one trader ties the cows by their…

29. July 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn, Lagow | Monthly Report July: Cattle & Horse Markets

Bodzentyn. We are writing down the ear tag number of a cow with overgrown claws.

The situation on the animal markets in Lagow and Bodzentyn remains quite stable. However, this time only a few horses are brought to the market. Recently, the main horse trader has not arrived and most of the animals returned to their original homes.

On the cattle market the situation is similar. Even though the number of cattle is much higher.…

29. June 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn | Monthly Report June: Cattle & Horse Markets

We observe an emaciated cow at the Lagow cattle market.

Whilst inspecting the market in Bodzentyn we notice two cows with overgrown hooves. Many animals are not sold and are going back to the farms because of the low price for bovines. The market gets empty before 8 AM. The situation is similar in Lagow. Here as well, the trade ends very early. It looks like animal markets in Poland might be about to…

25. May 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn | Monthly Report May: Cattle & Horse Markets

A neglected young bull with a Czechian ear tag.

The number of horses at the Bodzentyn market remains quite constant around 20 animals. As usual, most of the horses are bought by an Italian trader. We do not see any injured or sick animals. However, some mares have slightly overgrown hooves.

On the cattle market we see a lot of veterinary inspectors including regional veterinary officers and…

29. April 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn, Lagow | Monthly Report April: Cattle & Horse Markets

We are writing down the ear tag number of an emaciated cow.

Whilst inspecting the cattle market in Lagow, our team notices a cow with overgrown hooves. We are taking photos and writing down the ear tag number. In the meantime, the trader who bought the animal to the markets starts yelling at us. The Veterinary Inspector sees the whole situation and decides to thoroughly inspect the trader`s documents and…

30. March 2019

Poland | Bodzentyn | Monthly Report March: Cattle & Horse Markets

Veterinary inspectors cannot strike openly. They continue to work and express their protest by wearing jackets and badges with protest logos.

This month, our team visits the animal markets seven times, including the annual horse fair in Skaryszew (see investigation report 12th of March 2019). Despite the national Veterinary Inspection protest in Poland, the inspectors are present at the cattle market every time. Moreover, they organise joined controls with ITD (Road Transport Police)…