A Northland man has been fined $15,000 for cruel treatment of calves he was supposed to be raising.
Animal welfare inspectors found nine calves dead over the course of three visits to Dargaville calf rearer Vivian Philip Flett, and had to euthanise four more.
The inspectors weighed 250 calves and only 12 of them were at a healthy weight.
The animals lived on poor quality pasture and were fed kūmara and mouldy hay, MPI regional manager of animal welfare Brendon Mikkelsen said in a statement.
“These welfare problems were avoidable if Mr Flett had been providing sufficient feed and meeting the physical health and behavioural needs of his animals,” he said.
“It was Mr Flett’s responsibility to do the right thing by his animals. In this case that means providing quality supplementary feed, identifying health problems and seeking timely veterinary help, all of which he failed to do.”
Flett was sentenced this week on five charges under the Animal Welfare Act and fined $15,000.
He was also ordered to reimburse the Ministry for Primary Industries for vet costs, worth $4312.
rnz.co.nz
