'Among the worst I've seen': More than 200 cows seized from Vancouver Island property for neglect
The BC SPCA says more than 200 beef cattle were seized from a Vancouver Island property after the owner reportedly left them in distressing conditions.
A total of 216 cows, including approximately 80 calves, were seized from the property on Wednesday and Thursday.
The BC SPCA was granted a warrant to remove the animals after the cows were found to be in poor condition, with issues at the property including lack of sufficient feed and water, lack of veterinary care, inadequate shelter, and poor living conditions – including areas where some cows were being kept in knee-deep mud, according to the SPCA.
BC SPCA’s regional manager of cruelty investigations, Kaley Pugh, says the living conditions were "among the worst” she’s ever seen.
"The animals were suffering from a wide range of issues and illness, including emaciation, lameness, eye infections, as well as pneumonia," Pugh said in a release Friday.
The 216 cows are now being cared for at an undisclosed location, where they are receiving veterinary care.
The BC SPCA says it's grateful to everyone who assisted in finding and relocating the cattle.
"We received invaluable help from the Malahat Fire Department, which brought a tanker truck to the location to fill water troughs," said Pugh.
"We also received assistance from the B.C. Dairy Association, who helped us access many of the resources we needed for such a large seizure, and tremendous help from the haulers who worked tirelessly to ensure the cattle were loaded and transported safely under extremely challenging circumstances," she said.
The BC SPCA is recommending charges of animal cruelty to Crown counsel.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
Canada's most wanted fugitive arrested in P.E.I. in connection with Toronto homicide
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.
Plane overshoots runway at airport in St. John's, N.L., no injuries reported
Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are headed to St. John's, N.L., after a plane overshot a runway at the city's airport this afternoon.
A teen was found buried in a basement in New York. An engraved ring helped police learn her identity two decades later
For more than two decades, the unknown victim was nicknamed "Midtown Jane Doe" because she was found in the Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood of New York City. But this week, investigators finally revealed her identity.