70.000 sheep stuck on ship for two weeks in extreme heat, many will die before arrival

The live stock ship Al Shuwaikh that departed from Romania with 70.000 sheep on the 14th of July has announced it will arrive two weeks later in the port of Kuwait, leaving the animals stuck onboard in extreme heat. They will now arrive on August the 2nd.

There was already extreme outrage over the departure of the ship and the delay has only made this worse. According to animal welfare organization Eyes on Animals many sheep will die the coming weeks from exhaustion, thirst and stress. The delay doesn’t come as a surprise for them since the route is known to be very busy and Al Shuwaikh should have given honest arrival dates.

Animal welfare organizations and members of the European Commission tried stopping the ship from leaving in these hot temperatures. But Romania ignored every plea to save the animals from extreme suffering and authorized the transport.

And even though the country is violating Art 3 of the EU Regulation (EC) 1/2005 which clearly states that animals shall not be transported in a way likely to cause injury or undue suffering, the European Commission didn’t stop the transport. They have announced an investigation, but for these animals stuck on sea it comes too late.

The animals that are still alive in two weeks, will be slaughtered for the Islamic holiday Eid al-Hadha on the 12th of August.

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