Truck with 31 bulls stranded at the Bulgaria/Turkey border

A livestock truck with 31 bulls from Latvia is at the border between Bulgaria and Turkey aiming to take the animals to slaughterhouses in Iraq.

November 30, 2012 - via Compassion in World Farming

The truck does not have a required document allowing transit via Turkey and so has been stuck at the border since 04:00 on 24 November. The animals have been on board the truck without being unloaded for the entire five days.

The latest report from the border confirms that the truck is still stuck at the border. The Turkish authorities will not allow the bulls to enter Turkey. The Bulgarian authorities will not allow the bulls to re-enter Bulgaria because the truck has been on the Turkish side of the border and the Bulgarian authorities say that certain infectious diseases such as foot-and-mouth are endemic in Turkey.

The bulls were loaded on the 20 November in Latvia and have already been transported for over 2,000 km. Another 2000 km are still ahead of the animals until they reach the Iraqi border – if they are eventually allowed to continue the journey.

Regular information is being received from the animal-welfare organisations Animal Welfare Foundation and Eyes on Animals whose inspectors are at the border. Compassion in World Farming, Animal Welfare Foundation and Eyes on Animals are calling on the European Commission to work with the Bulgarian and Turkish authorities to resolve this disastrous situation.

Peter Stevenson, Compassion in World Farming’s Chief Policy Advisor, said: “It is vital that the European Commission and the Bulgarian and Turkish authorities take urgent action to resolve this situation. If the animals are forced to remain longer on the truck at the border, we could see animals beginning to die.The animals should be allowed to re-enter the EU and taken to proper facilities where they can be given rest, food, water and veterinary care.

Last year over one million cattle and sheep were exported from the EU to Turkey. This trade is responsible for immense animal suffering due to the length of the journeys and the regular protracted delays at the border between Bulgaria and Turkey. The export of live animals to Turkey, Iraq and other countries outside the EU should now be banned.”

Take action!

  • Please email EU Commissioner Dr Tonio Borg, CAB-SEFCOVIC@ec.europa.eu. Ask him to liaise between Turkey and Bulgaria to alleviate the immediate suffering of these animals, and ensure that all animals travelling from the EU to non-EU countries have their welfare protected. In particular, no farm animal should travel for more than 8 hours to slaughter, and slaughter must meet or exceed international animal welfare guidelines.
  • Please ask your friends to take this action too.
  • Sign the petition below


Please sign our petition that sends instant emails

Please sign our petition to send an instant message to EU-Commissioner Dr Tonio Borg, asking him to get in touch with the Bulgarian and Turkish authorities to resolve this disastrous situation and to allow the bulls to re-enter the EU and to be taken to proper facilities where they can be given rest, food, water and veterinary care.

A copy of your email will be sent to Mr Erler from the European Parliament's Intergroup on the Welfare and Conversation of Animals, and Mrs Erminia Mazzoni, Chair of the Committee on Petitions at the European Parliament

Thank you.


Dear EU-Commissioner, 

as you know, a truck with 31 bulls destined for slaughter in Iran (probably while fully conscious), is stuck at the border between Bulgaria and Turkey because it does not have a required document allowing transit via Turkey and so has been stuck at the border since 04:00 on 24 November. The animals have been on board the truck without being unloaded for this entire period.

See video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=I_IGEmjvw0A

The latest report from the border, according to Compassion in World Farming, confirms that the truck is still stuck at the border. The Turkish authorities will not allow the bulls to enter Turkey. The Bulgarian authorities will not allow the bulls to re-enter Bulgaria because the truck has been on the Turkish side of the border and the Bulgarian authorities say that certain infectious diseases such as foot-and-mouth are endemic in Turkey.

The bulls were loaded on the 20 November in Latvia and have already been transported for over 2,000 km. Another 2000 km are still ahead of the animals until they reach the Iraqi border – if they are eventually allowed to continue the journey.

Dear Commissioner, we plead with you to get in touch with the Bulgarian and Turkish authorities to resolve this disastrous situation and to allow the bulls to re-enter the EU and to be taken to proper facilities where they can be given rest, food, water and veterinary care.

As pointed out numerous times by European animal welfare organisations and most importantly by Animals' Angels and their '8hours campaign', especially farm animals should not be allowed to be transported for more than 8 hours. Current EU legislation allows for animals to be transported for several days and this has to be changed. Live animals for slaughter should never be transported for more than eight hours. Such transports are not only shockingly cruel, they are also unnecessary and they contradict the universally accepted principle that animals should be slaughtered as close as possible to the point of production.

Although more than 1 Million people had signed the 8-hours-petition and Written Declaration 0049/2011 on the establishment of a maximum 8-hour journey limit for animals transported in the European Union for the purpose of being slaughtered had been signed by 395 MEPs, the European Commission has not (yet) undertaken any measures in this field and animals continue to be transported for several days across Europe (only to be slaughtered at their arrival) with terrible consequences: wounds, fractures, asphyxia, sufferings, death, and tragedies like the one happening right now at the Bulgaria-Turkey border are likely to happen again.

We urge you to please intervene and to make sure that the bulls stuck at the Bulgarian/Turkish border receive help immediately and to take the necessary measures to avoid that such tragedies happen again, and to respect the wish of over 1 Million EU-citizens and the majority of MEPs (who signed 0049/2011) demanding that live animal transports don't exceed more than 8 hours.

Yours sincerely,

[your name]

You can sign using the widget >>>> or directly at change.org by clicking on the big blue button. 

Thank you, in advance!



U P D A T E:

December 1, 2012:

U P D A T E  :

The bulls have now been unloaded and Turkey has given permission for the bulls to travel through Turkey to Iraq. These bulls will now have to travel a further 2,000 km on top of their already terrible ordeal :(

Please continue to sign & share the petition and to bombard the EU with emails: live animal transports must cease and until then, animals should not be transported for more than 8 hours!