PETA, the master of myth-information, continues to myth-lead the public about

mulesing in its latest piece “The Six Myths of Mulesing”

PETA’s myth 1: Mulesing isn’t necessary.

There is nothing worse for an Australian Merino sheep than to suffer

the pain and agony of attack by flesh-eating ili
the eggs of the aggressive sheep blowfly L
a cuprina.
uc maggots hatched from
These
maggots eat the flesh of the sheep, causing bloody wounds and
eventual blood poisoning. The sheep is likely to die unless found and
treated quickly.

The sheep blowfly prefers to attack the breech (backside) of the Merino sheep.
Faeces and, in the case of females, urine, accumulates in the wool growing on the
skin folds around the breech making it an attractive target for the blowfly.

Mulesed sheep have a clean, non-wool bearing area around the breech, making it
significantly less likely that faeces and urine will accumulate. Consequently, eggs will
not be laid by the blowfly.

PETA continually implies woolgrowers who mules their sheep do not use other
methods to stop their sheep being flystruck. This is totally incorrect! Growers do all
of the things that PETA recommends – crutching, jetting with insecticides, the use of
flytraps, internal parasite control, pasture management, regular flock inspections and
selecting for plainer-breeched sheep. These are all performed as a complement to
mulesing – but none of them can replace mulesing for its effectiveness.

PETA says 20% of farmers do not mules. Most of these farmers have cross-bred
sheep for prime lamb production (20% of the Australian sheep flock). These sheep
have a plain breech which does not present the same problem as the Merino sheep
which is a specialist, fine wool breed producing the world’s best apparel wool.

The proven experience is that non-mulesed Merinos have a much higher rate of
breech strike than mulesed Merinos. Therefore they suffer the stress of flystrike
which can occur every year and often several times within a fly season. Flystrike is a
very stressful experience for sheep.

Research indicates a very high percentage (95%) of Merino sheep are mulesed.* The
reason for this is clear – it is highly effective in giving sheep lifetime protection from
breech strike, thereby saving them from the stress and risk of premature death from
flystike.

*In ‘The Land’ on February 17, 2005, an officer of the Department reported that
“100% of Merinos examined at Deniliquin saleyards had been mulesed and about
10% of first-cross ewes were also shown to have been mulesed.” (Deniliquin is in
south western NSW and the area has a large sheep population.)
PETA quotes Chick Olsson. Chick, representing the Australian Wool Growers
Association, was involved in the Industry Stakeholder meeting which supported the
need to continue the current practice of mulesing until it is phased out by 2010.

PETA’s myth 2: The RSPCA position

RSPCA (Australia) states on its website that:

“in particular geographical locations, where there is a high risk of

flystrike and it has been established that there is absolutely no
acceptable alternative to mulesing, the RSPCA considers mulesing a
necessary means of eliminating or minimising the pain and suffering
caused by flystrike.’

A leading rural newspaper in Australia, the Weekly Times, reported that RSPCA
(Aust.) President, Hugh Wirth, said that PETA was dangerous and had undone a lot
of the good work done by the RSPCA over many years. (Weekly Times, Jan. 19,
2005, p.5).

PETA’s myth 3: Australian woolgrowers are inhumane

Deliberate cruelty to animals is totally unacceptable to sheep

producers. Flystrike inflicts pain, suffering and likely death to sheep.
Once mulesed, the sheep has life-long protection against the horrific
suffering and likely death that breech flystrike can cause.

“If left alone, blowflies in the hot Australian climate create open wounds that kill
sheep through infection.” Catherine Munro, The Sunday Age, 30 January 2005.

Australian sheep and wool producers manage more than 100 million sheep. This is a
365 day per year commitment, year in and year out, through good seasons and bad.
No one knows more about animal welfare than a hands-on producer.

It is plain common sense that sheep which are unhealthy or poorly managed will
have lesser quality wool. Only contented, well-cared for sheep produce quality wool
and lambs every year.

PETA’s myth 4: Who said “knuckle skinning”?

The industry did not say mulesing was like ‘skinning your knuckles’.
But neither is mulesing ‘cutting chunks of flesh off lambs’ backsides
with gardening shears’ as untruthfully propagated by PETA.

The study to which PETA refers (‘abnormal behaviours for up to 113 days’) actually
measured data only at the 35 day and 113 day mark and nothing in between. Lambs
may well have recovered on day 36 but that was not recorded.

What PETA does not report is that the same stress measures indicate acute stress
reactions in sheep during flystrike, which can persist for the duration of the infection.
Unmulesed sheep will be much more susceptible to breech strike and therefore to
the attendant pain and suffering.

The stress response associated with mulesing is comparable to that caused by mild
flystrike. In the case of mulesing, this stress response lasts for about 24-48 hours.
In the case of flystrike, the stress response lasts as long as the strike. Also,
mulesing is done only once during the animal’s life, while flystrike can recur every
year in the right conditions.

The Tasmanian farmer quoted is an alternate, organic producer who runs non-
Merino, British breed sheep that can be managed without mulesing because of their
plain breech.

PETA’s myth 5: It is only interested in mulesing and live

exports

PETA’s self-proclaimed vegan-driven mission (as displayed on its

website) is to end all use of animals for food, fibre, medical research
and recreation. Why would the Australian wool industry be the only
one to be given an exemption?

Animal rights groups in Australia who are supporting PETA’s campaign are regularly
quoted as saying that other animal welfare practices will be targeted after mulesing
is dealt with.

PETA needs to produce more convincing evidence.

PETA’s myth 6: it is not engaging in intimidatory tactics.

Just ask some of the world’s major retailers what they think about
PETA’s claim! Abercrombie and Fitch caved into PETA because of the
threat of an “Abercruelty” type campaign.

Many major retailers have received threats of damaging publicity and

demonstrations. One major international retailer is currently being publicly attacked
by PETA in the northern hemisphere.

Damaging material is displayed PETA’s website. The retailers get swamped with
emails from PETA’s supporters, disrupting their normal business operations.

A survey of internet sites devoted to combating animal rights activism and detailing
previous PETA activities reveals why retailers fear PETA.

For further information contact:

admin@woolisbest.com

24 February 2005