Draft sheep code of practice released

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

by SUSAN MANN

There is a lot more clarity between what measures are requirements compared to what are recommended practices in the recently released draft Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Sheep.

Jackie Wepruk, general manager and project coordinator for the National Farm Animal Care Council made the comments in connection with the Canadian Sheep Federation and the council launching the public comment period for the draft sheep code. The draft code can be reviewed and submissions made at: www.nfacc.ca/codes-of-practice/sheep. All submissions must be made through the on-line system and are due by Sept. 6, the council says in its July 9 press release.

That increased clarity is something that’s in all the codes now as they’re being revised, she says. In general, there’s also strong referencing to sources of information. For requirements and recommended practices, readers of the codes are able to see “where that source of information came from,” Wepruk says.

Another element of the code development was the scientific committee that reviewed the priority welfare matters for sheep and created a peer-reviewed report. The committee used that report to develop the sheep code.

The sheep code revision was led by a 17-person code development committee made up of sheep farmers, animal welfare and enforcement officials, researchers, veterinarians and government representatives. The committee has been working on developing the draft code for the past two years.

The committee will consider all feedback from the public comment period as it finalizes the new code. The final code of practice will be released by the end of the year, the release says.

The sheep code is one of eight codes currently being revised by the farm animal care council as part of a multi-year project. The codes or practice serve as the country’s national understanding of animal care requirements and recommended practices. The code covers housing, feed and water, handling, euthanasia, transportation and other important management practices. BF