'Horrifying' - Viewers react to secret RTÉ footage of cattle facility showing calves 'beaten'

Viewers have reacted in shock to the exposure of 'pure cruelty' seen on an Irish livestock facility in Tuesday night's Primetime investigation.

Cattle being repeatedly struck in the face, force-fed and jabbed with tools were among the litany of cruel tactics exposed at the major livestock facility in Kerry.

RTÉ Investigates captured disturbing footage at Hallissey Livestock Exports in Fossa, near Killarney, Co. Kerry, in March of this year, as part of a long-running investigation into the treatment of Irish calves bound for mainland Europe.

RTE Investigates has detailed further “cruel” and “unacceptable” treatment of the animals in a special report broadcast last night, with the undercover footage showed calves being “repeatedly struck in the face, force-fed, jabbed with tools and dragged by the ears and tail” at the cattle export facility.

The footage, which was filmed on secret cameras by animal rights campaigners who passed it on to the RTÉ team, also showed a mound of dead animals left to rot outside the facility.

Denis Drennan, president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association, described the footage as “completely unacceptable”, saying that "There’s a man there with a stick beating calves".

“It’s completely abolished and against the law, and there’s a man there with a pitchfork, trying to run calves out the gate – completely unacceptable”.

Calves are prepared for export on trucks at the facility.

Mr Drennan also said footage of two calves being force fed using stomach tubes raises concern about why they are at the facility in the first place.

He told the programme makers: “The rules and regulations say that if an animal is not fit to travel, then it shouldn’t travel.

“It’s going to damage the reputation that we have across Europe of providing top quality, fit, healthy animals.”

Dublin city councillor John Lyons took to social media to voice his distress after watching, saying that "the level of animal cruelty in this RTÉ investigation is horrifying to watch but this is the reality of exporting live animals".

"At a minimum, a ban on live exports from Ireland must be introduced," Lyons added. 

Others online described the treatment of the animals as "cruel" and "sickening", with another voicing their view that a
"livestream of CCTV needs to be installed to Department of Agriculture so it can be monitored by animal welfare staff".

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