Day 114 - 04 Apr 95 - Page 47
1 sufficient of a problem to require a solution. It is not
2 just a very rare occurrence. The other point that I was
3 about to go on -----
4
5 MR. MORRIS: Could we just clarify, is that related to the
6 figure you said before about one in four would be
7 imperfectly stunned?
8 A. Yes. The other difficulty you have is when you measure
9 these currents, I have said already that if you do not get
10 them properly placed so the charge goes through the brain,
11 then you have to be careful because in some places pigs are
12 sedated by spraying water on them, warm water, which
13 certainly does tend to calm them down. But if they go into
14 the stunning pen and they are wet, there is always a danger
15 that if the electrodes are not in the right position,
16 particularly, the current tracks round the conducting wet
17 surface instead of going through the more resistant part of
18 the head which is where it should be.
19
20 MS. STEEL: What effect would that have on the pigs?
21 A. That would mean the actual current that is going
22 through the brain will be less than you think it is.
23 Now -----
24
25 Q. But in terms of the pigs being stunned what would be the
26 effect?
27 A. It would not be properly stunned and then it would be
28 stuck while it still had sense of feeling, and it might be
29 paralysed but it might not be deprived of feeling. In the
30 circumstances, it is very difficult to measure all those
31 things but, in my opinion, as a scientist, if you are in
32 doubt you should always err on the side of mercy. You
33 should always side on giving the stricken animal the
34 benefit of any doubt. I think there is grave doubt at this
35 point. The other observation -----
36
37 Q. Sorry -- no, it is OK.
38 A. Another observation that is relevant to this is that in
39 some modern slaughterhouses they are going over to what we
40 call the stun kill method. Now, to explain that, I am
41 really -----
42
43 MR. MORRIS: It is probably, OK, but briefly.
44
45 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You have to ask yourselves whether this
46 actually applies to ---
47
48 MS. STEEL: No.
49
50 MR. JUSTICE BELL: -- what we are concerned with in this case.
51
52 THE WITNESS: Could I just say that it might -----
53
54 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No, not at the moment. You will be asked a
55 further question which relates to the issues in this case.
56
57 MS. STEEL: Are you talking about stunned killing in terms of it
58 being a better alternative or is this just a general
59 comment on stun?
60 A. No, at the moment I would just say that in some pigs
