Mulesing is a skilled
surgicalSurgery is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, to help improve bodily function or appearance, or sometimes for some other reason...
task that involves the removal of strips of wool-bearing skin from around the breech (
buttocksThe buttocks are rounded portions of the anatomy located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, including many other bipeds or quadrupeds.-Anatomy:...
) of a sheep.
Mulesing is common practice in
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
as a way to reduce the incidence of flystrike (
myiasisMyiasis is an animal or human disease caused by parasitic dipterous fly larvae feeding on the host's necrotic or living tissue. Colloquialisms for myiasis include flystrike and fly-blown...
) on
MerinoThe Merino is an economically influential breed of sheep prized for its wool. Merinos are regarded as having the finest and softest wool of any sheep. Recently the low price of wool has led to more emphasis on the market and sale of the animal's meat...
sheep in regions where flystrike is common.
Mulesing is a controversial topic with many different opinions. The National Farmers Federation says that "mulesing remains the most effective practical way to eliminate the risk of 'flystrike' in sheep" and that "without mulesing up to 3,000,000 sheep a year could die a slow and agonising death from flystrike"."The Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) recognises the welfare implications of mulesing of sheep. However, in the absence of more humane alternatives for preventing breech strike, the AVA accepts that the practice of mulesing should continue as a sheep husbandry procedure". The AVA also supports the use of analgesics and the accreditation of mulesing practioners. According to National Farmers' Federation president Peter Corish, the
animal welfareAnimal welfare, the health and well-being of animals, represents a systematic concern for people who believe that nonhuman animals are sentient beings that deserve consideration, respect, and care...
organisation
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsRSPCA Australia is an Australian organisation that promotes animal welfare. It is funded in part by the Australian Government but relies on corporate sponsorship, fundraising events and voluntary donations for its income.RSPCA Australia defines its purpose as being the leading authority in animal...
"accept[s] the practice of mulesing as a necessary sheep husbandry procedure to prevent flystrike.". The
animal rightsAnimal rights, also referred to as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of humans...
organisation
PETAPeta can refer to:* peta-, an SI prefix denoting a factor of 1015* Peta, Greece, a town in Greece* Peta, the Pāli word for a Preta, or hungry ghost in Buddhism* Peta Hall, a well known Rhodesian-Canadian potter...
strongly opposes mulesing, says the practice is cruel and painful and that more humane alternatives exist.
In early November, 2004, representatives of the Australian wool industry met and voted to phase out the practice of mulesing in Australia by 31 December 2010. Mulesing
is already being phased out in
New ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous smaller islands, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands. The indigenous Māori named New Zealand Aotearoa, commonly translated as The Land of the Long White Cloud...
.
History
Mulesing is named after John WH Mules, who developed the practice. Whilst shearing a
eweEwe may refer to:*Ewe people, an ethnic group in Ghana, Benin and Togo**Ewe music, music of the Ewe people**Ewe language, the language of the Ewe people*a female domestic sheep*EWE: the station code for Ewell East railway station in Ewell, Surrey....
which had suffered several flystrikes, Mules's hand slipped and his
blade shearsSheep shearing, shearing or clipping is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the sheep's wool is called a shearer. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year...
removed some skin from her hind end. After performing this procedure on his other sheep, Mules noticed that it prevented the occurrence of flystrike. The procedure was refined, experimented with, and demonstrated to reduce flystrike. It was approved for use in
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
in the 1930s. This practice therefore greatly assists in the prevention of flystrike in the Australian environment. In Australia, it is thought that the fly primarily responsible for flystrike,
Lucilia cuprinaThe species Lucilia cuprina, formerly named Phaenicia cuprina, is more commonly known as the Australian Sheep Blowfly. It belongs to the blow fly family Calliphoridae, and while some authorities combine the blow flies and the flesh flies together in the Metopiidae family, distinguishable...
, was introduced from
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
in the nineteenth century.
Originally, mulesing was carried out on sheep after they were weaned because it was considered "too rough" for lambs. However, lambs appear to cope with the procedure better than older sheep as the actual area of
skin foldSkin folds are areas of skin where it folds. Many skin folds are distinct, heritable anatomical features, and may be used for identification of animal species, while others are non-specific and may be produced either by individual development of an organism or by arbitrary application of force to...
removed on young lambs is quite small, and they are protected for an extra year as well. For young lambs older than two months, the discomfort period seems to last for approximately two weeks by which time healing is almost, if not entirely, complete. Current codes of practice ban mulesing for sheep over 12 months of age.
Method
Mulesing is a procedure which, in Australia, is carried out by a person who has completed the mandatory accreditation and training programme, usually a professional mulesing contractor.
While the lamb is under restraint (typically in a marking cradle), the wrinkled skin in the animal's
breechBreech may refer to:*Breeches, certain types of trousers; this term is older than the derived meaning 'buttock' of the word breech*In a breech-loading weapon, the breech refers to the rear portion of the barrel which opens for ammunition loading, as well as the system used to load the...
(
rump-Politics:*Rump legislature*Rump organization*Rump Parliament*Rump Senate*Rump state*Rump party- Technology :* Runnable Userspace Meta Programs, software run in userspace that offers kernel functionality ....
area) is cut away from the perianal region down to the top of the hindlimbs. Originally, the procedure was typically performed with modified wool-trimming metal shears, however there are now similar metal shears designed specifically for mulesing. In addition, the tail is docked and the remaining stump is sometimes skinned. The cuts are executed to avoid affecting underlying muscle tissue.
The
New South WalesNew South Wales is Australia's most populous state, located in the south-east of the country, north of Victoria, south of Queensland and east of South Australia...
Department of Primary Industries states in the Standard Operating Procedures that, "While the operation causes some pain, no pre or post operative pain relief measures are used". Antiseptics, anaesthesia and painkillers are not required by law during or after the procedure but are often applied, as, like any incision, the procedure is known to be painful. Products have been approved for pain relief during the procedure, including Tri-Solfen - however the use of pain relief is not currently required by Australian industry practices. The minor use permit for Tri-Solfen makes the product available for use by both veterinarians and sheep industry employees, such as mulesing contractors and graziers.
After a heavy mules, non-wooled skin around the
anusThe anus is an opening at the opposite end of an animal's digestive tract from the mouth. Its function is to expel feces, unwanted semi-solid matter produced during digestion, which, depending on the type of animal, may be one or more of: matter which the animal cannot digest, such as bones; food...
(and
vulvaThe vulva refers to the external genital organs of the female. This article deals with the human vulva, although the structures are similar for other mammals....
in ewes) is pulled tight, the cut heals and results in smooth scar tissue that does not get fouled by
fæcesFeces, faeces, or fæces is a waste product from an animal's digestive tract expelled through the anus during defecation.-Etymology:...
or
urineUrine is a liquid waste product of the body secreted by the kidneys by a process of filtration from blood called urination and excreted through the urethra. Cellular metabolism generates numerous waste compounds, many rich in nitrogen, that require elimination from the bloodstream...
. Most sheep have a light mules which does not leave the skin bare, but simply removes the skin wrinkle leaving a reduced area to grow wool and stain.
When managed according to the standards, policies and procedures developed by the CSIRO,
lambDomestic sheep are quadrupedal, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Although the name "sheep" applies to many species, in everyday usage it almost always refers to Ovis aries...
s are normally mulesed a few weeks after birth. The operation takes one to two minutes. Standard practice is to do this operation simultaneously with other procedures such as ear marking,
tail dockingDocking is used as a term for the intentional removal of part of an animal's tail or ears. The term cropping is also used, more commonly in reference to the docking of ears, while docking more commonly—but not exclusively—refers to the tail. The term tailing is also commonly used...
, and
vaccinationVaccination is the administration of antigenic material to produce immunity to a disease. Vaccines can prevent or ameliorate the effects of infection by a pathogen. Vaccination is generally considered to be the most effective and cost-effective method of preventing infectious diseases...
. Because the procedure removes skin, not any underlying flesh or structure, there is little blood loss from the cut other than a minor oozing on the edges of the cut skin.
Mulesed lambs should be released onto clean
pasturePasture is land with low-growing vegetation cover used for grazing of livestock as part of a farm, or in ranching or other unenclosed pastoral systems. Prior to the advent of factory farming, pasture was the primary source of food for grazing animals such as cattle and horses...
. The ewes and suckling lambs should receive minimal disturbance until all wounds are completely healed (about four weeks). Observation should be carried out from a distance.
Mulesing should be completed well before the flystrike season or else chemical protection should be provided to reduce risk to the lambs and ewes.
Lambs that are slaughtered soon after weaning generally do not need mulesing as they can be protected by chemical treatment for the short time they are at risk.
Comparison to crutching
Mulesing is different from
crutchingCrutching refers to the removal of wool from around the tail and between the rear legs of a sheep. It can also refer to removing wool from the heads of sheep or from the bellies of male sheep .-Motivation:...
. Crutching is the mechanical removal of wool around the tail, anus (and vulva in ewes) in breeds of sheep with woolly points where this is necessary. Mulesing is the removal of skin to provide permanent resistance to breech strike in
MerinoThe Merino is an economically influential breed of sheep prized for its wool. Merinos are regarded as having the finest and softest wool of any sheep. Recently the low price of wool has led to more emphasis on the market and sale of the animal's meat...
sheep. Other breeds tend to have less loose skin, and wool, so close to the tail and may have less dense wool.
Crutching has to be repeated at regular intervals as the wool grows continuously. Frequent crutching of Merinos reduces the incidence of flystrike, but not as much as mulesing does.
At the time mulesing was invented, crutching was conducted with blade shears. In Australia these have been almost universally replaced with
machine shearsSheep shearing, shearing or clipping is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the sheep's wool is called a shearer. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year...
. Hand shears were being used when Mules inadvertently carried out the procedure during crutching. Mulesing would not inadvertently occur using modern machine shears.
Opposition to mulesing
Some
animal rightsAnimal rights, also referred to as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of humans...
activists consider unanesthetised mulesing to be inhumane and unnecessary. They have also argued that mulesing may mask genetic susceptibility to flystrike allowing for genetic weaknesses to be continued.
Proponents of mulesing are largely from Australia where severe and often fatal flystrikes are common. While alternatives are available, they are not yet economically viable . The industry's size and the number of sheep amplify the effect of cost efficiency.
In October, 2004, American fashion retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co. responded to pressure from PETA to boycott Australian merino wool due in part to the use of mulesing in Australia. The National Farmers' Federation responded by stating "Abercrombie and Fitch does not use Australian wool". Then In December 2008, one of the world's largest retailers,
Liz ClaiborneAnne Elisabeth Jane "Liz" Claiborne was a Belgian-born American fashion designer and entrepreneur. Claiborne is best known for founding Liz Claiborne Inc. which in 1986 became the first company founded by a woman to make the Fortune 500. Claiborne was the first woman to become chairperson and CEO...
, (in which PETA is a shareholder) banned the use of Australian Merino wool in its products in opposition to the mulesing practice, at the time an Australian Wool Innovations spokesman said "the company did not purchase any Australian wool". The campaign by PETA also seeks to draw attention to Australia's
live sheep export tradeOver a billion living farm animals around the world are exported to different countries or states every week, travelling hundreds of miles from farms to slaughterhouses, a practice referred to as "live export."...
. PETA's campaign has hurt the Australian wool industry with several American and European clothing retailers agreeing to the boycott.
The controversy has once again reignited following the airing of a television programme in Sweden. In this television programme it is alleged a lobbying consultant, Kevin Craig, acting on behalf of the Australian Wool and Sheep Industry Taskforce offered a Swedish activist a free trip to Australia but conditional on the activist not going on camera and not doing an interview. As a consequence clothing manufacturers and retailers in Sweden have now uniformly banned the purchase of wool from sheep who have been mulesed.Since then the Swedish Agriculture Minister, Eskil Erlandsson, has said that "he was satisfied that Australia appeared to be responding to international concerns about mulesing and that bans or boycotts were not necessary." "But in the long run we hope there is going to be a final end to all sorts of mulesing"
Some European retailers have agreed to lift their ban on Australian merino wool if pain relief is used during mulesing. The retailers have not been named in an effort to avoid any backlash.
In order to help comply with the 2010 deadline to phase out mulesing Western Australia's governmental research stations ceased mulesing their sheep on April 1 2008.
The Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) has pledged to phase out mulesing by 2010, PETA has accused the Australian wool industry of trying to extend this deadline.
On Wednesday, July 27 2009, the Australian wool industry dumped its long-standing pledge to phase out mulesing by the end of 2010, a move that outraged animal welfare groups and led to criticism by some farmers.
Alternatives
Alternatives to mulesing must meet health standards for both the lamb and its handlers in addition to being safe for consumption as meat or
textileWool is a fibrous protein derived from the specialized skin cells called follicles. The wool is taken from animals in the Caprinae family, principally sheep, but the hair of certain species of other mammals including: goats, llamas, and rabbits may also be called wool...
.
Several non-surgical alternatives are currently being researched:
- topical protein-based treatments (intradermal injections)
- selective breeding
Selective breeding is the process of breeding plants and animals for particular genetic traits. Typically, strains which are selectively bred are domesticated, and the breeding is sometimes done by a professional breeder. Bred animals are known as breeds, while bred plants are known as varieties,...
- safe insecticide
An insecticide is a pesticide used against insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against the eggs and larvae of insects respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and the household. The use of insecticides is believed to be one of the major factors behind...
s
- biological control of blowflies
Blow-flies are insects in the Order Diptera, family Calliphoridae...
- plastic clips on the sheep's skin folds (breech clips)