B & R Meat Processing: Non-Compliance to Humane Livestock Handling in 2023 (USDA)

313.2

At approximately 0810 hours on January 9, 2023 while performing HATS Category III – Water and Feed Availability for my Livestock Humane Handling Task, I observed the following noncompliance: I noticed one of the establishment's holding pens was full of sheep and goats. I counted 15 sheep and 5 goats inside a roughly 5 feet by 10 feet holding pen. I immediately noticed 5 animals displaying signs of fatigue; heavy eyelids, trying to fall asleep standing up, and heads lowered. I was not sure when the animals had arrived and were placed in the holding pen. I asked Mr. REDACTED what time the animals had been dropped off, and he informed me that the animals had been dropped off the night before (Sunday, January 8, 2023). I replied to him by saying that the establishment has to provide enough room within a holding pen for animals to lay down if they’re being kept overnight. He replied by saying he would immediately move some of the animals to another holding pen. I immediately followed him outside and under my supervision I verified that Mr. REDACTED moved half (that’s 10 sheep/goats) of the animals from the original pen, to the one directly in front of it. Upon further inspection, after Mr. REDACTED had moved some of the animals from on pen to another, I noticed that the holding pen that was originally used to hold the 20 sheep and goats did not have a water bucket/trough/container. I informed Mr. REDACTED that the animals had to have access to water. Under my supervision, Mr. REDACTED found two empty water containers, proceeded to place one inside each of the pens where the sheep and goats were kept in and filled them up with water. At approximately 0820, I informed Mr. REDACTED, establishment owner and acting Operations Manager, of the forthcoming non-compliance. The establishment failed to meet the requirement of 9 CFR 313.2(3)(e) which states, “Animals shall have access to water in all holding pens and, if held longer than 24 hours, access to feed. There shall be sufficient room in the holding pen for animals held overnight to lie down.” In reviewing non-compliance records for the last 90 days, no noncompliance(s) were documented for the same cause, thus no associations have been made.