Handle with care: stop long distance transport of animals for slaughter

Just a little heads-up for a cause that's particularly close to my heart as a long-term veggie and animal lover.

WSPA is concerned the export of sheep from Australia to the Middle East. The charity wants to put an end to live, long-distance transport altogher, but as the world's biggest transporter of live sheep, the focus is on Australia to change its ways. In 2007 alone, 3.7 million Australian sheep were sent to the Middle East for slaughter, enduring a long and gruelling journey by both road and sea.

You can help by forwarding an email to the Australian government here -- it only takes a minute. Follow the jump for a video that shows why we need to act (it's pretty upsetting, but shows no actual slaughter of sheep)

Over 35,000 of these sheep died during the sea voyage from heat-exhaustion, infection, injury and disease. But in many ways these were the lucky ones, as many of those that lived were off-loaded in countries with no, or unenforced, animal welfare laws. Here they are often handled, transported and slaughtered in ways that would be illegal in Australia.

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