Life For Sale (At The Saleyards)

The animal livestock saleyard. A place where farmers go to scope out the competition, socalise with their peers and sell their animals for the best price they can get.

It’s also a place where farm animals suffer.

Farm animals are trucked to saleyards under stress. Yarded with unfamiliar animals. Locked in pens with no shade for up to 24 hours, sometimes more. The animals are stressed by loud noises, crowds, rough handling and dogs. They have no water and no food. Legislation states that farm animals in saleyards only need to be provided with water after 12 hours of being there.

Whilst walking through a large sale of sheep lately on a 30 degree day, I saw each of them. Each individual sheep who looked at me was someone different, just like my sheep at home. They were all languishing in the heat, panting and desperate for shade and water. To these farmers, they were only money. Their lives were for sale. Most were trucked off for slaughter and some may have been purchased as breeding stock for wool and/or meat, but there was no future for any of these sheep.

What really struck me was how they were all treated the same. How no one knew them or wanted to know who they actually were. Like they were nothing.

Hot, crowded, terrified and confused. These animals have no choice.

At the back of some grubby factories, this little poultry auction happens weekly. Sick, emaciated ducks, chickens. turkeys and birds are crammed in cages without food and water and then each one is picked up and auctioned off for a few dollars at a time.

This duck was sold for four dollars. After being picked up by his wings, he was shoved in a boot, taken to a backyard and slaughtered. He was terrified. They were all terrified.

Treated like less than rubbish.

Life for sale.

This is a work in progress. I plan to document saleyards all over the state to complete this series.

Please don’t use my images without permission. All images are Copyright Tamara Kenneally