Most wool comes from Australia, and the most commonly used sheep are Merinos. Merinos are known to be bred specifically for overly wrinkly skin, which means more wool per sheep.
This overdose of wool on a sheep may cause the sheep to collapse and even die from over heat exhaustion, and the wrinkles collect urine and moisture. Flies become attracted to the moisture, which causes the flies to lay eggs in the folds of skin, and the hatched maggots can eat thin sheep alive.
To prevent this, Australian farmers perform a task known as “mulesing”, in which the farmers force live sheep onto their backs, restrain their legs between metal bars to keep them from moving, and without pain killers, they carve huge chunks of skin off of the animals backsides. This is an attempt to create smoother skin on the sheep that wont collect moisture, but the exposed, bloody wound can often cause an infection.
Although it is fast and easy, mulesing the sheep is not the only option. To avoid infection and pain, the farmers could simply just spray wash the sheep, put them on a special diet, or they could breed sheep that are more suited for the Australian climate.
When the sheep age and are no longer able to produce wool, the farmers have no more use for them, so they are send to the slaughterhouse. Each year, at least 4 million sheep experience the cruelty of live export from Australia to the Middle East aboard filthy, horrible- smelling ships. The ship is so overcrowded, many sheep are trampled to death or severely injured and unable to move, causing them to starve to death. The poor sheep can be stuck on these overcrowded ships for weeks, experiencing any kinds of weather conditions. Many sheep are thrown overboard to be eaten by sharks, but these sheep are the lucky ones.
When the survivors arrive, they are dragged off the ships by their hands and legs, and are thrown carelessly into the backs of trucks and cars. Eventually, most of their throats are cut while they are still alive and fully conscious. Sometimes, they first slice off the sheep legs and arms so they are unable to fight the torture. Other sheep are sent to homes to be slaughtered individually.
Stop this torture! Don’t buy wool! Touch the hearts of others and put an end to this!
