CTF evidence “watertight”
(CNS): The global animal protection group calling for the Cayman Turtle Farm to alter its model and become a conservation facility rather than a farm is standing by its report, saying it is based on “watertight evidence”. Following a statement released by the Farm on Friday criticising the WSPA and denying the findings, the activists have said their claims are based on “photographic evidence and peer reviewed scientific analysis”, which revealed many welfare issues, including overcrowding, disease, cannibalism and unnecessary prolonged suffering. The WSPA said it has tried to work with the CTF and only in the face of its failure to act has it gone public with the damning report in the hope that it will move to address the concerns raised by the research.
“Our claims against the Cayman Turtle Farm (CTF) are founded on evidence gathered during a comprehensive, 18 month investigation into the treatment of the sea turtles at the CTF,” the World Society for the Protection of Animals said Monday in a statement released to the press. “This evidence is the basis for our compelling arguments against the CTF and is in the form of footage and photographic evidence and peer reviewed scientific analysis. WSPA does not initiate campaigns such as this without watertight evidence.”
The activists explained that the investigation was carried out following a number of complaints made last year by scientific experts and visitors to the CTF, relating to the animal welfare conditions.
“To verify these concerns, we conducted our investigation in association with a number of research partners, and received two Freedom of Information (FOI) requests directly from the CTF,” a spokesperson for WSPA stated. “Our findings validated these concerns and have provided clear evidence of a range of different welfare related issues including but not restricted to: overcrowding, unsuitable captive conditions; disease; cannibalism; and unnecessary prolonged suffering.”
However, in the face of the damning report the CTF released a statement in which it denied the accusations claiming, despite the photographs to the contrary, that there was “no evidence of the kinds of injuries or defects among the turtles” shown in the report and the charity was on a “quest to shut down sea turtle farming.”
Although the organization has extensive footage of diseased and injured turtles, the Farm said that it had “succeeded in maintaining the health and well-being” of the turtles through veterinary treatment protocols and methods.
In its statement on Monday the WSPA added that the evidence generated by its broad investigation demonstrated that the Farm was not only a potential threat to wild turtle conservation efforts it was also a potential threat to human health as well.
“Independent experts and leading scientists from institutions such as the University of Oxford, Murdoch University and the Emergent Disease Foundation have reviewed and endorsed our evidence. Furthermore, well established conservation bodies such as the Sea Turtle Conservancy, and Caribbean conservation organizations’ such as YWF-KIDO Foundation in Grenada (which is also part of WIDECAST) and FAADA (Spanish Foundation for the Protection of Animal), are also in support of our recommendations to the farm,” the WSPA added.
Acknowledging that the CTF has released some 31, 000 sea turtles since 1968, only 11 of the 200 sea turtles nesting on local beaches this year had Turtle Farm tags. The Farm also admitted in documents released under the FOI law that the number of animals released is falling, with an average of only 27 turtles per year over the last five years. The FOI request also showed that the extremely poor welfare conditions at the CTF are causing a high degree of sea turtle mortality. Over the last five years at least 300 green sea turtles have died on a yearly basis. This means that between 2007 and 2011 alone 2,299 green sea turtles have died at the farm outside of those slaughtered for meat.
WSPA said it is not calling for the CTF to shut down all of its operations but to operate as a rehabilitation release, research and education facility that can still draw tourists. It recommends a shift away from commercial production for human consumption to conservation, but said the Farm should “immediately halt the inhumane public handling of turtles due to the animal welfare concerns associated with this activity.”
The charity said it first contacted the farm in May to express concerns. “We met with relevant CTF stakeholders in July 2012 to explore ways to collaborate; agreed a two month consideration period when it was made clear that the issue needed to be considered by senior politicians and subsequently provided a five week extension when the CTF failed to meet the agreed deadline,” it added.
Although the CTF claims to be taking the evidence seriously, as it has commission an independent review for December, the WSPA said that because of the repeated inaction despite its attempts to work with the farm as well as the recent tragic incident loss of 300 more turtles after a tank failed during a leak repair, it had come to the conclusion that the Farm has little interest in working with it to find a solution to the animal welfare issues.
“This has left us with no option but to share our concerns with the general public, which we hope will encourage the CTF to address our concerns,” the charity stated.
It is clear that the organisation intends to push ahead with the campaign. Since going public with the report last week and creating a website at the weekend, which includes the visual and scientific evidence it uncovered during its research at CTF, some 8,800 people have signed up to join the campaign. Although the Farm has faced international criticisms in the past, this is the first time it has faced a campaign of such magnitude backed by scientific and visual evidence and spearheaded by a well-known and well respected global organisation.
See full statement from WSPA below and more details at www.stopseaturtlefarm.org
Related article on CNS story along with government statements.
Photos supplied by WSPA.
Category: Science and Nature
I'm a Caymanian who has visited the farm numerous times and I must say that the video posted at http://www.stopseaturtlefarm.org makes a compelling case. You don't have to be a genius to see that the tanks are overcrowded and that the turtles are living in less than ideal conditions. And, if we're releasing fewer than 30 turtles back into the wild each year, there's hardly a case to be made for it being a way to replenish the wild population. The farm is costing us millions of dollars each year to operate and I don't believe that it is money well spent anymore. I'll be signing the online petition.
REPULSIVE.
The turtle farm, in it's present incarnation, is a microcosm of the institutional corruption, ineptitude, dishonest, spin-doctored, wasteful, nepotistic, fraudulent, ludicrous, greedy, ignorant and wholly ugly malarky that the administration of the Cayman Islands is, and has been, to the detriment of the Cayman Islands. There is a level of some unquantifiable yet visible sickness and contamination of good character when one observes an individual and/or individuals and/or governmental administration/s who, even in the presence of irrefutable evidence and a plethora of personal witnesses, would continue to deny a glaringly obvious truth. This is not the way forward. The solution is to look at the problem, find the solution and then endevour to fix said problem. The answer is the opposite to the stance taken by the government and the management of the turtle farm.
In the economic climate we have in Cayman, it may well be ultimately necessary and unavoidable to close the turtle farm due to years of mismanagement and much, much worse. This would be true even if the turtle farm were run as a shining example to the entire world of how to run such an operation. The public monies which are, and have been, dropped into this swirling vortex (think toilet bowl) for so long now have bled this country with a much more negative consequence than any and all possible positives combined. It is a gaping wound being sucked upon by those of vampirical tendencies at the expense of their very own country and people. The "boatwain's beach" fiasco was just another example of what happens when McKeeva Bush has his hands on anything.
I, as a Caymanian, do not denounce those who eat turtle meat. I do not consider it to be barbaric, even or though I do not eat it personally. The question of eating the meat of a sea-turtle should not be the crux of the conversation here. The question is why do those in charge refuse to look at the obvious faults and acknowlege them instead of ridiculously trying to deny them. It truly makes one look the fool by trying to do so. More importantly, said stance does absolutely nothing to remedy the situation. A few years ago I spoke to a representative of the farm on the subject of the very limited gene-pool of the breeder turtles at the farm and the negatives consequences which would inevitably result from such constant inbreeding. I was received with derision for asking such a question and, in a condescending way, told not to worry. This attitude is seemingly, unfortunately, still alive and well at the turtle farm. The visible congenital defects and their frequency suggests to me that this is an issue and, as far as I know, has yet to be considered and/or addressed.
My Caymanian ancestry has a history of shipbuilding, captaining, and turtling. I am proud of this and the lost skills of those who came before me. I do have a culture and a history to be recognized and not denounced by those with the inability to come to a country and respect the people who are from there. To incidiously and disingenuously do so does nothing to help the situation and it only gives ammunition to the unworthy yet powerful blaguards of my own country to cause further divisiveness, disharmony, inequity and a lack of a positive way forward. Turtling, like all practises of hunting an animal into extiction which exist the world over, should be taken as an important lesson of history and all steps taken to prevent it from happening again. The lack of an ability to take heed to this lesson is a universal human problem.
We do not know, and unless things change for the better, we will not know if the Cayman Turtle Farm could be a well run, sustainable and beneficial operation for both the replenishment of turtles into the wild and to satiate the local appetite for turtle meat. More importantly, it cannot continue to be such a financial drain and to allowed this to continue is insanity. This has happened because it is a political footbal, an improperly subsidized national unhumourous joke. It is a shame that this is the case but it is not surprising in the least. One cannot look at a single governmental entity in Cayman that does not reek of the same stench. As a Caymanian, I have no pride or confidence from that standpoint. There are issues with the turtle farm's operation, there are issues with the turtle farm's funding and there are issues with it's ultimate viability in it's present (or quite possibley any) incarnation. We, as a country, have to be willing to look at this realistically and not go spouting some fake nationalist drivel when faced with any and all issues Cayman has to deal with and are not going to disappear (let alone be dealt with) by publicity campaigns and the like. The denial of a problem is the one sure way to make it worse and the evidence of such is incontravertible. It does not have to be this way, this country has the ability and the potential to do so much better, but the fox has to be removed from the henhouse and incompetence, cronyism and abuse of power/position can no longer be tolerated when it affects the health of the entire country. I have seen the enemy, and it is us.
First class post, well done. However, as one who earlier used the word barbaric, I would like to reaffirm my position.
I care not for what people choose to eat, as long as it is legal, ethically grown and unsubsidised by the rest of us. Turtle meat isn't the issue as far as I'm concerned, although eating reptiles just doesn't sit well with me personally. My concern is the nonsensical approach by some that farming turtles and eating them is beyond reproach due to historical and cultural sensibilities. I also have a huge problem with the whole historical mythology that goes with catching wild turtles.
Like whaling before it and shark finning now, trapping a turtle and butchering it alive on the beach is barbaric and should never be condoned by right thinking people. We can't alter history, but we can progress and that's where Cayman needs to go, forwards not backwards.
If the same notion of history and culture was adopted by other 1st world countries, we would see the return of slavery, whaling, bear bating and child labour, to name but a few of those hideous examples from history.
Cayman's tourism reputation can be seriously damaged by the animal welfare issues raised this week. Some may not realise the danger of deliberate cruelty to animals, but visitors do and they return home with less than positive memories.
How about fishing, is that barbaric? I mean we catch those poor fish on HOOKS and then GUT them on the beach. That practice must be stopped immediately because it offends my sensibilities and I deem it barbaric.
I have been to the turtle farm twice. Each time I hated it. The second(which was last year) was worse than the year before. Not only did they take quite a bit of cash to walk through and see too many turtles in a cage, they didn't care about these beautiful creatures. There are way too many in a tank that they can't even move. Visitors (not me) were picking them up and when the turtle was flapping around, they dropped them on the ground. The workers just picked up the turtle and put them back in the tank.
There is no reason for this place to exist. These creatures, both big and small, should be put back where they belong. A true conservation place would be raising them and releasing them, at a much better rate than they are doing now. There is no reason that they are only releasing a few each year when they can't possibly be fitting anymore turtles in those deplorable, filthy, tanks.
I would much rather go to a "aquarium" and see what is being done to save these animals, than to a tourist trap.
How much meat do they sell a year? From what I see, and the comments posted, most don't seem to eat it. These beautiful animals need to be let free. To live the way they were intended to live. And for those people that do kill them in the wild, they should be prosecuted to the fullest. Let the turtles go! Let the dolphins go! They are not the misbehaving fools that need to be incarcerated!
Peer reviewed my right foot. But easy enough to check. (1) look at the sources they sight in their report. (Not who they claim in their press releases.) (2) Go try and find the 200 turtles they report as nesting in Cayman. thats 200 individual turltes ladies and gnetlemen, not 200 nests.
Yes the farm has problems. WSPA has problems of misrepresentation. We'll never get a good resolution until we cut through the rhetoric.
Hmmm, 3-1 against on the voting but a quick CNS search shows the commentoator was right. Its 200 turtle nests this year, not 200 turtles as claimed by WSPA. (http://centos6-httpd22-php56-mysql55.installer.magneticone.com/o_belozerov/31115drupal622/science-and-nature/2012/09/06/turtles-track-record-local-nesting-season) Sad triumph of opinion over fact again.
even though there is every reason to close this place tomorrow for econmic,social, humane reasons……..
the sad thing is that nothing will change…………
welcome to the caymankind wonderland
This is truly disgusting. Even more disgusting is the Government's (in particular the current Govt's) continued energy and resources aimed at blaming and shooting the messenger.
I'm ashamed to admit that i've eaten turtle meat on occasion before. Never again!
And I also will not patronise or refer anyone to Boatswains Beach…or Cayman Turtle Farm, whatever it's called.
The Turtle farm needs to be closed and the turtles set free. Nobody goes there to spend money, it is a drain on the Government finances and the existing conditions are scary at best. And as for the turtle meat; it is not as good as turtle in the wild, and the price is ridiculously high! Give it up, close it down, set them free. In the future when the numbers increase and the beach has lots of turtle nests, have a turltle season. Until then, get over it.
As a born Caymanian, and as one who has enjoyed turtle meat as a Cayman tradition for most of my life, I have to agree and have said for years that conditions at the farm are deplorable. I believe the turtle farm was started many years ago as a means of replenishing the wild with an endangered species. Why on earth has this place turned into the disgusting, hugely deficit operating commercial enterprise that it has with so many thousands of animals in grossly overcrowded tanks? Why can't they return this place to the ATTRACTIVE tourist attraction that it once was and let it continue to serve the dual purpose of a replenishment facility that was it's original intention with only perhaps a few hundred turtles being kept and with overstock being released into the wild? The Cayman turtle farm will NEVER record a profit as a commercial farm and disgusting butcherhouse. I read recently that if all the pastureland in this world was used to grow food crops there would be zero hunger in our world and everyone on earth would be so much healthier. This is fact and it is even more fact considering the astronomical cost of growing a single turtle for human consumption.
WHAT A DISGRACE!!!!
As a young, indigenous Caymanian, I am truly furious at this disappointing and grotesque sight. I do agree with Tim Adam that the green sea turtle and turtling alike has been a part of Caymanian history and culture for many years, however, the conditions and treatment of these specific animals in captivity are deplorable and disgusting and absolsutely do not reflect how important they are to our Islands. The photos do not lie! For the Turtle Farm to say that the investigation was not carried out properly or the allegations are not true is absolutely bogus! WHO DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU ARE FOOLING!?
However, If we are are so proud as Caymanians, and this part of our history, we should treat both it and these turtles as such. I am truly disappointed and ashamed at the treatment these animals have endured, as an animal lover and although our Islands do not need any further negative publicity, the WSPA was right to blow the whistle on such a poorly operated facility.
The turtle farm which originally began as a conservation and breeding facility for the preservation of these beautiful creatures has quickly gone down hill as another desperate attempt for our government to pull in extra revenue – look at how costly this has been on these graceful creatures – stripped of their respect and right to freedom.
STOP THE INHUMANE and UNETHICAL TREATMENT OF OUR GREEN SEA TURTLES! TAKE A STAND CAYMANAND LETS SHOW THAT WE HAVE SOME SHAME WHEN WE ARE BEING PUT ON BLAST ON THE WORLD STAGE!
I am all for my country and its people, but this ignorance and blatant non-recognition is not tolerable even for the most pro-Caymanian of us. This is yet another valid reason why Caymanians are always looked down upon and discredit those like myself and my peers who work hard and are conscious to always produce the best in everything we do.
I truly hope this is not another issue that will just be brushed under the rug, with the involvement of the WSPA I doubt it will be – lets remember these creatures are living, breathing animals!
Operators of the Cayman Turtle Farm should have thier tail tucked between their legs in shame!
"One can measure the greatness and the moral progress of a nation by looking at how it treats its animals" – Mahatma Ghandi. The turtle farm has been an embarassment to the Cayman Islands for many years. It is terrible for the environment (i.e. the sewage run-off into the sea), costs the public purse an incredible $10 million a year and is unspeakably cruel and inhumane. I wonder if there is a potential MLA standing in 2013 who will have the guts to propose closing it in its current form and making it a research cenrer for release only – and save the Cayman islands a fortune. Now that would be nice to see.
Ah yes, the old Ghandi quote about animals again. It is a good one, true. Has anyone read about how he treated his wife? Even he professed himself ashamed.
"He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."
Immanuel Kant
There a non Gandhi quote, other brilliant minds throughout time can recognize a person’s true heart by their treatment of animals.
I wonder how many people from Cayman will actually sign the global petition to shut down the place.
Put your name where your mouth is: http://e-activist.com/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=24&ea.campaign.id=16220
Sadly we live in such a corrupt oppressive petty place openly acting against certain entrenched interests can cost people their livelihoods or permits.
Sorry but I do not necessarily believe the place needs to be shut down. I believe it was created with honorable intentions that unfortunately became grossly obscured by greed and ignorance over time. The farm can most certainly still serve as a vital tool for the PROTECTION of an endangered species, while also serving as a profitable and very much needed tourist attraction and educational facility. The fact that it is being grossly mismanaged for all the wrong 'reasons' does not necessarily mean we need to get rid of it.
Unfortunately, the only way to fix this problem is for Caymanians to decide they want to eat something else. The government will never tell them 'no'. Personally, I can't stand turtle nor can I understand why with all the other foods out there we go tothe trouble of inhumanely raising thousands of them just to eat. Another damaging, expensive quirk of the current generation of Caymanians which is out of sync with nature and right living.
Assuming this report is correct, it is absolutely obscene that only an average of 27 turtles per year over the last 5 years have been released into the wild by CTF. The turtle farm is in the unique position of being able to repopulate the local waters with these beautiful creatures, both to save them from endangerment and so that we can all be lucky enough to see them in their natural habitat. If those who ran the CTF had any sense at all they would be proud to make such a contribution to the wildlife of the Cayman Islands. The fact that they have not is nothing short of a tragedy.
It is actually quite ironic that breeding farms, in particular when knowingly slaughter is involved, is usually kept out of the public eye. It makes you wonder at the same time what exactly happens to the sick turtles they do find among the masses of them in these tanks, are those among the ones that will end up on your table the same way cattle farms still use whatever is left of downed cows just to get something out of them as commercial value?
Now I regret that out of sheer principle, I do not patronize any captive animal facility in any form or way to see for myself but at the same time, why should I? Would it not be reasonable to assume that any one of these facilities are operated by qualified personnel? CTF claims they are subject to regular inspections? By whom I wonder? And what do they inspect? The tanks? The water? The meat for consumption? The actual living turtle? As it seems now, none of the above as otherwise it would never have come this far would't you say?
The problem is that the bulk of the visitors are tourists and likely will not say or do anything about it. Having read all of the comments to date, one would imagine that if an equal amount of residents would frequent the CTF, somebody would have rung some very loud bells about the current situation don't you think based on those comments?
Some may not agree here but it seems time to do away with the turtle steaks and stews and concentrate on a breeding programme for release only. A balanced amount of turtles in each tank, in such as fashion and sorted by size that they can actually be identified being healthy, set them free and leave the rest up to nature. Increase the efforts and prosecution of those poaching them in the wild (See the related article in yesterdays news from the DoE with additional conservation programmes to be introduced soon) and then we may end up with something worth while and to be proud of.
Oh, almost forgot to mentioned to stop taking them out of the water for their sake as well as yours, turtles and stingrays alike could get serious infections as their protective slime coating and beyond will get damaged and allow disease to enter their bodies as well as yours besides it being outright stupid to do so just because you can.
I for one work in the tourism industry will be recommending very strongly that no tourist venture to the turtle farm or any dolphin jail!
Nowork permit renewal for you then!
If we could start a grassroots movement to vote "No" in the referendum, then surely we can start a public movement to have the turtle farm closed down. The facility has run its course – the conditions for the animals are appalling, it is not a research facility, so it adds nothing to increase our knowledge of turtles; and it is a money drain. Shut it down. Simple.
Caymankind supernova.
The turtle farm is not for turtle welfare. It's a front for channelling millions from the public purse into the hands of a select few and pretending it is a tourist attraction/ cultural preservation initiative.
Remember the last manager who ran up huge bar tabs and took thousands of dollars for himself, then claimed they were loans he "forgot" to get approved, and then mysteriously paid it all back with a suitcase full of cash and refused to answer questions about it? The running of that place is as murky as its pools.
Close it and that's the budget deficit dealt with in one move without any news fees or taxes. Wonder why they didn't do that?
If Cayman ever has a "TCI moment" you can bet the Turtle Farm will be at the heart of it.
CTF should have researched before criticising the WSPA. The WSPA are a well established and extremely respected organisation recognised worldwide, and they are not in the habit of making spurious claims about animal welfare without first gathering substantial real evidence to back their claims. CTF is insane not to accept the WSPA's very kind offer of assistance to turn the turtle farm into a world class conservation centre for turtles. Its a crying shame that CTF continues to embarrass the Cayman Islands and drain the public purse to the tune of CI$10 Million a year.
If you aren't going to accept the WSPA's assistance, then close the thing down already.
CNS!!!! Please please please stop posting these awful pictures!!!
You're going to put me off my lunch!!! Hmmmm turtle.. 🙂
The truth hurts eh?
The truth is, it's delicious! And our turtles are probably raised in better conditions than most of the meat you buy in the supermarket.
delicious???? yep thats why it served in all best restaraunts in the world…not!
That's a silly unreasonable answer 21:38. I happen to think haggis is delicious. Many more than me think it is repulsive and inedible. It is not served in many restaurants outside Scotland. Decent sensible people can have very different tastes in food (and other things) so going on and on about turtle not tasting good makes no sense. It does taste good to some. I am one of these but I choose not to eat it because of the cruelty involved at the Turtle Farm. A personal decision. I do not insult those who do eat it.
It is ilegal to take from the wild and we have the only farm in the world you idiot. Thats why it isn't served in the best restaurants in the world. Also there's the cute factor, people won't eat what they preceive to be cute but as far as taste goes, its up there with any of the most delicious meats in the world.
We need to hold onto the turtle farm now more than ever! We may well be on the verge of a global melt down which could bring food shortages and I for one will be very glad of a turtle meat diet if and when it happens. Look at it as Cayman's own way of doomsday prepping.
eating turtle is 'cayman's way of doomsday prepping'…..sums it all up…..goodnight …………..zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Actually he's right, considering that a turtle can be grown to maturity in much less time and at much less cost and with much less suffering than it takes to grow an acre of corn. Besides, we don't get the pleasure of butchering the corn before we eat it. And we all know that a turtle that has been raised on dog food is much healthier than that stupid organic corn…
Just disgusting and deplorable treatment of these beautiful animals.
Grand Caymans government took a working turtle farm and turned it into a very costly and pathetic try at a Caymanian tourist attraction. What it really is a just another way to funnel public funds to friends and relatives so it is a complete success in that respect and they will not want to get it "fixed". They fact that tourist leave feeling like they were robbed and the Turtles themselves are dieing from incompetence is a minor inconvenience to leadership as long as the money to themselves and family is flowing. Watch as nothing happens except the usual deniance. This is the normal of today here in Grand Cayman. Hopefully the future leaders and followers do a better job when its their turn.
What is deniance?
Dear WSPA,
The most effective campaining is probably via international organisations, particularly ones with US links, which presently support the farm by sending tourists and thier dollars there. There are two obvious categories – the cruise ship lines and the hotel chains. Only by lobbying the cruise trade associations to cease tours to the death farm and contacintg the major hotel chains with businesses in Cayman – Marriot, Westin and Ritz Carlton, is there any prospect of this place changing for the better or, better still being closed down. With the overwhelming evidence in your report change might happen. The farm is exactly that, it exists to provide turtlemeat. Please please believe us that many of the residents of the Cayman Islands find the eating of turtle meat and the existence of this farm barbaric, backwards and disgusting.
Thank you for all your efforts so far.
Close the place! Total wast of public money and sheer cruelty to animals.
At least please explain why there are so many turtles cramed into each tank. Release half now and you will still be overcrowded.
This is anoutright attack on 200 years of Caymanian history and culture. Caymanians stand your ground. Let them go report on the chicken and cow “factories” found in their countries.
That place isn't two hundred years old so how is it part of your culture? The only thing saving you from getting salmonella from it is the fact that turtle is not eaten "rare", thank god.
You can also get salmonella from handling them. Even healthy turtles naturally carry the samonella bacteria.
Cayman's palette needs to mature and get in line with modern reality and social responsibilities. Chickens and cows are not critically endangered species, and those farms are subject to scrutiny that would have shuttered CTF years ago. CTF should have been (and still could be) made into a credible marine science facility, doing real research and conservation that we can all get behind and (willingly) support.
Next time you decide to leave your little island (if you ever have done) let us all know what a "Cow Factory" looks like cos I sure as hell haven't seen one……Idiot.
Sorry idiot #2, you dont have to leave your little island to find anything. Google chicken slaughtering or beef slaughtering and check out the videos of the horrifc and barbaric manner in which animals are butchered in slaughter houses around the world.
2 wrongs don't make a right and # 2 cows and chickens aren't endangered. I abhor the mistreatment of all animals and must admit that I barely eat meat.
Handling turtles is dangerous. Feel free to google that.
I don't think we need to neccessarily close it down but we can operate it better. Do we really need that many turtles except at election time? Cause we all know turtle meat is the main menu. Why do we have to be so ravenous? It's not like we are starving to death. I say we ration them to one turtle per family at Christmas. Clean up the tanks and any other health issues. Stop people from handling turtles especially children. As for elections, no turtles whatsoever.
I'm not a turtle eater. I think it's the disgusting but thought to give out some ideas to strike a medium. My first choice would be to close it down.
Then, Highlander, all you need to do is visit any of the very many "feed lots" in the US and Canada where cows are encouraged to gorge on grain until they are huge and their livers cease to function properly, making them ready for slaughter. Feed lots and slaughterhouses (sorry "meat processing plants" or "abattoirs") can easily be called "cow factories" (not my name but the one given by the original poster). And now we come to pigs and hens………………………….
I would be embarrassed if munching endangered reptiles was this important to my national "history and culture".
Not endangered if it came from the turtle farm! It would never have existed! Mmmmmm turtle stew fridays!!!!!!
Whilst we may have been hunting turtles in their natural habitat for that amount of time, I don't think turtle farming has been going on for 200 years, nor would I be proud to call turtle farming a part of our Caymanian history and culture… more like a disgrace to our history and culture.
How painful is it when your knuckles are dragged along the ground?
WHAT!? -__- Please do not even say that, this is not an attack on Caymanian history. If this is Caymanian history I certainly do not want to be apart of this disgusting treatment of animals. I am a 5th generation, indigenous Caymanian and I will not stand up as you say FOR this type of embaressment. It is this type of ingorance and non-acknowledgement now that has our Islands in a right mess!
If you are going to advocate for standing up for something, stand up for the ethical treatment and replenishment of our Green Sea turtle.
Encourage them to be treated with dignity and respect first before you fly off with your mouth. Take a look at the photos, is this what you say the Cayman Islands stand for?? It is certainly not what my Cayman and the younger, educated generation stand for.
Good point. Dont eat meat from the states but 2 wrongs dont make right Stop the torture of all animals
Cayman needs to reinvent its tourist product. There is a growing sector of eco tourists that want to experience the beauty of nature and travel the world looking for new experiences. These tourists are the ones willing to spend the extra dollar to get what they want and are more likely to spend time and money on the island than the cruise shippers that spend little time and money here.
Cayman has one of the best marine environments in the world . Perfect for a world class marine research center where tourists and scientists can come to experience and explore our beautiful waters .
We already have seen the success of the Blue Iguana project and we have gained such positive international recognition for the effort. Why can’t we make the Turtle Farm into a research facility ? Tourists would still visit the farm but their experience would be a more positive one if they knew the facility was working towards preservation of the species.
So many places in the world have lost their natural environments and species have become endangered through lack of foresight. Cayman really has an opportunity to stand out and become a destination where the visitors experience is a holistic blend of Eco friendly products. Please Mr. Bush reinvent the product before it is too late.
You are asking mac for help, really? he cant help himself except to a gin and tonic in first class
If the figures of 2399 turtles that have died, over and above those slaughtered for meat, and only 27 per annum having been released into the wild are accurate- what the Hell is going on. It is a bit difficult to reconcile some of the figures in the CNS report but, nevertheless, it appears that “something is rotten in the State of West Bay”, and not just the water in the turtle ponds. What on Earth is Tim Adam doing – nice chap, but he wouldn’t know his arse from his elbow in the context of running a turtle farm – sad way to end a career.
You have a good point there but why jump on Tim Adam? Lets make positive suggestions here and not get all into the crab barrel, negative, always quick to shoot a fellow Caymanian down instead of trying to be positive and help. Some of you are no better than the thugs running around with guns the way you fight each other down.
I agree release more turtles, turn it into a research center and you still make money from it. How about cutting the cost of the turtle meat 🙂 that would be nice!
Those are some sick looking turtles! pictures like those should turn anyone off from wanting to eat turtle meat from there. all i can say is yuck.
You obviously haven’t seen where your chicken, beef, and pork come from have you?
Still, I would rather we have a sustainable breeding program to save an endangered species ven if it means I can’t get my Tuttle from Myrtle.
I don't think the powers that be are going to win this one. Too much nasty stuff coming out. By the way, has the farm ever been able to meet it's sewerage discharge requirements. Last time that subject came up it was totally out of compliance with its permit. All that crap is going into the water right by the farm.
these pictures should be used for the next caymankind campaign……….
what type of vile and disgusting people can let animals to be treated like this?
and cayman calls itself a christian nation?????….caymanians should ask themselves what would jesus do?
Probably eat turtle stew.
I will tell you what Jesus would do. There is a story in the New Testament where Jesus cast demons out of a young girl and sent them into some pigs and the pigs ran off the cliff into the sea and drowned. So no turtle, no bacon and no ham
He was quite cruel to those poor pigs then….
Ask God to make more turtles?
First off, this isn't about attacking someone's heritage. It also isn't about farming whether it be cows, pigs, chickens, or in this case, turtles. It is about the conditions the animals are kept in. Over crowding and inhumane conditions aren't specific to Cayman's Turtle Farm they occur elsewhere as well. And when they are found organizations set up to protect animal welfare get involved if they can. When I visited the turtle farm, which was only once, I was disgusted and alarmed at the conditions the cresatures were kept in. I saw turtles climbing over one another to get air. There was no space, the water was filthy, and there were piles of excrement on the bottom of the pools. If we're speaking of tradition, Caymanians did not farm turtles. They caught them in the open sea. So we shouldn't even go there. These photographs are the real conditions the turtles live in and in no way should it or can it be supported. Cayman and Caymanians can do much better in protecting an animal which was once a source of food. And pride.
how can anyybody defend this hellhole?
what would you beleive?…. scientific evidence or caymanian incoherent ramblings…
i'm sorry but caymanians deserve
Why are they "caymanian" ramblings? The CTF has a resident non-Caymanian scientist. I would imagine that he prepared the response.
Denial is rampant within the Cayman Government.
The Turtle Farm is in the news today because an external body shone a light on the problem. Without the light, it would be "business as usual".
Thesame logic applied to the "gasboy" issue. The problem would have festered undetected if it were not for the former Auditor General who went public after failing to rectify the issue through "proper channels".
In both cases, corruption and incompetence were out of control and no one within the system wanted to deal with these two "elephants in the room". In both cases, the government tried to shoot the messenger.
The fix? Honest, ethical, and competent Caymanians must rise up and wrest the reins of power from the current gang. The status quo will beggar the country (except for the few who are raping the country).
provided a five week extension when the CTF failed to meet the agreed deadline,” it added.
the charity said the repeated inaction despite its attempts to work with the farm"
WSPA said it had come to the conclusion that the farm has little interest in working with it to find a solution"
The general aura portrayed here suggests the current Govt. inability to address pretty much everything with efficiency and respect for concern is leaching beyond just the glass house doors showing the magnitude of it's ineptness.