Between January 2015 and November 2017, more than 470,000 farmed animals burned alive on Canadian farms. These animals would have endured frightening and agonizing deaths, trapped in cages or stalls with no chance to escape the smoke and flames.
Most buildings in Canada must follow strict fire safety rules, but farm buildings with “low human occupancy” don’t. Modern farms can contain tens of thousands of animals whose ability to experience physical pain and emotional suffering is no different than our own, but because human occupancy is the standard, very few fire safety requirements exist to protect them.
Tragically for animals, farm buildings are dangerous fire hazards and disaster is inevitable. Animals are trapped inside, with no escape route. There are no fire detection or extinguishing systems in place, like sprinklers. Farm buildings are usually in rural areas, far from fire hydrants, fire stations, and the volunteer firefighters who respond from home. Wiring and electrical equipment is easily damaged by rodents and rampant indoor air pollution. Barns are often filled with flammable straw and wood, flammable gases from animal waste, and dangerous equipment like heat lamps. Despite the extreme risk to animals, fire safety inspections, and prevention plans still aren’t mandatory.
The current National Farm Building Code is being revised, but animal protection isn’t one of the guiding principles. This is a glaring absence! Animals trapped in barns must be protected from needlessly burning alive.
Please sign this Parliamentary petition to Canada’s federal government asking them to consider the animals when they revise the farm building fire safety rules. Thank you to Canadian Coalition for Farm Animals for sponsoring this petition.
