A German court has ruled that every cow is entitled to a bed of straw in a landmark ruling.
Local animal welfare officials had ordered the farmer in the city of Munster in the German province of North Rhine Westphalia to increase the number of stalls available for cows to sleep in.
However, he refused, saying that there was no legal provision that forced him to make enough stalls available for every cow.
He was taken to the local court in Muenster, and the court sided with the animal welfare officials.
They said that regardless of whether it was dairy cows, beef animals all young calves, which specified that there are basic needs should be catered for, including the right to sleep.
The judge ruled that given that depending on age cattle tend to spend at least half of the day lying down, it would have to be a ratio of one-to-one to ensure there was always a place for any animal that wanted to rest.
Failure to do so exposes the animals the risk of injury and health problems through stress.
It is not clear whether the farmer will appeal the decision or whether he will now be expanding his stalls to include the extra space for the animals to sleep.
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Story By: Michael Leidig, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
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