amandas piggery

Animal liberationists have accused Wasley's piggery north of Adelaide of subjecting its pigs to abject misery.

The group Animal Liberation says it has video footage which shows the pigs in a poor condition, being kept in pens which are smaller than the regulation size.

The group has lodged a complaint with South Australian police.

Animal Liberation executive director Mark Pearson says Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone is a major shareholder in the company which owns Wasley's piggery.

He says although Senator Vanstone is not directly responsible for the pigs' treatment, she should act.

"She has an ethical duty, being a person particularly of her standing in Australia, to have made sure that whatever she has invested in that it would never ... be contributing to the suffering of animals or causing harm or distress to sentient beings," he said.

Mr Pearson says the 600 breeding sows at the piggery are subjected to abject misery.

"So the sows are extremely distressed and they're constantly trying to get out of these cages," he said.

"Some of them have serious wounds, are febrile or they have infection and fever, I mean others are so lame they can hardly move because of this confinement."

Senator Vanstone has issued a statement saying she is simply one shareholder in the business and has nothing to do with the running of it.

She says any suggestion that she supports cruelty to animals is untrue and defamatory.

Chief executive of the piggery Rod Hamann has denied the pigs are being treated cruelly.

Mr Hamann says reports that Senator Vanstone holds $1 million in shares are untrue.

He says the company will issue a statement later today.

Dave R