The case against two Manitoba hog producers charged with animal neglect won’t be resolved until spring, says the farmers’ lawyer.
Martin and Delores Grenier of Notre Dame, Man., were charged last fall with 23 violations of the Manitoba Animal Care Act and six offences under the Criminal Code of Canada. The charges include failing to provide adequate food, water and shelter for pigs on their farm.
Michael Radcliffe, the Greniers’ lawyer, appeared Feb. 3 in provincial court in Winnipeg, where the case was remanded for a month.
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“This could take another two or three months until there is any resolution,” Radcliffe said. “It’s a very difficult case and the crown has just given me particulars.”
“There’s a major volume of material that they’ve compiled,” Radcliffe said.
“Once I absorb the material, then I’ve got to share it with my client and we have to come up with a strategy and a decision on how to handle this matter…. That all takes a significant length of time when it’s a big case.”
Manitoba Agriculture employees and RCMP officers were called to the Greniers’ farm in June after neighbours notified the authorities. They found hundreds of dead and starving pigs inside and outside the hog barn.
“In rough figures … several hundred animals had to be euthanized,” said Wayne Lees, Manitoba’s chief veterinary officer.
The Greniers’ hog barn burned to the ground several days after the dead and dying pigs were discovered.
