Openrescue in solidarity with 
Austrian activists 
On June 22, 2008 Animal Liberation Victoria's Openrescue team saved the lives of 14 battery hens from ongoing cruel conditions inside an Australian egg laying factory. For the past twelve years ALV have been rescuing dying animals from the excrement pits underneath the battery cages at this Egg Factory in Wallan. Click here Openrescue for a short video of this rescue. 

The midnight action was also in solidarity with ten Austrian animal activists who were imprisoned without reasonable cause on May 21. The activists were finally released in early September due to mounting world criticism over their imprisonment. The rescued hens were named in honor of these brave activists who also suffered unjust imprisonment.  

For the stories of Martina and Christine (named after Dr. Martin Ballach, and Chris Moser (two of the activists) read further down this page. The following photos are the rescue team in action and one of the rescued hens getting her excrement balls soaked off!

Martina was one of the fourteen hens
rescued on June 22
Setha (pictured right) jumped into the excrement pit under the cages and saved several hens including Martina who was too weak to stand and near death.

She weighed only 400 grams instead of a healthy 1.8 kilos. If ALV's openrescue team hadn't arrived that night this frail hen would have become one more body added to the hundreds of corpses we've seen buried in their own waste at this property. Each body - a defenceless bird who would have died a slow painful death from starvation and dehydration. 

Martina was named after Austrian Phd and leading animal activist Martin Ballach who started a hunger strike on May 21 after being wrongfully imprisoned for his animal work, including the rescue of battery hens like Martina.  

Martin almost died on hunger strike and wrote the following from his prison hospital bed on July 2, 2008 on his 43rd day of hunger strike:

"The prison doctor did warn me that a water only hunger strike very rapidly leads to brain function  impairment. As I need my brain to defend myself and to show these terrorists for what they are I chose to drink juice....  I still lost weight very rapidly, about 1.5 kg per day. On my 13th day of the hunger strike
– I was down 18kg by then – I was moved to the hospital wing of the prison....  

"On the 15th day of my hunger strike I passed out for the first time. From then onwards, I would have to stay in bed.... from day 22 onwards, my state of health deteriorated. On the 25th, authorities started to force feed me. I allowed them to do that without physical resistance.The force feeding prevented me from dying...

"On day 36 I reached a new low point, which gave me near death experiences. I had this strong inpression of being suspended above a compete void. I was about to fall into it.  I pictured my situation as being up to the neck in a crevice, standing on such thin ice that could not hold my weight much longer. I could not get out anymore by myself... "

On Day 39 of his hunger strike Martin asked to speak to the head prison doctor. This doctor turned out to be a paid up supporter of Martin's animal rights group!  Together they worked out a plan to ensure Martin would have the strength to properly defend himself for his upcoming court appearance, and so he would start to eat a small amount of porridge with soya milk.   After taking his first bites Martin wrote:

 "What a strange feeling to have food in my mouth after such a long time! And one little spoon full of porridge filled up my stomach completely. Apparently, it had shrunk to the size of a pea. In any case, I am at the moment slowly moving back to being alive. I still cannot eat much at all. I am also not hungry. And I have not been on a toilet for 43 days and still have 24 kg less body weight than before my arrest. My hunger strike has not ended yet, though. I will go to court and defend myself. If the new judge and the appeal court both decide to keep me in prison, I will have to make a decision. Either I will stop my hunger strike, or I will resume it and drink water only."

The end of this chapter is good for both Martin and Martina. Martin was released from prison in early September (but charges still pending) and is still working his hardest for animals. While Martina has fully recovered, is now normal weight and super active. She has tremendous spirit, bright eyes, passion, authenticity and a zest for life, just like her namesake Martin Ballach.

In the last two photos to the right Christina hangs out with Martina and Arnie.   Arnie was rescued from a broiler breeder parent factory farm on January 1 when he was a tiny frail chick who had only one eye. Christina and Arnie are now great pals and spend alot of time together. Hens, just like humans, pick and choose their friends and who they want to spend quality time with.

YOU CAN HELP

*  The easiest and best thing you can do to help all the other hens and roosters still locked away in animal farms or at the slaughterhouse is to go vegan  It's not only healthy but exciting to break free from cultural traditions of eating and drinking parts of animals to a diet that causes the least amount of harm to us, animals and the environment! 

Barn and free-range eggs are not a solution.  The parents of all egg laying hens suffer continuously.

*  Email Joe Helper, Victorian  Minister for Agriculture joe.helper@parliament.vic.gov.au  and tell him you've seen the video  of the hens suffering at Wallan Egg Factory and are aware ALV have repeatedly videotaped hens left to starve to death in the excrement pits there for the past twelve years.  

Let the Minister know that whatever 'safeguards' the Government has in place to protect these animals, they aren't working!  Make sure you let the Minister know you don't want a standard reply stating everything is under control because you know better. It's important to make sure the animals are on the Government's Agenda.