A vet has told the trial of a north-east man that a cow in his herd should have been put down some time before welfare officers raided a farm near Ellon.
William Cassie denies 12 charges relating to the care of cattle and dogs at farms across Aberdeenshire.
Lindsay Murray, giving evidence as an animal and plant health agent, told Aberdeen Sheriff Court that a cow found lying on its side in a dark shed should not have been left to get into that condition.
The cow was found in the barn at Mill of Kinmuck, near Ellon, as Aberdeenshire Council took Cassie’s animals into its care in December 2018.
The 63-year-old denies causing the animal, found very underweight and tangled in a harness, unnecessary suffering in a dark barn.
Questioned by fiscal depute Anne Macdonald, Ms Murray said: “The darkness was the least of the cow’s problems.
“She should have been euthanised.
“If I had a cow in that state, I would have done so before she got in that state.”
The Peterhead vet also said a two-week-old calf, penned off in the same shed with no contact with other animals, was “roaring” in hunger when she arrived at the farm, near Toll Of Birness.
Cassie also denies accusations about the standard of care offered to animals at Lower Wanford Farm in Alvah near Banff, his home at Portstown in Keithhall, Mains of Montcoffer in Macduff.
The trial, in front of Sheriff Margaret Hodge, continues.
