Victoria's peak animal welfare group has detailed its top six priorities for the next financial year, and for the first time has officially called for a permanent ban on duck shooting across the state.
The RSPCA revealed its advocacy goals for 2021/22 on Friday and said banning battery cages and overhauling welfare in the three racing codes were also some of its biggest priorities it wanted implemented.
RSPCA Victoria chief executive Liz Walker said the organisation's ultimate goal was to secure a permanent end to duck hunting as soon as possible.
"We're opposed to duck shooting on the basis it is cruel and results in fear, distress and injury and the deaths of hundreds of thousands of native water birds annually," Dr Walker said.
"It's a hard line to walk but we think it's a really important one for an evidence-based organisation like ours to navigate."
The RSPCA's top six priorities include:
- End duck shooting in Victoria
- Ban battery cages in Victoria
- Significant welfare improvements across the three racing codes
- All owned and semi-owned domestic cats in Victoria are desexed
- Wildlife legislation reform in Victoria
- Animal Welfare Legislation Reform in Victoria
Dr Walker said the organisation was lobbying the Andrews Government to outlaw duck shooting after the party moved a motion at its 2019 state conference to review its position and policy on duck hunting.
"We are really hopeful that we might be able to achieve this in the not too distant future," Dr Walker said.
The state government has come under fire this year after delaying the start of the duck hunting season and reducing the bag limits of ducks allowed by each shooter each day.
It followed a leaked independent report into the state's duck hunting season which found the regulator, Victoria's Game Management Authority, had made decisions aimed at legitimising the views of anti-hunting and animal rights groups, at the expense of hunters.
Dr Walker told the webinar the organisation would also lobby the Agriculture Minister to phase out battery cages, indicating about half of Australia's laying hens were confined to small, wire cages.
"In Australia there are more than 10 million laying hens confined to barren battery cages," Dr Walker said.
She said animal welfare standards and guidelines for poultry were under review for the first time in two decades, and that presented a strong opportunity to have laws changed around battery hens.
Among its other goals, the organisation said it would advocate for the end of the use of whips in horse racing, push for pre-pubertal cat desexing to reduce feline overpopulation and new reforms to better protect native wildlife.