By Tom Collins
A group of London animal activists wanted to free the cows on a London dairy farm in late March, but was rejected by the police.
About 20 members of the group London Cow Save held a vigil in front of London Dairy on March 30. They spread out rose petals to “honour” a dead calf they had seen during another protest earlier in March.
Alerted ahead of time, police were on the scene when the activists arrived at the barn, which is a minute’s drive from both Hwy 401 and the Veterans Memorial Parkway.
“Each time, they get a little braver,” said Benji Faulkner of London Dairy. “After an hour of watching the police officer, they just walked in and said that they had to free the cows. On the highway of the 401 so every (cow) could die. They didn’t say that but that was the idea.”
This is at least the fourth time in the past year activists have targeted London Dairy. The police have been present each time, which is the key for stopping activists, said Faulkner.
“Then everything’s just orderly and no one loses his cool, including the farmer,” he said.
The London-area farm milks about 1,000 cows and calves between 700 and 1,000 a month. Faulkner said the threat of animal activists doesn’t keep him up at night.
“I have too much to worry about,” he said. “You worry about other stuff before that. I’m not threatened by them.”
