Animal fervour: The VIPs at the Sohrab Goth cattle market

Traders claim the extra charges imposed by the market administration force them to increase their prices.

KARACHI:

The 43 VIP tents at the Sohrab Goth cattle market are the main source of attraction for the visitors who have been thronging the temporary market since it was set up around three weeks ago.

These visitors comprise animal-lovers who visit these tents to admire the striking domesticated beasts that have especially nurtured and prepared for this year's Eidul Azha on dedicated cattle farms that specialise in the venture.

For these cattle farms, Eidul Azha is pay day; their exorbitant prices that look more like phone numbers mean that the average citizen can only dream of owning one of their animals someday. For these gapers and gawkers, the VIP tents are an ecstasy - their faunae a class of their own.

The trend of VIP tents has been flourishing at the cattle market business since the last few years. And with plenty of gullible buyers willing to pay exorbitant prices, the owners and investors of these cattle farms have been making a fortune.  "These animals are a blessing from God," sighed a customer, Gufran Ahmed, who had just paid Rs0.3 million for a cow. "The farm owner told me these animals are fed almonds, pistachios and milk," he said incredulously.

Unethical practices?

Moid Sultan, a finance director at the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), is also looking to make a quick buck from the cattle fervour. He has also set up a tent with 25 animals on display. With only six days left for Eidul Azha, however, Sultan is getting increasingly worried. "I have only sold one animal up till now," he lamented. "The problem is that my livestock was fed natural feed. I did not indulge in the unethical practices that the other farm owners use to enhance the size and beauty of their animals."

On further inquiry regarding the unethical practices he was referring to, Sultan meekly revealed that cattle farms included chicken feed in the animals' diet. "They also use booster injections that enhance the physical strength of the livestock," he explained.

According to Sultan, the cattle farm owners had started indulging in these practices due to the inflation in the prices of the natural feed.

Such animals, although they look healthy and appealing to the customers, lack the real lustre of sacrificial animals. "Even their meat starts to turn black hardly an hour after they are slaughtered."

Dehorning the animals

Another practice that has become a norm among the cattle farms is the dehorning of animals. "It causes a lot of pain to the animal and is completely immoral," said Sultan. "This act is also condemned by Muslims all over the world."

An animal's age is usually identified from the number of large teeth on the lower denture. Some cattle farms file the teeth of their animals to hide their real age. Younger animals fetch a far higher price because of the tender quality of their meat.

What the doctor says

Dr Mohan Laal, a prominent veterinary doctor, told The Express Tribune that booster injections and low-cost chicken feed have become a norm at cattle farms which cannot keep up with the rising prices of natural feed.  "Such practices become a norm when sacrificial animals become a profitable business."

Published in The Express Tribune, October 5^th, 2014.