WATOK/Euthanasia

Welfare at the Time of Killing licence information and guidance.

A WATOK licence is required in the UK for anyone who handles, restrains, stuns, or slaughters animals outside of an FSA-approved slaughterhouse as part of a commercial business, including work at knacker’s yards, on-farm poultry slaughter, or routine/non-emergency culling on commercial livestock and pig units.

In this section you will find information about on-farm euthanasia of pigs, WATOK licences and guidance.

WATOK Reqiurement

The Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (WATOK) Regulations include a legal requirement for commercial pig farms in England and Wales to hold the appropriate authorisation if they routinely euthanise pigs using methods that include penetrative and non-penetrative captive bolt guns.

The routine dispatch of pigs is not classed as ‘emergency killing’ on the basis that commercial farms should be able to foresee the need and, therefore, take steps to prepare in advance, including having the relevant equipment to hand and holding a license, if using relevant methods.

The methods can be checked on the APHA website, including non‑penetrative captive bolt (for piglets up to 10kg, England only) and penetrative captive bolt followed by pithing/bleeding.

APHA, therefore, expects most pig farms in England and Wales that conduct on‑farm euthanasia using captive bolt devices to hold WATOK licences. It also means Red Tractor Pigs standard AH.9.7 – stating that a WATOK license ‘must be held where required’ – will apply.

The Pig Veterinary Society (PVS) provides guidance for all on-farm pig euthanasia in their Casualty Pig document, which you can access here.

The Humane Slaughter Association also provides a wealth of guidance on euthanasia on their website, which you can find here.