Buffalos starved on São Paulo farm in worst animal cruelty case in recent Brazilian memory

The images are shocking. Over 1,000 buffalos, 300 calves, and 70 horses were found sick, malnourished, and left to their own devices in late November at a farm in Brotas, in São Paulo state. Law enforcement believes that some of the animals were buried alive in an attempt to cover up the crime. Activists in Brazil have called the case the worst example of animal cruelty in the country’s recent history.

“I’ve worked in the field for 30 years and I’ve never seen anything like it,” says lawyer Antília da Monteira Reis, who is working on the case. “It looked like a scene from the Holocaust.”

Police chief Douglas do Amaral is in charge of the inquiry and is currently finishing his report on the case. “I’ve never seen anything of this magnitude. The people from the NGOs taking care of the animals, the vets, and the university technicians working with us were also shocked.”

The police visited...