In addition to an apparent legal vacuum where dead animals will not garner an investigation into the conditions on local farms, this story raises some deeper questions about the state of the law in Nova Scotia as it relates to the protection of farmed animals. The department’s authority to oversee the treatment of farmed animals comes from Nova Scotia’s Animal Protection Act. The act gives inspectors the ability to search farms, monitor animal welfare, order animal owners to make any necessary changes, and seize animals that have been mistreated (or, in the language of the statute, are in distress). Inspectors can also lay animal cruelty charges under the Criminal Code.