Two sheep farms in south Co. Wexford suffered attacks from two dogs on the same night last weekend that resulted in a total of 14 dead ewes.
The sheep were attacked between the night of Friday, February 2 and the early hours of Saturday, February 3.
The attacks took place on two farms in the Murrintown area of Co. Wexford and were understood to have been done by two dogs in the local area.
Gardaí confirmed to Agriland that “investigations are ongoing into this matter at this time”.
The Wexford county chair of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association (ICSA), Dessie Greene told Agriland that the attack was only discovered on Saturday morning, when the farmers discovered their sheep were scattered.
The initial damage was that one of the farms saw two ewes killed outright, with four later put down.
The other farm saw six ewes killed immediately, with two later having to be put down.
The ewes were discovered badly torn from the attacks, with the exception of one ewe that was discovered lying in a ditch down a laneway.
This ewe, who Greene described as not being “badly damaged at all” but due to “the bad fright, she wasn’t able to stand up at all” and later died.
Greene said that these were ewes that were heavy in-lamb and were due to lamb in April.
The full impact of the attacks has yet to be assessed, as Greene noted that “it’s only when they go lamb in April, that then you really see the trouble”.
Significantly, the Wexford ICSA county chair said the same dogs had allegedly previously attacked sheep in December 2023.
“These dogs had come before. We had no idea who owned them, but we knew the type of dogs they were.”
Greene said for the attack last weekend, the dogs had come from “nearly two miles away,” but said they were later caught and subsequently put down.
“We’re lucky in one way, we got the dogs. The dogs won’t do any harm anymore.
“As we approach the peak lambing season, it is very important that dog owners are remind of their duties and responsibilities.
“No dogs should be out at night,” he added.