Dog owners have been urged to keep their dogs on a lead and to be vigilant when near livestock as there have been 56 attacks on livestock reported in the first three months of this year.
This is according to the chair of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) Livestock Committee, Des Morrison who said that dogs in the countryside “must be controlled”.
Morrison reiterated the importance of close supervision of dogs with access to farms, and the necessity of keeping dogs on leashes where they are adjacent to working farms.
“Unfortunately, we still see way too many cases in Ireland where dogs in the countryside are not subject to the same degree of supervision that the circumstances warrant,” he said.
“In January of this year, 80 sheep died following a dog attack on a farm in Co. Tipperary and 70 ewes and lambs died after a dog attack on a farm in Co. Kerry in April.
“Just last week, 38 sheep were killed following a dog attack and throughout 2022 there were 179 dog attacks on livestock recorded,” he said.
In relation to dog attacks on livestock, Morrison said it is “frustrating to have to keep on pointing out the need for basic care and consideration of animal welfare”.
There seems to be a “hard core” of dog owners who either don’t care or don’t know the threat that their pets can and do present, he said.
There can no longer be any excuse, Morrison said, and it is “obvious” that greater resources need to be deployed by the relevant state agencies to address this matter.
Dogs attacking livestock
After two separate dog attacks within 24 hours a Co. Galway sheep farmer, who lost 38 ewes and lambs, said the “tranquility and relaxation” of his farming life has been lost.
The situation has left the Co. Galway farmer unsure over the future of his farm.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do, because I’m at my wit’s end. I can’t relax, I can’t go anywhere or do anything. It happened in the day and it happened at night. You’re totally exposed,” he said.