The live animal crib will go ahead at a new location in Dublin this year, the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) has confirmed today (Tuesday, November 29).
From Thursday, December 8, the live animal crib including two sheep, a donkey and a goat can be viewed at the Summer House in St. Stephen’s Green Park, according to a statement by the IFA.
The Office of Public Works had been engaging with the IFA to find another suitable location for the live animal crib in Dublin over the past weeks.
Last month, the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Caroline Conroy announced that the crib outside Mansion House would not include live animals for the first time since 1995.
The new easily accessible location in St. Stephen’s Green park provides a calm setting for the farm animals and for families to bring their children in the weeks leading up to Christmas, the IFA said.
The shelter in the Summer House will be installed in line with the Farm Animal Welfare Advisory Council’s guidelines. Members of the public will not be able to enter the Summer House, but will be able to see the live crib from the external rails.
The animals will be tended to onsite every day by their owner and will return to their farm in Co. Wicklow each afternoon, according to the IFA.
Welcoming the return of the live animal crib for the 27th year in a row, the president of the IFA, Tim Cullinan said:
“The live animal crib is a central part of the pre-Christmas experience in Dublin. It also allows children to see animals in a traditional nativity scene. The crib also serves to bring rural and urban communities together.”
Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works, Patrick O’Donovan said he believes St. Stephen’s Green offers an appropriate, sheltered space for the animals and is easily accessible for the public.
“As a parent, I understand how popular this nativity scene with real animals is for thousands of families in and outside the city, and I look forward to its opening on December 8,” he added.
Live animal crib
The Lord Mayor previously said it is time for a “significant revamp” and to “make the experience better this Christmas” without live animals in the crib outside Mansion House.
Describing the current offer for families as “a little underwhelming”, the Lord Mayor said this year there will be more than just a crib, including a Christmas post box, a sleigh, workshops and children’s choirs and dance groups.
Dublin City Council and the IFA had been organising the crib since 1995, which included sheep, a donkey and a goat provided and cared for by the IFA.
In previous years, the animals were brought in each morning and returned to a farm on the outskirts of the city each evening, and the Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (DSPCA) advised with regards to the care of the animals.