Four sheep face “severe” injuries, with “extensive” trauma caused for the rest of the flock, following a dog attack in Knocknagoshel, Co. Kerry.
Farmer Chris Barrett found his sheep scattered on Sunday morning (December 15), after a dog chased them on his land. He rounded up 15 of them, and with the help of neighbours found the four injured sheep.
Barrett said that his neighbour also had sheep killed the same day as the attack. He said that it is “quite obvious” that the dog went for the sheep’s throats, as the majority of the damage is in that area.
The farmer said that there has not been a dog attack on the land in about 30 years, but that sheep worrying is “always in the back of a sheep farmer’s mind”.
“There are severe injuries but also significant trauma involved for the other sheep. My sheep used to let you walk up to them and catch them, but now they are traumatised,” Barrett said.
“You hear of sheep being killed by dogs and its awful, but these sheep are alive and I’m fighting for them, they are a testament to what a dog can do,” he added.
Dog attack
Barrett said that most dog owners are responsible, but that some need to “step up and keep their dogs under control”.
He said that there “needs to be more done” to enact the dog legislation that is already there, such as licensing and microchipping.
“I had 15 other sheep there. Those may not go to full term with their lambs now, so how do you calculate that cost?
“But at the moment, I’m not worried about the money, just the animal welfare issue. I’m speaking up for my four ewes who can’t speak for themselves,” Barrett said.
Barrett has reported the incident to Kerry County Council dog wardens, where investigations are ongoing.
Sheep
John Joe Fitzgerald, vice-president of the Irish Natura and Hill Farmers’ Association (INHFA), described the incident as “unacceptable”.
“It’s the second time in a week that I had to speak to a farmer whose sheep had been attacked by dogs.
“Both farmers have been devastated by the scenes of seeing their sheep torn apart and mauled by dogs whose owners seem that they couldn’t care less.
“With all the publicity and campaigning around keeping your dog chained up and not marauding freely because of the damage a family pet or pets can do, dog owners are still not getting the message,” he said.
Fitzgerald, who is also a sheep farmer in Co. Kerry, said that the INHFA will be seeking an urgent meeting with the new government “to have this issue resolved for once and for all”.
“Dog owners need to be held to account for their actions.
“We have written to Minister Heather Humphreys on various occasions with the last year and have raised this issue with Taoiseach Simon Harris, but it has fallen on deaf ears,” he said.
“This is affecting the mental health of these family farmers and in this day and age is totally unacceptable,” Fitzgerald added.