A total of 18 in-lamb ewes carrying triplets were ‘savaged’ during a dog attack in Streedagh, Grange, Co Sligo, on Thursday 4 February.
“One of the ewes has since died as a result of her injuries and the rest are due to lamb around St Patrick’s day.
“This is the fourth dog attack on my farm since June of 2020,” sheep farmer David Watters told the Irish Farmers Journal.
“I will be nervous now for the next six weeks waiting for laming. Hopefully the ewes will be OK and the lambs will have survived the worrying. Just this week alone I’ve had to tell four dog walkers to put their animals on a lead.”
Law enforcement
Watters has said the local authority is not doing enough to enforce fines on dog walkers who do not keep their pets under control.
“I’ve had no luck at all with dog wardens or any of the local authorities. Dog walkers know it’s highly unlikely they will be reprimanded for having their pet off it’s leash.
“Besides the stress of suffering one of these attacks, dog walkers must realise the financial implications that come with these incidents. I won’t know until lambing in March the true cost of this attack.”
Read more
22 in-lamb ewes killed in Kerry dog attack
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A total of 18 in-lamb ewes carrying triplets were ‘savaged’ during a dog attack in Streedagh, Grange, Co Sligo, on Thursday 4 February.
“One of the ewes has since died as a result of her injuries and the rest are due to lamb around St Patrick’s day.
“This is the fourth dog attack on my farm since June of 2020,” sheep farmer David Watters told the Irish Farmers Journal.
“I will be nervous now for the next six weeks waiting for laming. Hopefully the ewes will be OK and the lambs will have survived the worrying. Just this week alone I’ve had to tell four dog walkers to put their animals on a lead.”
Law enforcement
Watters has said the local authority is not doing enough to enforce fines on dog walkers who do not keep their pets under control.
“I’ve had no luck at all with dog wardens or any of the local authorities. Dog walkers know it’s highly unlikely they will be reprimanded for having their pet off it’s leash.
“Besides the stress of suffering one of these attacks, dog walkers must realise the financial implications that come with these incidents. I won’t know until lambing in March the true cost of this attack.”
Read more
22 in-lamb ewes killed in Kerry dog attack
Dog walkers to be refused access to farmland under nationwide ban
Unnecessary to ban hunting dogs from accessing farmland - NARGC
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