A farmer who fell victim to cattle rustling and had stock taken told the Irish Farmers Journal it was a soul-destroying incident. The farmer felt that no help had been offered to him by the authorities after his damaging experience.

The farmer revealed that over half his herd were taken from an out-farm. As a result, he had no farm income for that year and the following year due to the theft.

The farmer had no insurance for livestock theft and urged other farmers to take out theft insurance as he believed thefts were becoming more common.

He stated while security measures, such as heavy gates, high-end padlocks and security cameras were a deterrent, they only really serve to slow thieves down. He said thieves could buy a grinder and “within 10 minutes grind any padlock off”.

The farmer felt that not enough was being done by law enforcement and the agriculture departments north and south of the border to prevent the thefts and catch those responsible.

The farmers said it was a crime that people didn’t want to speak about because cattle were “disappearing off the face of the earth”. He said there appeared to be little or no deterrent to rustlers as custodial sentences were unheard of.

As a result, rustlers are able to decimate the livelihoods of farmers all over the country, he said.