Louth farmer Gerry Rice found seven of his in lamb ewes dead on Sunday after they were attacked by dogs. Two are still missing.
Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, Rice, who farms in the Benagh area of Cooley, said: “I found them on Sunday morning. It happened either Friday or Saturday. I lost seven ewes and two more are missing. They were all pregnant.
“I think it was two dogs that were involved, they were ripped asunder, one was decapitated.
ADVERTISEMENT
“There was another 30 pregnant ewes in the field. I’ll be scanning them in late January and I know that there will be more fatalities by then, abortions as a result of stress.
“I just dread the scanning. It’s a loss to my livelihood.”
Rice said that dog owners need to be advised on their dogs.
“It’s very disheartening. Dog owners can’t believe their dogs would do this sort of damage. It’s a disgrace.”
Louth IFA chair Gerard Melia said that there needs to be more accountability when it comes to dog attacks on sheep.
“People have to be held accountable for their own animals.”
This content is available to digital subscribers and loyalty code users only. Sign in to your account, use the code or subscribe to get unlimited access.
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
CODE ACCEPTED
You have full access to the site until next Wednesday at 9pm.
CODE NOT VALID
Please try again or contact support.
Louth farmer Gerry Rice found seven of his in lamb ewes dead on Sunday after they were attacked by dogs. Two are still missing.
Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, Rice, who farms in the Benagh area of Cooley, said: “I found them on Sunday morning. It happened either Friday or Saturday. I lost seven ewes and two more are missing. They were all pregnant.
“I think it was two dogs that were involved, they were ripped asunder, one was decapitated.
“There was another 30 pregnant ewes in the field. I’ll be scanning them in late January and I know that there will be more fatalities by then, abortions as a result of stress.
“I just dread the scanning. It’s a loss to my livelihood.”
Rice said that dog owners need to be advised on their dogs.
“It’s very disheartening. Dog owners can’t believe their dogs would do this sort of damage. It’s a disgrace.”
Louth IFA chair Gerard Melia said that there needs to be more accountability when it comes to dog attacks on sheep.
“People have to be held accountable for their own animals.”
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
Link sent to your email address
We have sent an email to your address. Please click on the link in this email to reset your password. If you can't find it in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you can't find the email, please call us on 01-4199525.
ENTER YOUR LOYALTY CODE:
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
SHARING OPTIONS