A Wicklow sheep farmer has been left devastated following a dog attack on his sheep flock.
The farmer, who wishes to remain anonymous, recently had eight ewes killed, and more seriously injured, following a dog attack.
This is not the first time his sheep were attacked by dogs. He told the Irish Farmers Journal this week that it’s almost an annual occurrence now on this parcel of land he has rented near Redcross.
He claims that two Alsatian dogs attacked his flock of ewes – one of which was shot when it was caught in the act.
The incident happened on a Thursday and no sooner than three days later, on the Sunday, more dogs returned.
“They [dogs] near did the same thing again only we caught them going in the gate at the bottom,” he said.
The dog that was shot was not microchipped and its owners as a result couldn’t be pinned down.
“I had 90 ewes there for the winter but I had to bring them all home.
“It’s worrying because once they [the dogs] get the taste of the blood it’s not good. My sister happened to be down to look at them and saw the dogs at it. It was the middle of the day.
“We rang the gardaí and gave a statement but there’s very little that can be done at this stage,” he said. Gardaí confirmed that the incident had been reported to them.
A dog was shot after an attack on sheep near Redcross, Co Wicklow.
This attack was by far the worst attack the Wicklow farmer has experienced before, he said.
“It’s not good. And this spot is being targeted all the time. You’d want to be on red alert but it’s tough because we live 13 or 14 miles from where they were,” he said.
“We just have the grass rented down there but I’ve nothing on it now.”
A Wicklow sheep farmer has been left devastated following a dog attack on his sheep flock.
The farmer, who wishes to remain anonymous, recently had eight ewes killed, and more seriously injured, following a dog attack.
This is not the first time his sheep were attacked by dogs. He told the Irish Farmers Journal this week that it’s almost an annual occurrence now on this parcel of land he has rented near Redcross.
He claims that two Alsatian dogs attacked his flock of ewes – one of which was shot when it was caught in the act.
The incident happened on a Thursday and no sooner than three days later, on the Sunday, more dogs returned.
“They [dogs] near did the same thing again only we caught them going in the gate at the bottom,” he said.
The dog that was shot was not microchipped and its owners as a result couldn’t be pinned down.
“I had 90 ewes there for the winter but I had to bring them all home.
“It’s worrying because once they [the dogs] get the taste of the blood it’s not good. My sister happened to be down to look at them and saw the dogs at it. It was the middle of the day.
“We rang the gardaí and gave a statement but there’s very little that can be done at this stage,” he said. Gardaí confirmed that the incident had been reported to them.
A dog was shot after an attack on sheep near Redcross, Co Wicklow.
This attack was by far the worst attack the Wicklow farmer has experienced before, he said.
“It’s not good. And this spot is being targeted all the time. You’d want to be on red alert but it’s tough because we live 13 or 14 miles from where they were,” he said.
“We just have the grass rented down there but I’ve nothing on it now.”
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