Farmers in the northwest are moving forward with an initiative that will allow GPS trackers to be implanted into sheep to deter thieves and allow uplands to be grazed properly.

Speaking at a meeting in Stranorlar, Co Donegal, last week, Gerald Roarty from Letterkenny Animal Hospital said that the level of sheep thefts in the county was at an “epidemic” at present.

He said that there were several cases of farmers losing almost their entire flocks to rustling.

One Donegal farmer that the Irish Farmers Journal spoke to said that they sold only one lamb from a flock of 40 ewes this year as the rest of their lambs were stolen when they were grazed on a commonage during the summer.

“We only have a few fields around the yard and can’t graze the sheep on these all year because we need to close up ground to make silage for the cattle. We have always had lambs taken from the hill but this year was by far the worst. Every year we try to give it another go but it’s now making us wonder if it’s worthwhile,” the farmer said.

Target

The farmer wanted to remain nameless as they did not want to be known as a potential target for further thefts.

Roarty said that farmers are also reluctant to report sheep thefts to gardaÍ or the PSNI because they are cynical as there is very little that can be done.

He said that use of the GPS trackers in flocks would deter thieves. The issue of a lack of a deterrent in the justice system was raised at the meeting.

The meeting was attended by representatives from farm organisations, insurance companies, government agricultural departments and police forces from both sides of the border.

“We have been talking to an English company that are very close to designing a product that can be implanted subcutaneously under the skin of a sheep. It will act as a sentinel animal and won’t go into the food chain but we will be able to monitor that animal through GPS satellite,” Roarty said.

The device is around half the size of a cigarette lighter and has a battery life of 40 hours. The tracker is only switched on once an animal moves outside a set boundary and the farmer then receives a message on their phone.

Funding

“We are looking to several funders, the sheep forum in Europe is one of them. Also, we are looking at Leader in the Department of Agriculture and Peace IV to fund maybe 50 or 100 of them. Obviously the more we can order the cheaper they will be,” Roarty said.

He added that as well as allowing stolen sheep to be tracked down, it could also be used by farmers trying to heft (retain) sheep to commonages without the need for fencing.

“There are less and less sheep on the hills as the risk of thefts increase. In areas vegetation is not in good agricultural and environmental condition for claiming payments and the risk of fires in the summer is increasing,” he said.