60 cases of animal cruelty in court since laws

Sixty cases of animal cruelty have been brought before the courts since new legislation was introduced two years ago.

Agriculture Minister Michael Creed also confirmed 23 convictions have been secured to date.

The highest number of convictions were recorded in Cork and Meath at four each, with two in Wicklow, Donegal and Roscommon since the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 was introduced in 2014. Single convictions have been recorded in Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Dublin, Galway, Kilkenny, Louth, Waterford, and Westmeath.

The most recent animal welfare case came before Ennis District Court last week where eight horses were left to starve to death on farmland.

In the case, 79-year-old bachelor farmer, Thomas O’Neill must pay the department costs of over €14,000 in removing the starving horses and carcasses from his farm. Department of Agriculture official Aileen Tighe told how she came across eight horse carcasses on a farm owned by Mr O’Neill. She told the court she was “quite shocked” at the state of the animals when first inspecting the farm in January of this year.

Ms Tighe said there were 46 horses running wild on two parcels of land owned by Mr O’Neill with a number being emaciated.

Ms Tighe said she first visited the farm on January 8 on foot a complaint and saw the land was completely bare where the horses were.

“There was no grass whatsoever and the horses had started to graze the bushes because no grass was available and that is something I had never seen that before.”

Ms Tighe said she arranged feed for the horses and served notice on Mr O’Neill concerning the horses’ welfare. Ms Tighe carried out a number of visits to the land in January and February.

In February, she saw eight carcasses of horses that had died in the previous month, the carcasses of two other animals that had died some time ago, and bones strewn across the land. Ms Tighe said it cost the department €14,022 to have all of the horses removed from the farm and an additional €397 for the remains of the dead horses to be removed.

In the case at Ennis District Court, Thomas O’Neill of Caherea, Lissycasey, pleaded guilty to five separate animal neglect charges.

Mr O’Neill — who turns 80 next month — pleaded guilty to four separate charges between January 8 or January 21 of failing to supply to the animals a quantity of wholesome food sufficient to satisfy the reasonable requirements of the animals at Phoulaphuca, Ballynacally and Caherea, Lissycasey.

Mr O’Neill — who required a crutch to get in and out of court — has also pleaded guilty to permit the carcass or carcasses of an animal or part of an animal to be on the his land on February 19 at Caherea, Lissycasey. Solicitor for Mr O’Neill, Daragh Hassett, said it was a very sad case and made for very grim reading.

He said Mr O’Neill lives in squalor himself and “has lived a life of seclusion”. Mr Hassett said the Department of Agriculture acted very professionally in the case.

He said Mr O’Neill has already de-stocked the lands and has agreed to lease his farm to another man.

He added: “The lands have been destocked and Mr O’Neill won’t own as much as a cat or a dog again.”

Judge Durcan said he wants Mr O’Neill to fully compensate all of the money spent by the Dept in the case and adjourned the case to May 10 next for sentence.