Graphic image warning: 80 sheep lost following 'horrific' dog attack
Some of the sheep that were killed on the O'Donoghue farm in Lorrha, Co Tipperary. Pictured are neighbours that helped; Martin Young, Daniel Bugler and the land owner Michael Rushe. The sheep owner, Donal O'Donoghue was so upset he refused to stand into the photograph saying "I'm not able for it". Picture: Rose Mannion
A Tipperary farm family has spoken of the âhorrificâ dog attack on their sheep that they expect will result in the deaths of over 80 of their flock.
After receiving a phone call early on the morning of December 27 informing him of the attack that occurred on his rented farmland around six miles away, Lorrha farmer Donal OâDonoghue was met with a scene âlike a massacreâ when he arrived there, his wife Nuala said.
âThe sheepâs faces were ripped off, there were sheep there with their faces off but they were still standing, not running, but in shock,â she told the Irish Examiner.
âSheep were dead everywhere.â During the attack, which the family say most likely involved a number of dogs, the sheep started running into a forestry plantation at the back of the farmland.
âIt took six or seven of good friends and neighbouring farmers with us combing all this land for two days, and what they tallied up was approximately 48 were dead, and mostly by attack,â Nuala continued.
âThere were close to 50 dead upon discovery, and they had been scattered far and wide; and 20 more had to be put down straight away from the attack.
âThe vet thought we might be able to have 19 survive but of those 19, six have died as well.â She said that the total death toll could reach as high as 80 to 85 sheep, of the 133 that were on that piece of land.
While the family estimates a financial loss upwards of âŹ12,000 taking into account the loss of livestock and the cost of vet bills and more, the psychological impact has most been significant, Nuala said.
âYou donât know when itâs going to happen again, you donât feel safe or secure in a way. Youâre afraid itâs going to happen again,â she said.
âThe psychological effect to my sons and my husband who came on the scene and looked at these animals standing alive still with their faces ripped off, they just kept thinking â âit could have been a child, it could have been a personâ.â She said that the dog attack appeared to be âfor sport â these lambs werenât eaten up, they were killed in the face and neckâ, and then the dogs âmoved on, got the next oneâ.
She added that she is speaking out about the incident to âhelp the farming community, as well as people, against very dangerous dogsâ.
The Irish Farmersâ Association (IFA) Tipperary North sheep chair JP Ryan told the Irish Examiner that action is needed now.
The IFA has repeatedly called for changes in legislation, including for tougher sanctions for those who fail to have their dog under control at all times, along with a single national database for all dogs in the country that identifies the person responsible for the dog.
Mr Ryan commented that the incident in Co Tipperary âwas a huge killâ by âdogs powerful enough to kill that many sheep in one snatchâ.
He suggested that âemergency legislationâ be brought in to try and tackle the issue, with this attack following other severe dog attacks on sheep farms in the last month.
âThere is a huge financial loss to the farmer, it is demoralising and it takes security away from your livelihood,â Mr Ryan added.
A Garda spokesperson confirmed that GardaĂ at Nenagh are investigating following reports of the incident.
GardaĂ and the local dog warden attended at the scene and enquires into the matter are ongoing, the Garda spokesperson added.
