60 cattle found dead on farm

DEPARTMENT of Agriculture officials and gardaí are investigating what is believed to be the single biggest death toll of cattle on a farm in the history of the State.

A total of 60 cattle, including cows and calves, was discovered dead on a farm in north Cork yesterday morning, prompting a major probe by Department of Agriculture vets.

The farm, near the village of Doneraile, was sealed off following a tip-off received by Department of Agriculture officials.

A spokesman for the department said several carcasses had already been removed and would be immediately examined by officials to establish the exact cause of death.

The spokesman declined to speculate how the cattle died saying the department would have to wait on the results of tests.

“The farmer has been very co-operative. The dead cattle could be worth tens of thousands of euro There are still a large number of live cattle left on the farm and they are being monitored,” he said.

He added that the remainder of the dead animals would be removed from the farm later today. Shocked local farmers were last night supporting what was described as the “young farm family involved”.

The area does not contain any pharmaceutical or chemical plants and it is not believed that local water supplies have been contaminated.