Kerry animal shelter rescues horse from apartment and dog bottled by drunk owner
Maurice Enright owner of Sera Husky and Animal Rescue with pony Teddy. Picture: Domnick Walsh © Eye Focus LTD.
A disabled pensioner taking in a husky, a dog bottled by its drunk owner, and a horse rescue from a high-rise apartment are just some of the issues that a Kerry animal rescue centre has had to deal with so far this year.
Whilst everyone else seems to be blaming the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis for the overcrowding in our country’s animal shelters, Maurice Enright, owner of Sera Huskey and Animal Rescue in Listowel is putting the blame on drink and drugs.
According to Maurice, drink and drugs are the “root cause” of most animal cruelty cases that come his way and he has made it his mission to rescue and rehome the distressed animals who fall victim to substance abuse.
Just last week, Maurice took in a dog who was bottled by its owner after a bout of drink and drugs.
Another asked Sera Huskey and Animal Rescue to pay for his dog’s medical treatment, but when the shelter refused, the dog was found abandoned and tied to a pole outside the local hardware shop.
Sera Husky Animal Rescue don’t just take care of dogs. Recently, the organisation rescued a horse from an upstairs apartment in Listowel. Videos of the pony clopping around the apartment appeared on TikTok, and Sera Husky felt like they had no other option but to intervene.
“We were called by the guards on that one. Don’t ask me how they got it up there, I have no idea, to an apartment upstairs, a small little pony, like a Shetland size, probably a bit bigger.
“There were videos of him, they thought it was great fun that the horse was in the bathroom. It just baffles me as to what these people are thinking,” he said.
In the same apartment, Maurice also discovered two dogs “chained and locked up in a small crate in their own faeces and urine.” He said there was no evidence of food or water.
Maurice also believes that some people choose dogs “that are just too much for them” and totally unsuitable for their lifestyles.
Recently, he had to rescue a husky from a 65-year-old disabled woman’s home in Listowel. The woman, who uses crutches, took the dog in with no safe enclosure because “it was free to a good home.”
“The dog was going nuts of course and then they begged us to take him in. We felt like we had no other choice but to step in, even though we have no space, money, or volunteers.
According to Maurice, the nicest of dogs are often left behind because nowadays, people are only looking for “designer dogs.”
He said: “Once upon a time, dogs were companions and it really didn’t matter what they looked like, but over the last 20/30 years dogs have become a trend. First it was Huskies, now its Poodle mixes.
“We have some amazing dogs here, but they’re all mongrels and although we think they’re gorgeous and would make amazing pets, some people grimace when they see them and don’t even give them a second look.
“We had a puppy training morning recently and every one of them looked the same, and I thought ‘that’s really sad that there isn’t a Collie, a German Shepherd or one of our older breeds, that once upon a time, everyone used to have.’”
According to Maurice, no one wants big dogs anymore. He claims that breeders are often being left with big dogs.
“I’ve actually had direct phone calls from breeders asking me to take their surplus dogs but we’re not here for that sort of carry on. Fellas are making money out of pups and then when they get to a certain age, they just want to get rid of them and start again,” he said.
Maurice believes that Ireland needs stricter laws and more education around acquiring animals.
He said: “There is no quick fix, but stricter laws in acquiring animals need to be introduced. Look at other countries and take ideas from them as to why they don’t have the same problems we do.
“In places like Germany, you have to have a licence before you’re allowed to have an animal. You have to understand what it means to have an animal.
“In Ireland, we feel it’s our right to have what we want, regardless of the suffering caused. Many people still don’t recognise the fact that all animals suffer from anxiety, fear, and loneliness.
Maurice says this should be part of the school curriculum.
“Some schools are fantastic, St Brendan’s College in Killarney, for example. We go there, and the kids come out to the rescue to see what’s going on. We talk to them and engage with them, but we don’t go too heavily into the cruelty side of things.
“We just try and educate the kids about how important it is to neuter your animals, how to give the basic level of care and outline what’s needed before you get an animal.
“But some schools won’t even entertain it because some of the teachers are involved in syndicates. The last thing they want is somebody like me coming in,” he said.
Maurice went on to condemn the “barbaric” sport of coursing and says that “nowhere else in Europe does this kind of thing.” He also indicated that he is not a fan of greyhound racing.
He said: “No one can tell me that the hares don’t suffer, they do. It’s not normal for a hare to be in a fenced field being chased by dogs.”
Maurice also admitted that on two occasions, he has been called out to collect bags of dead hares that had he believes were shredded by “blooded” greyhounds.
The illegal activity of blooding involves the feeding of live hares to greyhounds. The taste of blood is deemed to psyche the dogs up before a race or coursing meeting.
“You can’t bring in strict laws against animal cruelty when you’re paying for animal cruelty,” he said.
Sera Husky and Animal Rescue is home to over 80 animals including cats, rabbits, ferrets, and goats. They also house reptiles such as turtles, tarantulas, bearded dragons and four snakes, one of which is a 12-foot boa.
The organisation does not get any Government funding and relies solely on volunteers, which they are struggling to attain.
“In Dublin you’ve got a huge population, its more concentrated, they have a better chance of finding volunteers. Whereas down here in the country, I have to drive 2km just to get a pint of milk.
The organisation, like so many others is also struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
“From our point of view, everything has gone up. We were paying €25 for a bag of food, now we are paying €39. I can get cheaper food for the dogs but there’s no point. You can’t give cheap food to sick or scrawny dogs who have been mistreated.
In terms of electricity, Maurice claims that “you’re looking at €100 a day before you even get up out of bed.”
“It’s demoralising,” he said.
“Especially during the winter because every dog needs to have his own heat and then there’s heating the reptile houses on top of that.”
Maurice also believes that the recent lift of the eviction ban, is causing overcrowding at dog shelters across the country.
He said that even if a family’s current landlord allows pets, “it is the next landlord who might be the problem.” Maurice revealed that animal rescues are often reluctant to rehome dogs to renters for this reason.
He said: “It is a difficult one, we are reducing the number of houses that we can adopted out to, but we know that in a reasonably short time, those dogs could be coming back to us.”
Sera Husky and Animal Rescue recently took in a dog from a family in rented accommodation. The family did not ask the landlord’s permission before taking the dog home and on a random spot check, the landlord discovered the dog and refused to let the family keep him. They had him for over a year.
Maurice also firmly believes that if Ireland was more dog friendly, we would not have such an overcrowding problem in our country’s animal shelters.
He said: “We use animals when it suits us. Rescue dogs, dogs for the blind, guard dogs, support dogs, companion dogs, the list goes on, yet trying to find a place to go and have a coffee with your dog, is like trying to find a hen with teeth.
“I worked in England for years and I could go anywhere with my dog Timmy, it was just the norm. In my opinion, Ireland has regressed 20 years.
“If you’ve got a camper or something that’s different, but if you’re depending on bed and breakfast in hotels and stuff, you’re really snookered.
“If a dog can be part of the family, a dog is much easier to look after. They are social creatures and as a species, we’ve done this to them,” he said.
Maurice founded Sera Husky and Animal Rescue ten years ago, shortly after discovering four dead dogs dumped in black bags in a bog near where he lives. All four dogs had been shot.
When asked why he chose this career path, Maurice said: “I ask myself that question every day. But I’ve always had a passion for animals, they just fascinate me.
“They don’t have a voice and we need to be that voice for them, but at the moment, it’s not really working in this country.”
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