13. Greyhound grave uncovered in Limerick

A mass greyhound grave has been discovered in County Limerick, a front page Metro Herald report has revealed. Dead dogs found were killed by "blunt force trauma to the head".

Limerick Animal Welfare say that two of the dogs were killed recently and that the site at Ballyagran was used several times to kill and dump dogs.

Quoted in the report, animal welfare expert Orla Aungier said that such mass graves were "very common" around Ireland and that dogs usually had their ears cut off so that they could not be traced by their tattoos.

According to information from the ISPCA website, "approximately 14,000 greyhounds are 'disposed of' in Ireland each year."

"They are destroyed because they haven't made the grade as racing dogs or when they are past their best for racing (usually by the age of four)," they have outlined. "Other unwanted dogs are sold to Spain, where they are forced to race in appalling conditions, with no veterinary care and no prospect of an end to their suffering until they are too badly injured to continue."

Read the Metro Herald report
See photos of the dumped greyhounds

14. Minister Deenihan poses with coursers

The Minister for Arts and Heritage, Jimmy Deenihan, has been pictured posing with hare coursers.

A photo on the Sporting Press website (March 2012) shows the Fine Gael TD with a group of coursers, including the CEO and President of the Irish Coursing Club). See the photo at http://tinyurl.com/bmf272b

At a coursing function at the Charleville Park Hotel on March 24th, Deenihan shamefully assured the coursers: "Whatever I can do for coursing while I am in this job, I will certainly do it."

Email: ministersoffice@tcs.gov.ie;taoiseach@taoiseach.gov.ie
Tel: +353 (0)1 631 3802

15. Anjelica Huston calls for fur farming ban in Ireland

Oscar-winning actress Anjelica Huston has called on Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney to ban fur farming.

In a letter written on behalf of PETA and the Animal Rights Action Network, Ms Huston stated: "This issue means a lot to me as I grew up in Ireland and used to wear fur. I had a change of heart when I learned how minks and foxes on fur farms are crammed into tiny, dirty cages and driven so crazy by the confinement that many self-mutilate and even cannibalize their cagemates."

"Please use your considerable power to follow through on the commitment to add Ireland to the growing list of countries—including Northern Ireland, Austria, Switzerland, and Great Britain—that have banned the cruel practice of fur farming," she added.

www.entertainmentwise.com

16. Shane McEntee's coursing claims exposed as nonsense

Meath East TD, Shane McEntee has claimed that there is "no danger" to the hares used as lures in coursing.

A Youtube video, featuring hares being knocked and mauled, shows how ridiculous Deputy McEntee's claim is. See the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufbvbSbFLok

17. Co Meath man sentenced over animal cruelty

RTE News, 19 April 2012

A Co Meath man who is employed by nine local authorities to look after seized animals has been sentenced to 16 months imprisonment today on charges of animal cruelty.

Sentencing Joseph Moran of Cloneymeath, Summerhill, Judge Patrick McMahon said he was surprised to hear that the defendant still had contracts with local authorities.

"This person is totally unfit to deal with any form of animal and it would be my wish that he is banned for life from keeping horses," the judge declared at Trim District Court.

Christopher O'Brien Lynch, a veterinary inspector with the Department of Agriculture, told the court that after concerns were raised with him, he visited the fields where Moran was keeping horses. He had contracts with nine authorities where he would collect and care for seized animals.

The witness said he found one small horse that had its ribs protruding from its body. It was unable to stand and barely able to keep its head off the ground.

The animal was deeply stressed and on a scale of zero to five - where five would be overweight and zero would be skeletal - Mr O'Brien Lynch said this horse was 0.5. He euthanised the horse straightaway.

Another horse was in exactly the same condition nearby. That too was euthanised immediately to end its suffering.

The defendant was there at the time and he acknowledged that the animals had not had any water since they arrived at his farm three days earlier. The vet said the defendant had unnecessarily prolonged the suffering of the animals.

As he inspected the other fields in the farm, Mr O'Brien Lynch said he discovered several decomposed horse or donkey remains. Some had been there for many months rotting away.

There were 19 other horses on the farm and the vet said he was entirely satisfied with their condition. The court was also told that there was an issue with the quality of the feed being given to animals in the stables, but that had been resolved.

Mr O'Brien Lynch said the defendant was a contractor paid to collect and care for vulnerable or neglected animals on behalf of the State and everything should have been "top class". He said these animals had suffered "institutional abuse".

He acknowledged that Moran was very co-operative and helpful during the investigation and on subsequent inspections.

Counsel for the defendant, Shane Patrick Murray, said his client was pleading guilty to the charges. The vast majority of animals on the farm were in very good condition and these offences were a "black spot" on his work.

His client had and continued to provide free help to charities like the DSPCA and the ISPCA. He employed three other people and if he was to have a conviction recorded against him it could mean the loss of his contracts with nine local authorities and the closure of his business, Mr Murray said.

However, Judge McMahon sentenced him to a total of 16 months in prison, although he fixed recognisances in the event of an appeal.

18. New Poster: Ban Larsen Traps in Ireland

Download our new "Ban Larsen Traps" poster at
http://www.scribd.com/banbloodsports/d/91227415

Please join us in calling on the Minister for Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht Affairs to urgently introduce a ban on Larsen traps.

Jimmy Deenihan, TD
Minister for Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht Affairs
Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht
23 Kildare Street
Dublin 2

Email: ministersoffice@tcs.gov.ie
[with a copy to taoiseach@taoiseach.gov.ie - An Taoiseach]
Tel: (01) 631 3802
Fax: (01) 661 1201

19. New ICABS "Ban Coursing" keyring

Show your support for a ban on hare coursing with our cool new keyring. Perfect for car keys, house keys, etc.

Order Now at http://www.cafepress.co.uk/banbloodsports.637834034 (Only €8)

20. Priest in coursing booklet

The latest in a list of priests who associate with animal cruelty activities. See this extract from the 2012 Irish Cup coursing meeting booklet

Please Email "Clergy out of bloodsports" to the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference admin@aracoeli.com

21. Campaign Quotes

Animal welfare is "something that was very close to the heart of Tony Gregory [therefore] we are looking at trying to resurrect Tony’s attempts at anti-coursing." Along with independent TD Clare Daly, O’Sullivan intended to introduce an anti-hare coursing Bill in 2012 to protect animals from cruelty in sports. However, she states: "There’s animal welfare legislation coming out and we are waiting to see what’s in that and see what way we will progress it from there." Eolas Magazine, April 4th, 2012

"Whatever I can do for coursing while I am in this job, I will certainly do it." Jimmy Deenihan, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht at the 2012 annual Coursing Awards (Sporting Press March 2012)

"Bad for business, you understand" - a vet "afraid to get involved" in exposing the recent greyhound grave scandal http://dld.bz/bvH6N

Four men have been charged in connection with a police operation into badger baiting. The detained men - aged 19, 21 39 and 42 - will face counts of animal cruelty at Newtownards Magistrates' Court on Monday 30 April. Police said it comes after a series of arrests were made on 26 March as part of Operation Meles, the investigation into badger baiting across Northern Ireland. From UTV Live News, 03 April 2012

"It must be said that public outrage [at the brutal murder of 18-year-old Marioara Rostas] has not galvanized into mass demonstrations of solidarity against this direct assault on our humanity. Where are the outpourings of disgust that such a level of depravity could be committed here? The vocal dissension and mobilization against fox and stag hunting and the political communication to retain the medical card for the senior citizens dwarfed any rallying against violent and murderous sexual predators." Quote from the current edition of Garda Review magazine http://www.gardareview.ie/ If you have information that can help the Gardai, please contact them now at http://www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=3430&Lang=1

"There was no hare in Fordes, Sheehans, Kellehers, Crowley or Mulcahys farms. Where are they gone? You may use your own discretion. The hounds picked up the line of a fox in Mulcahy's farm, which took them to McCarthy's plantation where a vixen and five or six admirers were on foot. Then one fox broke at the east end and went north through McCarthy's farm like a scalded cat with 7.5 couples [15 hounds] on his heels leaving the remainder of the pack in the plantation." From a hunting report on the Upton Harriers, Co. Cork in the Southern Star newspaper - 21st January 2012

"We encourage our consumers to continue to use social media channels to alert us to any situation where they feel our brands are being misrepresented, so that we can take the appropriate actions." A Heineken spokesperson quoted in the Daily Mail (18 April 2012) after the company removed promotional material from a Mongolian venue that hosted barbaric dogfighting. www.dailymail.co.uk

The stench of rotting flesh, death, is very strong in the air so I know we're getting close. It's a thick, familiar smell to me that would turn even the toughest of stomachs. Climbing down a small embankment of an old sand quarry in South West Ireland I find what I've seen before and already knew was there. I clearly hear the crumpling, chewing sound, again familiar and disturbing, as ten's of thousands of fat maggots destroy the evidence in an otherwise quiet landscape. It's a surreal and nightmarish sound. I count six maybe seven greyhound carcasses in different stages of decomposition lying exposed to the world, to the beautiful Irish countryside. From "It's Happened Again - Thoughts from the Killing Fields of Ireland" by John Mottern / American European Greyhound Alliance. Read his full report at http://aega.homestead.com/greys-in-pit-ireland.html?_=1334067131862

Horses trust us. It's immoral to use that trust to cause the horse to jump a drop fence with a greater descent on far side...Two horses killed at the Aintree Grand National on Saturday; three horses killed on the first day of Cheltenham, and two on the second; two horses killed in the Aintree Grand National last year. It can't go on. It's wrong, and we all know it's wrong...Quite simply, for nine horses to be killed at first-class meetings in Aintree and Cheltenham in just over a year is utterly inexcusable. Moreover, the British-run website Racehorse Death Watch lists 816 animal deaths in five years. Such needless bloodshed and suffering cannot be defended. Kevin Myers, Irish Independent, April 17 2012. Read his full article

22. Letters to Editors

FG, Labour should be ashamed over hare coursing
Metro Eireann, April 1, 2012

A new Animal Welfare Bill has just been published, and while it sets out to protect animals from cruelty and unnecessary suffering – stating among its provisions that to terrify or bait an animal is prohibited – it then exempts hare coursing, which most certainly constitutes baiting, terrifying an animal and causing it unnecessary suffering.

If hare coursing were not cruel, it would not have to be specially exempted, nor would other forms of hunting wild animals with dogs, such as fox hunting, which are also given a pass.

Just two weeks ago, we watched as eight hares were pinned down and seriously mauled by muzzled greyhounds at a coursing meeting at Limerick Racecourse. We have sent video clips of these incidents to our elected representatives so they can be in no doubt about the cruelty involved in this so-called ‘sport’ that Fine Gael and Labour want to preserve.

Hare coursing has been outlawed in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, leaving our republic as the last outpost of this backwoods barbarism. This Fine Gael and Labour Government, and indeed those other political parties that support this cruelty, should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves.

Aideen Yourell
spokesperson, Irish Council Against Blood Sports

A 'traditional liberty'?
Irish Times, April 20, 2012

Sir, - The irony of Michael Mac Guinness's melodramatic equating of hare coursing with republicanism (April 11th), while writing from the libertarian stronghold of Saudi Arabia, brought a smile to my face. I'm still not sure if his letter was intended satirically.

The fact that a practice has a "tradition" is no argument for its preservation. If that were the case, slavery and witch-hunting would still be common practice today.

Not all liberties are equal. It is the duty of a civilised, progressive society to check atavistic, anachronistic practices like these.

I suggest that those who engage in hare coursing try a different hobby, such as walking a dog. Listening to the radio may also prove diversionary.

In the meantime, I hope Mr Mac Guinness enjoys the falconry in the Saudi Arabia to its fullest extent, as it is universally recognised as the one indispensable liberty in the region. Now, if only hares could navigate dunes better. Yours, etc,

Edward Murray,
Knocklyon Heights,
Templeogue, Dublin 16.

Silence of racing ‘fans’ over Government plan to supply China with horses is deafening
Irish Examiner, April 19, 2012

As horse racing pundits in the UK give lip service to the horse killings at the Grand National we do not hear many racing supporters condemning the move by the Irish Government to supply China with Irish horses.

The racing venture and racecourse proposed in China will require 600 to 800 horses for its inaugural year, which is targeted to have approximately 40 race days.

This venture is to be stocked with broodmares from Ireland, while stallions will also be sent out.

Also it does not seem to matter to Taoiseach Enda Kenny that Hong Kong is the only venue on Chinese soil where betting on horses is legal and that authorities are unlikely to legalise gambling on the mainland anytime soon.

While Ireland has no agreement regarding the export of horses, according to the DOA the changes are being drafted now.

We wish there was some hope that the new Ireland-China ‘deal’ would not mean untold suffering to Irish animals.

We only have to look at past and current horse events in China to foretell the future for our horses.

The following is a chronicle of known horse abuse already part of life in China:

* Not many know that in 2005 at the Beijing racetrack over 600 healthy thoroughbreds were reported to have been slaughtered in the Chinese capital. This was as a consequence of the official reluctance by the Chinese Communist Party to tolerate gambling. This mass killing was unprecedented even in the harsh world of horseracing.

* Zoos across China are still putting on cruel exotic animal performances, three months after they were banned by the government.

In one show in Guangxi Zhuang this month, crowds cheered as a tiger teetered on the back of a horse, while monkeys, with chains around their necks, rode bicycles around in circles.

* Horse fighting is still rife in China with evidence available from shocking photos of two stallions covered in blood and ferociously biting each other at the annual horse fight in Antai, China, where such animal cruelty is considered ‘sport’.

At the annual event, which dates back a staggering 500 years, horses are pitted against each other as thousands of locals watch, with many cheering them on and taking photographs.

The stallions are encouraged to fight by being led to a mare in heat, and then taking the female horse away when the stallions are aroused.

In a humane society, we would expect our legislators to condemn China’s animal and human abuses without any further delay.

Bernie Wright
The Ward, Co Dublin

JP McManus and hare coursing cruelty
Carlow Nationalist April 22nd.

Dear Editor,

We note that JP McManus says he is "devastated" by the death of his horse at the Grand National. What a pity this highly successful entrepreneur has not yet, to our knowledge, displayed the same feelings of concern for the hares forced to perform at the annual "Irish Cup" coursing event.

As the main financial sponsor of this event, he may be aware that at this year’s fixture, several hares were mauled, forcibly struck, or pinned to the ground by the hyped-up greyhounds, and that others were, as is common in hare coursing, tossed about like playthings on the course. Their terror and suffering was recorded on film and the footage posted on Youtube.

Mr. McManus is reportedly feeling a "deep sadness and sense of loss" at the demise of the horse known as Synchronised. We would urge him to expand his circle of compassion to include the hares that, year after year, are set up as live bait to be terrorized for fun at coursing events.

Diageo and Specsavers, whose ad banners were inadvertently displayed at Limerick racecourse during this year’s "Irish Cup" fixture, have since confirmed in writing that they do not support or condone the blood sport in any way.

Perhaps Mr. McManus should consider doing likewise. He is a man of great wealth and influence and there must be any number of causes or sporting events more worthy of his sponsorship than live hare coursing.

Thanking you,

Sincerely,

John Fitzgerald,
Campaign for the Abolition Of Cruel Sports

China horse welfare fears
Irish Examiner, April 21, 2012

Last weekend the pundits, bookies and people involved in horse racing celebrated their winnings literally on the backs of horses in the Grand National.

Little press coverage was given to the horses that suffered appalling injuries and untimely deaths all for the "enjoyment" of mankind.

We are now informed by Minister Simon Coveney that he has brokered a deal with China which will involve sending Irish race horses to China to help establish a horse racing industry in that country. The Chinese reputation for animal welfare is appalling.

The lives and welfare of the Irish horses that will end up in China appear to be of no consequence to our government and the racing industry.

Chris O’Malley
Swords, Co Dublin

Greyhound Grave
Sunday Independent, April 15 2012

The discovery of greyhound remains in a makeshift grave in Co Limerick highlights again the dark side of an industry that Junior Minister Shane McEntee recently lauded as one we should all be proud of. Once a greyhound has outlived its value on the track or coursing field, it faces danger. Unless the owner happens to be genuinely fond of dogs, the animal is likely to come to a nasty end.

Among those selected for death, the lucky ones will be taken to a vet or shot. Others are likely to end their brief sporting careers in a more grisly fashion, bludgeoned to death with a spade or shovel: a sad fate for an animal that has given such loyal service to the (presumably ungrateful?) gambling community.

Ear-tagging of greyhounds was supposed to eliminate this ill-treatment, but the ID tags can easily be hacked off the bodies.

Bord na gCon has said it will do everything in its power to clamp down on this kind of activity. It should go further. Ear-tagging should be replaced as an ID method by micro-chipping to prevent tag removal, and a major initiative against doping of greyhounds is long overdue. This is widespread in the industry, with little regard as to the effects on the dogs' health of the performance-enhancing drugs utilised by unscrupulous trainers.

The Board also needs to face up to the fact that live hare coursing is no longer acceptable to the vast majority of people in Ireland. It casts a pall of shame over the entire industry.

The hares are terrorised, battered and mauled. Many of them literally die of fright when being netted or during captivity, owing to a stress-related condition called Capture Myopathy. FOI reports obtained from the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) show that hares suffer appalling injuries and ill-treatment at virtually every coursing event. How can we expect an industry that encompasses and condones such a practice to care about the fate of unwanted dogs?

John Fitzgerald
Campaign for the Abolition Of Cruel Sports
Callan, Co Kilkenny

Issue of animal cruelty practices not misdirected, despite criticism
Irish Examiner, April 10, 2012

I would totally reject Keith Hamilton’s contention (Letters, Apr 6) that concern for circus animals is "pure sentimentality" and that the focus of protest groups addressing the issue of animal cruelty is somehow "misdirected", as in his view the loss of habit affecting wildlife ought to be a greater priority.

I accept that every nation should have in place effective conservation measures to ensure the protection of any species under threat.

I have spoken out repeatedly in the past in favour of prioritising the plight of the corncrake in Ireland and against the widespread snaring of badgers that has denuded some parts of the countryside of these nocturnal creatures.

But conservation and animal welfare are two separate issues.

If our legislators had considered badger baiting from only a conservationist point of view this appalling blood sport would still be legal, because at no time did it have any significant impact on the overall badger population.

The numbers tortured and savaged to death in the pits represented a tiny percentage of Ireland’s badger stocks.

It was banned on clearly defined animal welfare grounds, and not from any misguided feelings of sentimentality, to eliminate an act of cruelty that very few people would now condone or advocate as a legitimate sporting practice.

The objection to hare coursing and zoos is likewise based on well-founded concern for the welfare of the animals used.

There is abundant evidence that animals in circuses are ill-treated, apart altogether from the unnatural confinement and restrictions they endure, and the group I represent has numerous videos of hare coursing events showing hares being battered, mauled, and tossed about by the muzzled greyhounds.

Film footage of the "Irish Cup" event held in February is a case in point.

The scenes of mind-boggling cruelty captured leave little to the imagination. One’s reaction to such evidence is not characterised by sentimentalism, but by one’s common human decency and a genuine concern for the welfare of animals.

The ill-treatment of hares in coursing and of captive wildlife in circuses may have little relevance to the question of habitat loss affecting these species, but I would contend that any civilised society should outlaw such demonstrably cruel practices regardless of whether the victims are domesticated or wild.

John Fitzgerald
Campaign for the Abolition Of Cruel Sports
Callan, Co Kilkenny

23. Petitions

Ask An Taoiseach Enda Kenny to Ban Hare Coursing
Stop badger culling and focus on a vaccination programme in Ireland
The Arts Council of Ireland: Please stop funding circuses that carry animals
Stop the Bail-Out for Irish Dog Tracks
Lobby for the urgent need for updated Animal Welfare Legislation in Ireland
Petition Against Faroese Pilot Whale Hunts
Ban Larsen Traps & Multi Corvid Traps
Keep the ban on foxhunting in the UK

Please make a donation to ICABS

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Keep hunters off your land

Make it known publicly that your land is off-limits to hunters. Place a preservation notice in your local newspaper now. Here is a sample notice that you may wish to use: "Take notice that all my lands at [Insert address(es) of land] are private and preserved day and night. All forms of hunting and shooting are strictly prohibited. Trespassers will be prosecuted. Signed [Insert name(s) of landowner]" For more information, click on Farmers at www.banbloodsports.com

Tune in to the ICABS Channel

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