This article is from page 45 of the 2013-12-31 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 45 JPG
CLARE farmers were warned to be vigilant in August following a marked increase in cattle rustling – as fears grew that an organised gang could be targeting farms in the county.
An incident of suspected cattle rustling took place in Quin when more than € 10,000 wor th of cattle was taken from the farm of Anthony Flannery.
The raid specifically targeted high value animals which the thieves would likely attempt to re-sell rather than slaughter.
But to sell the animals the criminals would need to provide valid documentation and tags for the animals, which led to a belief the theft could have been part of an organised operation rather than opportunistic.
Clare ICMSA Chairman, Mar tin McMahon, told The Clare People such crimes could be enough to put already stretched farmers out of business.
“The value of this stock now to a farmer is huge. After such a costly winter farmers have been tr ying to get cattle in shape so they could get as much money from them as they could. There are loans to banks and credit to be paid and a theft life this could put someone out of business,” he said.
“These people [cattle r ustlers] would have to have a knowledge of farming and a way of disposing of these animals. If there is someone out there who is helping dispose of stolen animals then this is a very serious risk to farmers in Clare and something that needs to be brought to an end quickly.
“The Guards and the Department of Agriculture need to row in behind this quickly and bring an end to this situation,
Gardaí in Ennis investigated the incident in Quin. Among the cattle stolen were a six-year-old black Limousin cow, two other in calf cows and an Aberdeen Angus.