This article is from page 13 of the 2014-08-19 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 13 JPG
SCORES of Clare horses are being trapped in a circle of neglect with many horse owners literally unable to give their animals away.
The number of Clare horse owners increased sharply during the Celtic Tigers years but reports of cruelty and abandonment have been widespread since the economic downturn, with many people now unable to af- ford the cost of keeping the animals properly.
However, according to Clare dog warden Frankie Coote, a large number of Clare horses are suffering from neglect on numerous occasions – with their owners unable to get rid of the animals. With a large number of horses bought or sold on the black market, many Clare horse owners have no longer got the money to keep their animals but do not have the documentation to sell their animals.
“We are dealing with the same horses now as we were dealing with four or five years ago. Because of difficulties with passports and microchips, there people are unable to sell them on to factories which has resulted in a lot of people owning horses who don’t have the means to look after them,” said Frankie Coote.
“We are being called out to the same horses again and again over the past four years. These horses are getting no vetinarial treatment, their hoofs are not being done and they are not being fed right. They are not getting adequate water in many cases.”
A number of Clare cases of animal cruelty have currently been referred to the DPP for possible investigation.
“We can take animals away in severe cases and we have sent a number of files to the DPP in relation to cases from last year,” said Frankie.
“But we do have a situation at the moment where we have a lot of peo- ple who just can’t take care of their animals but can’t get rid of them either. People should know that in emergency cases we have fodder for horses available and vetinarial fees available – so people can contact us for help.
“We are expecting this to be a difficult winter and we are certainly advising people not to over stock. But I think we need a legislation change really to allow for these [undocumented] horses to be moved on.”