Written Answers - Bovine Diseases.
Dan Neville
Question:
10
Mr. Neville
asked the
Minister for Agriculture and Food
his views on the recently reported cases of the discovery of cattle which appeared to have died through neglect; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[9083/03]
Jack Wall
Question:
17
Mr. Wall
asked the
Minister for Agriculture and Food
if investigations have been completed into two recent cases of the discovery of a number of dead cattle on farms on County Waterford and County Cork; if so, the outcome of these investigations; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[8841/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 10 and 17 together.
The position is that investigations have been carried out by my Department in respect of one case in County Waterford and two cases in County Cork. Investigations in the County Waterford case are still ongoing and the situation in the two County Cork cases is being monitored. It is understood that the Garda Síochána is also pursuing independent investigations, which may lead to prosecutions.
It would, however, appear from my Department's investigations that there is no underlying infectious animal disease or condition which would have given rise to the death of the animals on any of the farms in question.
The two cases in County Cork are both located in the Mallow area. In the first case the farm consists of 110 acres approximately with a herd of 125 cattle. Thirty dead animals and skeletal remains of up to 30 other animals were found on this farm. The second farm consists of 120 acres approximately with a herd of 78 cattle, three of which died subsequently; a significant number of carcasses had apparently been buried on this farm over the preceding 24 months. In the first case the underlying reason for the decline in and death of animals appears to be inadequate feed provision. In the second case there appears to be a history of ragworth poisoning, in addition to which there is inadequate feed provision.
In the case located near Dungarvan, County Waterford, the farm consists of approximately 160 acres, much of which is rented out to other farmers, the herd owner had 41 cattle on his remaining acreage. In addition, 42 dead animals in varying stages of decomposition were found on this farm on the date of inspection by Department personnel. It is fair to say that there appeared to be a social dimension to all three cases.
My Department has in the case of all three farms organised a responsible relative/neighbour to take over the day to day running of each farm, including the feeding of animals, the segregation of animals, the disposal of dead animals, the TB and brucellosis testing of animals etc. The Department has also initiated discussions concerning the disposal of suitable animals for sale/slaughter etc. and has provided advice in relation to animal welfare and prevention of disease issues in respect of each of these farms. The farms will continue to be monitored by veterinary inspectors from my Department's local district veterinary offices.
I established last year, the Farm Animal Welfare Advisory Council, FAWAC, which includes representation from farming bodies, animal welfare organisations, livestock exporters, veterinary bodies and representatives of the veterinary profession, Teagasc and the agriculture Departments in both Dublin and Belfast. FAWAC had already identified a number of areas which it feels are worthy of particular attention. The areas concerned included the issue of neglect/cruelty to animals on farms. The members of FAWAC had some time ago recognised the merit in strengthening localised arrangements throughout the country, involving farming bodies, local animal welfare organisations and the Department at local level, for identifying and alleviating welfare problems on individual farms before they became critical. Work on this aspect, to which farming bodies and animal welfare organisations had already made particularly positive contributions, is already well in hand although not yet concluded.
It is important to state that in the vast majority of cases Irish farms are well run and animals well cared for. It must, however, be acknowledged that there will always be isolated cases where particular circumstances can bring about real animal welfare difficulties on farms. The most important thing that we can do in these instances is to try and spot the difficulties at an early stage and do what is necessary, in conjunction with the farmer, to help alleviate the situation to the extent that we can. I believe that the sense of community which still prevails in rural Ireland can play a vital role in this regard, and can be even more effective when coupled with arrangements for dealing with such cases which are standardised, well understood and more responsive but not overly-formalised. It is important that we all encourage any farmer who might have an emerging problem on the farm to seek outside assistance as early as possible.
