Vol. 540 No. 3
271 Mr. Killeen asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage Gaeltacht and the Islands the responsibilities her Department has for the feral goats in the Burren National Park; the disease status of these animals; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20873/01]
As I explained to the Deputy in my reply of 8 March 2001, Parliamentary Question No. 135, the feral goats in the Burren National Park are not the property of my Department. They are rather the responsibility of the landowner on whose lands they are found. Feral goats are wild animals but are not a protected species for which I have responsibility under the wildlife Acts.
In the context of the recent alert in relation to foot and mouth disease, Dúchas, the heritage service of my Department, has been in ongoing consultation with the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development regarding the implications of the situation for all wildlife, including feral goats. While I understand that feral goats can contract foot and mouth disease and carry the disease, veterinary advice from the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development was that no action was necessary in relation to these animals. Consequently, no assessment of the health status of these animals, in the context of the foot and mouth disease scare, was made by my Department.
I should emphasise, however, that it is a matter for the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development and the local district veterinary offices to carry out disease testing on goats in the Burren National Park and elsewhere.
