In the video below, Dillon describes how, during his tenure as president of the Irish Farmers Association (IFA), the front wheels on the quad bike he was driving to herd the cattle out of the field reared lifting its driver into the air.

Hoping to save himself Dillon made the grave mistake of putting his legs out of the bike which resulted in his left leg getting caught in the back wheel.

"There was nothing holding it only a bit of skin and flesh", he said.

"The pain was awful", he said, "and it was awful for months."

Luckily doctors were able to salvage Dillon's leg and now he says it only feels a bit stiffer and is about half an inch shorter.

But he knows he was lucky. If his sons had not been nearby to call an ambulance, Dillon might have been another farm death statistic.

Dillon said the message he'd like to spread to farmers is that "anyone who rides a quad bike has to know that they cannot put their leg out if they're in any type of danger."

Watch the video below: