The Wicklow IFA hill farming chair has questioned regulations around dog controls after there were two attacks on sheep in county over the weekend.

The Irish Farmers Journal spoke to Peter Behan after the two separate incidents took place on Wicklow sheep farms in the space of 48 hours.

During the two attacks, one sheep was killed and one of the attacking dogs was injured.

Behan said that neither of the farms were near walking paths, but were incidents of dog owners not understanding that their pets pose a threat to livestock.

“It’s a total lack of regard by still that certain number of dog owners. These two cases were similar that the dogs came from nearby non-farming properties. People living in the countryside and they didn’t keep their dogs under proper control.”

Attacks

The first reported dog attack took place in Roundwood, Co Wicklow on Saturday morning, 19 October.

In this incident, two dogs attacked a flock of sheep, killing one.

The second incident occurred on Monday morning, 21 October, outside the town of Rathdrum where a large dog crossed a river to attack a flock of sheep in the adjoining field.

The dog was shot and wounded but managed to escape back across the river without being caught.

Gardaí and the Wicklow dog warden are investigating both incidents.

Behan, who is also a member of the Wicklow Cheviot Sheep Owners, added that one dog warden per county is not enough to control the problem.

“This happens far too frequently and I’d like to say that there have been ineffective dog control laws here for decades now.

“There’s far too little dog wardens is every county; there’s not enough people on the ground to deal with it.”