It is time to end the hare’s agony

Sir — I enjoyed Joe Kennedy’s fascinating piece on the peculiar habits and culinary tastes of our native Irish hare (Sunday Independent, March 1), a creature feted in literature and Celtic mythology and which took pride of place on our threepenny bit back in the days when the euro wasn’t even dreamt of.

But I lament the way this gentle and inoffensive creature has fared at the hands of misguided humans. A hare despatched by a clean shot or killed on the road might die quickly, but death can be prolonged and agonising when the animal is wounded.

Joe recalls hearing an injured hare emit an “almost human cry”. I have heard that haunting sound, likened in verse and song to that of the banshee of Irish folklore, but not while walking in the countryside. It assailed my hearing at coursing events I attended as an observer for an animal welfare group.

One minute the fans are laughing and cheering, marking their cards, urging on the dogs they’ve backed... then silence as the hare’s cry rises, piercing the winter air like a siren.

In 1993 and again in 2016 I hoped I had heard the sound for the last time when bills proposing a ban on coursing were tabled in the Dail. But these were heavily defeated.

Muzzling greyhounds only made the cruelty less visible. Instead of pulling the hares apart, the dogs can pummel or maul them, crushing their bones.

I note that among the newly elected TDs are quite a few who say they oppose hare coursing and would vote for a ban. I hope they can make that a reality so the Irish hare becomes a truly protected species, not one fair game for cruelty. It is time to call off the dogs.

John Fitzgerald,

Callan, Co Kilkenny