Council must ‘pick up its game’ on dangerous dogs
CLLRS WARN THAT UK DOG TRAGEDY COULD EASILY HAPPEN IN IRELAND
THE failure of some dog owners to adhere to straight regulations governing dangerous breeds could lead to the kind of tragedies recently seen in the UK, where two children died as a result of being mauled by dogs.
That’s the view of Cork County Councillor Noel McCarthy (FG) who told the authority’s northern area committee said he was seriously concerned about the likelihood of similar attacks happening here.
“Most people take their owner responsibilities very seriously but there are some who do not. We see it all the time in our towns and villages across the county,” said Cllr McCarthy.
He said the council, which is tasked with enforcing dog control through its environment directorate, needed to send a clear message out to owners that this kind of behaviour would “not be tolerated.”
“We need to get the message out there that dangerous dogs, even if they are licensed, must be muzzled and certain breeds confined,” said Cllr McCarthy.
“God forbid, what has happened in the UK would happen here. We must learn the lessons from these tragedies to ensure that it does not,” he added.
His comments were echoed by Cllr Bernard Moynihan (FF), who said he had received a number of calls from concerned constituents over recent months.
“While I compliment the work the council has done on this issue, we do need to pick up our game. I know of two or three instances where people are afraid to go for walks with their children because of the presence of dangerous dogs in their vicinity,” said Cllr Moynihan.
“While I hope we never see a repeat of what happened in the UK here, my fear is that we are not too far away from it,” he added.
The head of the council’s environment directive, Louis Duffy, said the authority put together posters and leaflets outlining which breeds needed to be controlled and muzzled.
He said the council had recently appointed a dedicated county dog warden, to coordinate action on this issue and that of unlicensed breeding establishments.
“However, the warden is unable to sit outside one house for a week. We rely on information from members of the public and where we do take action it is invariably on the evidence of someone who is willing to make a statement so we can follow that up,” said Mr Duffy.
He said it can often be the case than an owner will change their behaviour if they know the council has evidence against them that can be used in a possible prosecution.
“It does not always mean they will be taken to county, but our case is stronger if we have evidence. Again, the message to people is if they are having a problem, they can give a sworn statement which will strengthen the dog wardens case when they approach an owner.”