Country star breeder had an extra 400 dogs
…but Cavan Council withdraws its improvement notice, leaving him free to breed even more puppies
A WELL-KNOWN country singer and puppy farm owner was found to have hundreds of dogs more than his breeder’s licence permitted, during a recent inspection.
Eamonn Mulvaney, who performs as Eamonn Jackson – and was this year nominated for an RTÉ country award – was also breeding hunting dogs, none of which were declared to Cavan County Council.
During the inspection, dogs were found in kennels without adequate space, while some were housed outdoors. Mr Mulvaney’s breeder’s licence is limited to 100 dogs but inspectors discovered 500 dogs on his farm. Despite this, the council allowed him to continue his operation if he reduced the number of dogs to 150 and applied to license the 100 hunting dogs, documents show. However, he has so far only reduced the number of dogs by 89, 54 of which were moved to Northern Ireland.
The ISPCA inspection of the farm at Redhills, Co. Cavan, took place on May 25. Mr Mulvaney appeared in court on July 28 on foot of an improvement notice issued by the council after the inspection. Although he had complied with only eight of the 15 conditions, the council withdrew the notice, leaving him free to breed more dogs.
The council has refused to say why it withdrew the notice, citing ongoing legal proceedings. But the court was told that the only outstanding issue was legal costs.
Cavan Council has faced intense criticism here and in Britain for failing to enforce animal welfare laws. The county is now widely dubbed a ‘puppy farm haven’.
A BBC Panorama exposé in early May revealed horrific conditions at another puppy farm, owned by teacher Raymond Cullivan, in Poles, Co. Cavan, which is also licensed by the local council.
Despite the shocking broadcast – showing bitches confined to small ‘coffin-type’ boxes – the council allowed Mr Cullivan to continue operating without planning permission. He has since applied for retrospective permission and is seeking to expand his operation.
Cavan Council’s failure to impose sanctions on offending breeders has led to renewed condemnation with ISPCA chief Dr Andrew Kelly saying there is ‘no political will’ to end the puppy farm problem.