Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have to disagree with Deputy Aylward. I am not sure that there is enough fodder in the country. The weather has been bad everywhere for the past six weeks and stock has been in everywhere that bit earlier. We are discussing animal welfare, but we should also talk about the pressure that the farmers are under and the mental strain they are experiencing. Stock has now been housed for a number of months. The weather has been clammy, and it has been difficult trying to keep the animals healthy and to avoid viruses when the stock has been in instead of out in the fields.

Another issue which will cause huge pressure is slurry. We have a ghost period now for a number of months which will last well into January in these areas. Tanks are full under these cattle. When the farmer goes out in the morning to look at his stock and knows that he is going to run out of fodder, it causes mental strain and pressure. We need a practical solution to this, and these men need financial help.

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