Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am tired of being told about the wonderful legislation. While it is wonderful in theory, there are many examples in which it does not work. I need only mention puppy farms, the fox incident about which the Minister knows well as it took place in Cork, badger issues, live hare coursing and fur farming. Hurling, camogie, basketball, rugby and soccer are sports. There is no glossing over the cruelty involved in live hare coursing, which cannot be called a sport. Evidence of that cruelty exists where hares are used as live bait for dogs to chase. People who attend coursing meetings see hares being terrorised as they run frantically around a field. They are hit hard by the dogs and sent tumbling through the air. The hares run in circles and sometimes leap over the dogs to try and escape. On current numbers, there is evidence that hares are endangered. Are we going to wait until the situation is as it is with the curlew and the corncrake and the hare is at risk of extinction? I note also the injuries to the dogs involved. I would love to know how many greyhounds are put down every year for failing to make the cut. Of course, we have an industry which exports greyhounds to countries in which there are no animal welfare provisions, including a recent report of two greyhounds being sent to Pakistan.

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