Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There were 240 attacks by dogs on livestock and 180 on other animals across the State in the past two years. There were 1,500 dog attacks in the same period with 430 of them on people. Despite this, some local authorities have failed to issue any fines in the past four years. It is estimated that there is one dog warden for every 3,000 dogs in Ireland. According to the Irish Independent, four counties have not issued any fines in the past year, while three were handed out in one. As the Minister can hear, this level of enforcement is hit and miss. Unfortunately, no dog warden has the capacity to police that number of dogs. There is an issue with the number of dogs. The Minister has responsibility for policy on dogs but something needs to done regarding its implementation by local authorities.

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