AN ANIMAL CHARITY is calling for greater control of animal breeding after a goat was found dead in a field in Clondalkin.

My Lovely Horse Rescue say they first heard about two goats living in fields in Fonthill two months ago but they were nearby yesterday searching for a horse in a poor condition.

While there yesterday evening, they heard that the pygmy goats were in the area and made an effort to find them.

Martina Kenny told TheJournal.ie that she was told by a local source that children in the area had been offered money by someone to catch the goats.

They were attempting to do so on scramblers and quad bikes, Kenny says, adding that the volunteers from My Lovely Horse Rescue could hear the sound of the quad bikes nearby.

After some time, she explains that the team came upon one of the goats dead in the field.

“He was still warm the poor thing, he’d obviously been hit by one of the bikes because there were broken pieces of motorbike lying beside him,” she says.

The team attempted to find the second goat but were unable to given the size of the area. They ultimately concluded that it was likely caught.

The team were forced to leave the dead goat there and return to their vehicle as the volunteers had no way of safely removing it.

Kenny says that it is unusual to find a goat but that the animals may have been brought there by horse breeders who sell horses to children for as little as €20.

She explains that this time of year can be particularly busy because children buy horses and foals as a form of entertainment in the summer:

There’s way too much, it’s every day, and there’s no after hours. You can’t call the DSPCA because you’re likely to be directed to their emergency line which will then pass you onto the gardaí.

Tough regulation of all breeders, mandatory chipping and the gelding of stallions are the best ways to prevent the abuse of horses in urban areas she argues.

“I think they only thing to do is to regulate every single place. They’re breeding, breeding, breeding and wrecking the ponies. Then they’re selling them to people on Nama and council lands who are in turn selling them onto kids.”

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