Andrews calls for stronger action on horse abuse

Sinn Féin Senator Chris Andrews has said that action must be taken to prevent the abuse of horses.

Earlier in February, a pregnant horse collapsed on the N4, near Ballyfermot, following an illegal sulky race on Dollymount Strand.

Senator Andrews alleged that the horse was “brutally beaten by her owners after collapsing from exhaustion and left to die on the side of the road.”

Andrews said the incident should be the onus to introduce stricter horse ownership laws. 

“Unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident. Abuse of horses is a regular occurrence on our streets.”

“Owners always say that they love their horses, but when you see the conditions that they’re living in, you have to question, do they really love these horses?” he questioned.

Andrews pointed to the horse ownership culture in Dublin as being a problematic one.

“From young children using small ponies like bicycles in playgrounds, showing zero respect to them, to people riding sulkies down the wrong side of the road during rush hour traffic, narrowly avoiding buses and cars and terrifying people around, to the horses left tied to poles during the height of the summer with no water, where many have died of dehydration and neglect.”

Andrews noted illegal and unregulated stables across Dublin, with horses crowded into “completely inadequate shelters in abandoned buildings or empty lots, exposed to the elements and often living in their own filth.”

He said, “it is disgraceful how horses are being treated by their owners and supposed guardians, and by the state that completely fails to stand up for their welfare.”

He criticised the Gardaí for “sitting by” on the issue.

“Gardaí are constantly saying that they don’t have the resources to address these issues, and can only sit by as animal cruelty takes place on a massive scale.”

He said, “we desperately need proper, dedicated Garda units for the ending of animal cruelty so that these issues, such as what occurred to Anne, are taken seriously and investigated properly.”

 The Sinn Féin Senator called for new legislation and stronger enforcement around sulky racing and horse carriages on public roads.

“Unlicensed and unregulated carriages have flooded our streets in recent years; these carriage operators often treat their horses appallingly, endanger the public with reckless driving and criminality, and have undermined the livelihoods of Dublin’s traditional carriage drivers,” he said.

“It is astounding to me that the current law governing this topic is the Dublin Carriage Act of 1853, and that the effort to draft new legislation in this area was suspended in 2021 with no progress made in the meantime.”

Andrews put the blame on the government parties, remarking, “Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael simply have a shameful legacy when it comes to animal welfare, and the complete neglect of the welfare of horses is one of many examples.”

“We urgently need an overhaul of our legislation on animal welfare and safety, and I would urge the Minister of Agriculture, as well as his colleagues in Justice and Transport, to finally take this issue off the backburner and begin working towards ending the systemic abuse of animals in Ireland.”