Slaughter of hares branded as barbaric

A COUNCILLOR has slammed the people who brought lurcher dogs to the Derrylaughan and Derrytresk area to slaughter hares.

Cllr Malachy Quinn called for ‘zero tolerance’ for those responsible and told the Herald he has “no doubt” they were brought from outside the local area.

The gruesome discovery of two mutilated Irish hares was discovered in what is known as the ‘Lowside’ area last week.

The SDLP councillor, who has been vocal in animal rights campaigns, described the killings as “a blood lust that has nothing to do with sport”.

According to the NI Environmental Agency’s ‘Wildlife Law and You’ document, Irish hares are classified as ‘game’ and therefore are only protected during the ‘closed season’, when they are breeding.

It is also illegal to hunt them on Sundays or at night. But between August and the end of January hares may be hunted using firearms or dogs, although competitive coursing of hares is now illegal in the North.

Cllr Quinn, however, said, “What I witnessed was the aftermath of barbaric behaviour that cannot be passed off as a country pursuit. The people responsible need to know that this is unacceptable in a civilised society.”

He called on the public to be alert to illegal activity and to report any incidents in the closed season to the PSNI.

He added, “The Irish hare has a special place in Irish culture and folklore. Hunting in this way is a blood lust that had nothing to do with sport. We need a change of mindset and a zero tolerance towards this type of behaviour.”

Earlier this month, a bid by Alliance MLA John Blair to completely ban hunting with dogs in the North failed to get the support of the Assembly. The private members bill was defeated by 45 votes to 38, with Sinn Féin, some DUP MLAs and the TUV leader Jim Allister all voting against it.