Blog Category: Rescue Story

Don’t miss out on having your say on Animal Welfare in Ireland – Deadline 2nd January 2026

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) is currently developing Ireland’s next Animal Welfare Strategy (2026-2030) and has opened a public consultation to hear directly from people across the country.

At the NSPCA, we see first-hand where animal welfare systems work – and where they don’t. This consultation is an important opportunity for the public to share their own experiences, concerns and priorities, and to help shape how animal welfare is approached in Ireland over the coming years.

A quick but important note

This guide is not a template and is not exhaustive.

You do not need to comment on every issue, and you should write your submission in your own words. Submissions grounded in lived experience, practical observations and local knowledge are often the most effective.

How to approach your submission

You don’t need to be an expert or write a long document. A strong submission can be as simple as:

• What issue matters most to you
• Why you think the current approach isn’t working well
• What you would like to see change

A 33 year old man who was handed down a jail term in court in September for the neglect of 11 German Shepherd dogs has had his jail time suspended on appeal.

In September 2025, at Navan District Court, Judge Éirinn McKiernan heard how  NSPCA Chief Inspector ConorDowling called to the defendant’s premises in January 2024 with Meath County dog wardens Alan Nolan and Fiona O’Connor. They found 11 German Shepherds in a total of nine kennels. All kennels had a build up of urine and faeces, five out of the nine kennels had no water, and four other kennels had contaminated water. One dog found on the day was deceased and partially decomposed.

Court Case: Video footage captured a man “physically abusing a husky dog” 

On 21st February 2024, the NSPCA received video evidence from a private security company showing prolonged physical and verbal abuse of a dog outside a residential apartment complex in Raheny, Dublin 5.

Following receipt of multiple recordings, the NSPCA obtained witness statements, and immediately began a formal investigation under the Animal Health & Welfare Act 2013.

On 26th February 2024, a search warrant was granted by Dublin District Court, and the search was executed the following day by the NSPCA with the assistance of An Garda Síochána.

Two dogs, an adult Husky and a young Staffordshire Bull Terrier type puppy, were discovered at the property. Both animals were seized for their safety and brought to the NSPCA Dublin for medical and behavioural assessment.

A formal interview was later conducted by the NSPCA with the defendant, a male and father of one, during which he acknowledged ownership of both animals. When asked by NSPCA Inspector during the investigation; ‘Do you consider the manner in which you are handling the dog in the videos to be acceptable or appropriate?’ to which he answered ‘Yes, I am trying to instruct him’. 

The video evidence was examined in detail by NSPCA Head Dog Trainer and Behaviourist and a full report was submitted for the case.

In a Dublin District Court on Thursday 13th November Judge Anthony Halpin described the treatment meted out to the animal as being “at the high end of brutality.” 

“It is clear from the evidence I have before the court that the behaviour and conduct of the defendant was not only inexcusable but borders on depraved brutality,” he said.

NSPCA Inspector gave evidence saying “In the videos, the dog was extremely inappropriately handled; it was very rough, the dog was in a couple of the videos, crying, screaming, and it was very scared”.

Also giving evidence, NSPCA Head Dog Trainer and Behaviourist described how Simba had been displaying what was termed “learned helplessness” due to the abuse. More than a year’s work was spent helping to rehabilitate Simba, but the dog’s behaviour worsened, becoming “a bite risk to the upper body”, and had to be euthanised. The trainer explained to prosecutor Aodhán Peelo BL that the damage had already been done through neglect.

The defense asked the judge to view the guilty plea as a sign that the defendant showed insight and remorse. At the time of the offence, he had other problems which led him to alcohol and drug abuse, and he is very sorry.

Ms Maguire-Spencer told the court her client was already serving a sentence for another offence and will be released in about nine months, after which he intends to complete a dog-handling course, indicating his acceptance that his behaviour was wrong.

The accused’s barrister asked the judge to treat the incident as an isolated event during a difficult period in life, stressing he had grown up with dogs in his home and could care for them.

The prosecution emphasised that Simba had to be put down because of the abuse, and the judge acknowledged the costs incurred by the NSPCA, but it was not realistic that they could be recouped from the accused.

The defendant received a four-month suspended sentence for 2 years and Judge Halpin imposed a lifetime ban from owning animals; however, he ordered that it could be reviewed after five years.

A Carlow man who pleaded guilty to charges of animal cruelty and obstructing an authorised officer has had his prison sentence suspended on appeal, but a lifetime disqualification from keeping animals was upheld. 

The defendant, a 25 year old male, had appealed the severity of the sentence imposed by Judge Geraldine Carthy in Carlow District Court on 5th December 2024, when he was handed a four month term of imprisonment, banned from owning animals for life, and ordered to pay €600 to cover legal costs. 

At that time, the court heard how NSPCA Senior Inspector Fiona Conlon called to the property that the defendant shared with his parents in Myshall, Co. Carlow on Friday 28th July 2023 along with two dog wardens and a member of An Garda Síochána.

At Naas District Court on 20 October 2025, two Kildare men were convicted for their roles in the docking of the tails of seven Doberman puppies. They were each fined €3,500 and each ordered to pay €1000 costs to the NSPCA. 

The court heard that in May 2023, NSPCA Inspector James McCormack visited a premises and found seven two-week-old Doberman puppies with their tails removed. The pups and their mother were seized and taken from the premises for veterinary assessment.

During interviews conducted as part of the investigation, admissions were made revealing that the mother dog had been sold without the seller knowing she was pregnant. After she gave birth, the buyer arranged for an unqualified person, described as “an old man down the road”, to dock the puppies’ tails. The original owner of the mother then took her and the pups back but failed to provide any veterinary care for the injuries to their tails.