Derelict houses are being commandeered to stable horses in a growing problem in Limerick urban areas.
Sinn Féin TD Maurice Quinlivan said many horses are also grazed on communal green areas, appear malnourished, and are tied to lamp-posts with hardly any space to roam.
“A dirty bucket of water is often next to them and they are neglected for days on end. In many cases they are ridden, violently whipped and made wander streets without appropriate horseshoes. It is shameful to see these beautiful animals treated in such a manner.”
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Horses, often foals, are left injured and dead in their areas. “Recently, I got a horse removed after it was lying dead at the back of someone’s home for more than a week. This is incredibly unfair to local people,” he said.
RM Block
Many green areas that children should use to play have been destroyed, he said. “Footpaths and open spaces are caked with manure and vacant houses are often commandeered without permission to stable these animals.”
Mr Quinlivan, who has repeatedly raised the issue in the Dáil, said the problem, mainly in working-class areas, has become worse.
“Why must those who live in working-class communities have to endure what would not be tolerated” in more affluent parts of Limerick?
He said that one day in February, he counted 50 horses grazing in urban areas. And the number is increasing because the local authority is no longer seizing many animals.
The council used to collect an average of 92 horses a year, and it has been down to 22 to date this year.
He criticised the failure of the Government, local authorities and An Garda Síochána to “take decisive action” to deal with animal abusers and to prosecute them for failing to microchip their horses.
Anyone driving without tax or insurance will be penalised, and “yet those riding horses and sulkies, often young children, face no penalties ... The risk posed by these animals, particularly given the inexperience of some of their riders, is a growing concern. Without decisive action, injuries or even fatalities are inevitable.”
He said the Department of Agriculture must take the lead in enforcement. If its approach is “laissez-faire, it follows [that] councils will not treat this matter with the emphasis and urgency” it requires.
“It is time we step up and act. There can be no tolerance for this abuse. Anti-community behaviour cannot be tolerated,” he said.
The keeping of ponies and horses is a tradition passed through the generations in many parts of Limerick, “but there are others who treat these animals with a lack of compassion”.
Animal welfare charities do their best but are overwhelmed by the demand, he added.
‘A hot mess of uncoordinated gibberish’
Minister of State for Migration Colm Brophy said the Department of Agriculture financially supports local authorities, which have powers to seize straying horses and those on lands, including public lands, without the owner’s permission.
The department contributed more than €2 million since 2015 to the seven urban horse projects nationwide, aimed specifically at equine welfare and marginalised communities, he said.
Some €150,000 has been allocated for 2025, and last year, just over €3.4 million was awarded to charities involved in the care and welfare of horses.
A plan has been prepared for the implementation of recommendations in a recently published report on equine traceability and welfare, Mr Brophy added.
The Garda said it has “multiple powers in relation to animal welfare concerns” to seize animals and arrest individuals breaching animal welfare and control legislation.
Limerick City Council has also been contacted for comment.
