Groups of farmers in West and North Clare are banding together to confront gangs of men who are trespassing on their land and hunting hares illegally using lurcher dogs and infrared scanners.
General election candidate, Eddie Punch (II), hosted a meeting of 16 farmers in Clare last Friday and heard that landowners are regularly being threatened with injury and even death by gangs from outside the county.
These gangs travel to a number of areas along the Clare coast, trespass illegally on private property and set their hunting dogs on local populations of hares.
According to Clare Dog Warden Frankie Coote, these gangs video their dogs as they chase and kill the hares and thousands of euro is bet on which dog catches and kills a hare first.
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Andrew Hamilton is a journalist, investigative reporter and blogger who has been working in the media in Ireland for the past 20 years. His areas of special interest include the environment, mental health and politics.