A CO Cork farmer allowed a number of his cattle to starve to death, a court has been told. John Lynch jnr, of Ballyburdenbeg, Ballincollig, pleaded guilty to 20 of 50 charges of cruelty to the cattle when he appeared before Judge John Clifford in Ballincollig District Court.
Garda Brendan O'Dwyer said he went to the 135 acre farm accompanied by an ISPCA inspector, Mr Ted O'Connor, on February 1st as a result of complaints they had received. They found seven dead cattle.
The rest of the cattle were malnourished. There was insufficient food to feed the animals, Garda O'Dwyer said.
Mr O'Connor said there were 47 cattle and one bull on the farm, all in an appalling condition. He asked Lynch, who was in bed when they arrived at 11.30 a.m., about the cattle.
Lynch told him he would go out and buy silage immediately.
Mr O'Connor said that when he returned on February 6th matters had improved, but a two year old Friesian was found dead.
Mr Philip Comyn, a solicitor representing Lynch, said the defend ant took over the farm from his elderly parents in 1990 and up to this year there were no complaints. Things were not going well for him and he unfortunately turned to drink as a way of meeting his problems.
Judge Clifford said he could not understand why Lynch neglected the animals because, by doing so, it had cost him money.
He fined Lynch £1,000 £50 on each of the 20 charges - and ordered him to pay £80 expenses.