‘Things are getting worse every week’: Cork Dog Action Welfare Group says dog crisis is worst it’s been since the 80s

Cork Dog Action Welfare Group (DAWG) has said levels of abandoned and surrendered dogs are continuing to increase week on week, with the dog crisis the worst it’s been since the 80s.

The charity made the comments in a Facebook post last night following a particularly harrowing case of animal neglect.

Cork DAWG had been contacted by a member of the public who encountered a young lurcher with a ruptured eye and severely broken jaw.

The welfare group said the horrific injuries were not recent and that the dog had been suffering for several days.

The lurcher was taken to the emergency vet, but sadly he could not be saved.

“Unable to eat or drink he was very dehydrated and his pain [was] immeasurable.

“We would have spent any money we had trying to fix him but we couldn’t. His jaw injuries were so severe they were beyond repair,” they said.

“Tonight we all sit here and think this is what it’s become. This is now the reality of the dogs in Ireland.” 

Cork DAWG said they feel they are now “fighting a losing battle” as the country is “overrun with dogs that no one wants”. 

“They are on the streets tied to chains in backyards and sitting in pounds waiting to die.

“All because people were so greedy during lockdown and thought of themselves.

The charity acknowledged that while the images shared of the lurcher are “upsetting and graphic”, they feel they need to be seen.

“It needs to be known the pressure that every rescue in this country is under.

“There is no light at the end of the tunnel and things are getting worse every week. There hasn’t been such a dog crisis since the eighties.”