Dog destruction in Newry Mourne and Down District tops the list of councils in Northern Ireland.
Rowallene DUP Councillor Kathryn Owen has expressed her sadness at the high number of dogs that are put down in the Newry Mourne and Down District Council kennels
Cllr Owen said: “I was informed of the destruction figures for all council kennels across the province.
“To say I’m heartbroken about the immense number of dogs destroyed in Newry Mourne and Down District would be an understatement.
“This is not a statistic that we should be proud of.
“We are nearly double that of the next lowest council. Six councils are in single figures, and there is no reason why we at Newry Mourne and Down should be any worse.
The number of dogs destroyed by council 2019/20:
“You will agree the figures are grim reading on behalf of NMD.
“I have four dogs of my own, three of which are rescue dogs and as a huge animal lover, this shatters me.
“I fully appreciate that there are some dogs that are unsuitable for re-homing due to aggression or illness, but I fail to understand why we have had to destroy 53 in one year, that’s almost one a week!
“I have had a constructive conversation with our Council head of licensing and enforcement and asked for a dialogue to start between us and our counterparts in other councils such as Ards and North Down.
“It would be helpful to see what we can learn and implement in our district in the future.
“There is no need for us to re-invent the wheel. If other councils are already being successful, we should follow their model.
“I would like to recognise the hard work done by Ards & North Down Council in conjunction with Lost and Found Pets North Down/Ards Rescue and Rehoming.”
