So with all the unwarranted bad rep hare coursing gets, here is some positive news. Kerry is one of the best counties in Ireland for hare safety with very few casualties and hundreds of hares caught and released.
The fact that these hares are released under veterinary care is actually in my opinion one of the greatest achievements in Irish society. We now catch and release thousands of hares around the county while giving the hares jabs to further prevent disease. The hare population is thriving I know myself from hiking throughout the year, especially on the peninsula. The hills and mountains are full of hares in places.
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| Castleisland, No hares euthanized in 2020/21 season |
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| Abbeydorney, No hares euthanized in 2020/21 season |
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Abbeyfeale, No hares euthanized in 2020/21 season
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| Ballyduff, 2 hares euthansied in 2020/21 season |
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| Ballyheigue, 1 hare euthanized in 2021/22 season |
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| County Kerry Club, No hares euthanized in 2021/22 season |
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| Listowel, 1 hare euthanized in the 2021/22 season. |
The reality is in one evening more hares will be killed on a county road than the whole coursing season in Kerry. With hares being caught and injected the coursing community is doing a wildlife service in this country. It is so untrue that sports and traditions like coursing are bad for the countryside the opposite is the truth. It's the people in the fields and on the river banks that keep and protect what is in their interest to protect. Hares needs the coursing community like the coursing community needs them, it's called a symbiotic relationship. Salmon needs the anglers because it's the anglers that in the end will actually fight for them. Ireland has lost its way in this subject i feel, we have lost our identity, our culture and our history. We have also lost our religion, we are an Irish catholic island and i feel that it is only when the last priest is left will the Irish realise that.
