Main Pieces of Legislation
Legislation relating to the welfare, keeping and control of equines, donkeys and hybrids includes:
- Control of Horses Act 1996
- Control of Horses Statistics
- Equine Change of Ownership
- Equine Identification
Health and Welfare
- Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 covers health and welfare, the duty to protection animal welfare, prohibition on animal cruelty, prohibition on abandonment of animals, along with identification, and sale of animals.
Premises Where Equines are Kept
Control On Places Where Horses Are Kept Regulations 2014 – S.I. No. 113/2014. This legislation applies to all horse owners.
“The premises at which the equine is to be kept must be registered with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and this premises registration number (PRN) must be supplied to the issuing PIO, with the application for an equine passport.” (Source DAFM FAQ).
S. 4 “The owner or person in charge of a premises entered on the register shall maintain such records of the movement of a horse to and from the premises as the Minister may from time to time require.”
View the Statutory Instrument.
Apply for an Equine Premises Number (EPN).
Further Information from DAFM.
Animal-drawn Vehicles / Equines on Roads
Is an ‘animal-drawn’ vehicle, a vehicle?
46.— The Act of 1961 is amended—
(a) in section 3(1), by substituting for the definition of “vehicle” (inserted by section 71(c) of the Act of 2010) the following:
“ ‘vehicle’ means a mechanically propelled vehicle, a trailer or semi-trailer, an animal-drawn vehicle or a pedal cycle;”,
and
(b) in section 54 (as amended by section 4 (1) of the Road Traffic (No. 2) Act 2011 )—
(i) by substituting “vehicle or a combination of vehicles” for “vehicle” in each place that it occurs, and
(ii) by inserting after subsection (5) the following:
“(6) Where a person is charged with an offence under this section involving a combination of vehicles it shall be presumed, until the contrary is shown, that the owner of the mechanically propelled vehicle was also the owner of any vehicle or vehicles drawn thereby at the time of the alleged offence.”.
S. 46 Road Safety Authority (Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness) Act 2012
Prohibition on Animal Cruelty
Driving a horse on tarmac at speed (especially a young horse, where the skeleton has not fully formed), is not conducive to equine welfare, however proving an animal is suffering unnecessarily can be difficult without a veterinary report. It is an offence to be reckless regarding the health or welfare of an animal:
12.—(1) A person shall not—
(a) do, or fail to do, anything or cause or permit anything to be done to an animal that causes unnecessary suffering to, or endanger the health or welfare of, an animal, or
(b) neglect, or be reckless, regarding the health or welfare of an animal.
(2) A person who contravenes this section commits an offence.
S. 12 Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013
There may also be concerns regarding the use of performance enhancement drugs on horses used in road racing.
Irish legislation is unfortunately not prescriptive with regard to the minimum age a horse or donkey should be drawing an animal-drawn vehicle, however the UK DEFRA Code of Practice states:
“It is recommended that any horse which is to be used for the carriage of passengers should be at least 6 years old.”
DEFRA Code of practice for horse-drawn vehicles
Causing a Nuisance, Not Under Adequate Control or Posing a Danger or Threat to Health or Welfare
“37.—(1) An authorised person or a member of the Garda Síochána may seize and detain any horse that the person or member has reason to suspect is—
(b) causing a nuisance, or
(c) not under adequate control, or
(d) posing a danger to persons or property, or
(e) posing a threat to the health and welfare of persons or other animals”
S. 37 Control of Horses Act 1996
Careless Driving
Dangerous Driving
Road Racing – Requirement to Obtain a Road Racing Licence
It can be very difficult for a Garda to prove that a race has taken place, however, “(4) Any person who contravenes subsection (2) or a notice under subsection (3) shall be guilty of an offence.”:
“(2) A person who intends to hold, organise or promote a road race shall give at least one month’s notice (or such other period of notice as may be prescribed by the Minister) in writing to the road authority and to the Superintendent of the Garda Síochána within whose district the road race is to be held.”
S. 74 of the Roads Act 1993
Hand Signals While Driving an Animal-Drawn Vehicle
Drivers of horse-drawn vehicles must use the same hand signals as riders.
Lighting of Animal-Drawn Vehicle
The horse-drawn vehicle must have two red rear reflectors. At night, the horse-drawn
vehicle must also carry a lamp on the right-hand side of the vehicle showing a
white light to the front and a red light to the back.
Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol/Drugs
You must not drive a horse-drawn vehicle while under the influence of alcohol
or drugs. Do not ride, lead or drive a horse while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
Animals on a Motorway
“animals and invalid carriages are not allowed on motorways in Ireland”.
Citizen’s Information
Further information from the Road Safety Authority (view PDF).
Zebras
According to the National Parks and Wildlife:
There are a number of different zebra species, some of which are CITES ’listed’. However, a zebra that appeared in recent social media and press appears to be an Equus quagga boehmi more commonly known as Grant’s zebra which is not listed on the CITES appendices, and therefore would not require any CITES documentation. Grant’s zebra is a subspecies of the plains zebra and is native to southern Africa.
However other Zebra species may be listed under CITES. The CITES convention protects over 40,900 endangered species – about 6,610 species of animals and 34,310 species of plants against over-exploitation, by regulating international trade. Species covered by CITES have different degrees of protection through trade regulation depending on the degree of threat they are facing.
The “EU wildlife trade regulations” are a set of EU laws implemented uniformly in all EU countries, to implement the provisions of CITES. The EU has enacted strict rules to ensure that wildlife products only enter the EU market if they are of legal and sustainable origin. Ireland remains committed to safeguarding endangered species through the robust measures outlined in these EU Regulations.
The ‘Basic Regulation’ Council Regulation [EC] No 338/97 on the protection of species of wild fauna by regulating trade therein, lays down the overall provisions for import, export and re-export, as well as internal EU trade in specimens of species. The species are listed in its four Annexes, A, B, C and D. Annex A species have the highest level of protection.
Equine Related Organisations
Report a Crime or Concern
One of the most immediate things you can do, is to report a concern or crime to the authority that has the power to investigate.
