A Co Offaly farmer is appealing for others to be vigilant of livestock theft after two of his calves were stolen, butchered and the remains dumped in the Grand Canal.

Matt Conway, a dairy and beef farmer from Croghan near Rhode, read a TB test on Friday 19 July; including at an out-farm at Rochfordbridge, seven miles from the home farm, where some of this year’s spring-born calves were being kept.

The next day, Saturday 20 July, he came back to feed the calves. He noticed the wire was missing from the gate, but didn’t think too much of it, as the gate was closed.

On Sunday 21 July, he returned with his son to herd. He then noticed two calves were missing.

Search

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, Conway said on Sunday, Monday and into Tuesday they searched “all around” but there was “no sign”.

“Tuesday evening, I was talking to a neighbour. He was talking about the test and general chat. I said about being clear. I also said, ‘I’m in hard luck. I’m missing a calves. I can’t find them anywhere.’

“He has land over in Edenderry. He was talking to a man over in Edenderry, that man’s daughter-in-law was out running and she saw remains of calves in the canal. She came home in an awful state.

“They went back down and there they were. There was a tag number on one of them, a white-head calf, facing up to be seen. They rang me with the tag number and that was it, she was mine,” he said.

Butchered

The heads, feet and hides of the calves were disposed on in the Grand Canal at Edenderry. Conway said this leads him to believe that the calves were taken and butchered for their meat.

“The calves were slaughtered. The bodies were gone. The head, the feet and the hides were left there and thrown into the canal, thrown in over the bridge.

“If they didn’t want the meat, the bodies would be there. Why would they go to the rounds of skinning them. It was professionally done. It was someone who was in the know... I’m farming all my life and I wouldn’t be able to do it myself,” Conway added.

The farmer said he believes the calves were taken because bigger stock would need more equipment to butcher them, such as a hoist for skinning.

The incident has been reported to gardaí and the Department of Agriculture.

No help

The distressing nature of his incident has had a huge impact on both Conway and his family.

“I’m farming all my life, trying to live off of it. Trying to rear a few calves, bring them to beef, get a few pound. For someone to come into the field, take them out and slaughter them, I don’t know what the world is coming to at all,” he said.

Furthermore, Conway feels when farmers have to deal with incidents like this there is no help or support available to them, which needs to be rectified.