A 42-year-old farmer was yesterday remanded in custody for sentence on charges of animal cruelty to pigs, sheep, horses, ducks and dogs after a judge heard that the man had failed to comply with an earlier court order to remove all but a few animals from his farm.
Kenneth Coombes appeared at Skibbereen District Court yesterday for sentence after admitting a total of 22 charges, including 12 of cruelty and ill-treatment of animals on the family farm at The Carrig, Lurriga, Skibbereen between September 26th, 2005 and June 2nd, 2006.
Coombes had earlier also pleaded guilty to four charges of failing to properly dispose of animal carcasses at the farm, as well as a further six charges of allowing animals to wander on to the public road at Cork Road, Skibbereen and Carrig, Skibbereen within the same period.
He was first brought before the court last November in relation to the current charges and Judge James McNulty agreed to give him time to dispose of all pigs, sheep, horses and ducks on a phased basis from the 70-acre farm.
But yesterday, Judge McNulty was told by veterinary inspector James Kelleher that he visited the farm last Thursday and found that Coombes still had some 17 pigs, 58 sheep and lambs and seven horses and a foal on the farm as well as a further 30 sheep on another farm.
Mr Kelleher said that officials would like to know what had happened to some 11 horses which had been removed from the farm since last November as they were unable to trace them.
Della Murray of the Animal Care Society said that she had visited the farm on a number of occasions and had removed 27 dogs which were being kept in appalling conditions, but she was still unsure if Coombes had retained some dogs as she hadn't been given access to his house.
Probation and welfare officer, Frank Lynch said that Coombes was making progress towards destocking and cleaning up the farm but he accepted he "didn't have a future in husbandry".
Judge McNulty said Coombes had three previous convictions for animal cruelty and he seemed to have difficulty understanding the seriousness of the situation he was facing, and he remanded Coombes in custody for sentence at Bantry District Court on Friday.
