Protestors gathered at the National Hare Coursing Meeting in County Tipperary today (Sunday) as they're calling for an end to the sport, which involves muzzled greyhounds chasing hares.
A bill - calling for an outright ban - is currently before the Dáil.
John Carmody is founder of animal rights group ARAN (Animal Rights Action Network).
He says "Many hares used for the sport never see their homes again. The fear and stress of being chased can cause heart failure and sudden death, and those who are hit or caught by the dogs may be mauled to death on the spot or die later from their injuries."
John added "Even though the dogs must be muzzled, they’re still able to pin the hares to the ground, strike them, and toss them into the air, breaking their delicate bones, rupturing organs, and causing internal bleeding.
"And even if the hares do make it to the end of the field and into an escape hatch, their ordeal doesn’t end there – they’re boxed up to be taken to the next event."
The animal rights activist is among those protesting at Powerstown Park in Clonmel.
He says the event is nothing short of a "cruelty fest".
"Ireland has turned a corner when it comes to human rights, gay rights and of course animal rights, we were very successful in bringing in so much legislation which is why we're very hopeful that we can progress a bill to ban hare coursing."
John is calling for the public to get behind the campaign.
