22 dogs put to sleep by Tipperary County Council during 2025

A TOTAL of 22 dogs were put to sleep by Tipperary County Council during 2025, a recent meeting was told.
A member of the Council's Environment section told the Councillors during the January monthly meeting of Nenagh Municipal District that a total of 243 dogs were surrendered or seized by the dog wardens during the year. 146 of that number were sent to rescue, 31 were reclaimed by the owners, 37 were rehomed and 22 were put to sleep.
The Councillors were also told that the number of Dog Licences purchased in the County during the year was 7,636. In Nenagh MD the number of licences purchased was 2,138, which represents 28% of the County's total.
Since last February a total of 78 applications were received by the Council under the XL Bully (Certificate of Exemption) Legislation. An XL Bully Certificate of Exemption is an official document required to legally own an XL Bully-type dog in Ireland after February 1st, 2025, allowing the owner to keep their pet for its natural life. It requires proof of neutering, a valid dog license, and microchipping. XL Bullies are controversial in Ireland due to a series of severe, sometimes fatal, attacks on people, leading to a government ban on breeding, rehoming, and importing them as of October 2024, with strict ownership restrictions following in February 2025.
To date 66 Certificates of Exemption have been granted in Tipperary. Three applications were withdrawn by applicants, and there are eight applications frozen until such time as the dog is mature enough for neutering.
The final date for receipt of completed Confirmation of Neutering Status forms is June 30th 2026. Four XL Bully Type dogs have been surrendered to the Local Authority.
Cllr Seamus Morris said there are many people who have lost dogs over recent months and would love a new dog. He appealed to them to contact the Council and offer a home for one or more of the 243 dogs surrendered or seized. The good news, he remarked, is that the Council is putting to sleep a lot less dogs than it used to. He also highly praised the Mo Chara Dog Rescue facility in Moyne, Tipperary.
Cllr J.P. O'Meara said there's a problem with dog fouling in St Paul's playground in Nenagh Town. “It's a big problem there,” he pointed out. “People are regularly bringing in their dogs at one end of the playground, where a lot of fouling is taking place. We need to put up no dogs allowed signage. Our own Council staff are cutting the grass and reporting a lot of dog fouling there. A lot of good work has been done in St Paul's and the graffiti has been removed and attractive murals created. Now we need to tackle this problem."
The Council Environment Officer told the meeting it remains a challenge to find homes for dogs. “146 had to be sent to rescue facilities such as Dogs Trust or Mo Chara. We are required to hold dogs for five days but in reality we hold dogs a lot longer than that. People looking for a pet can visit the Council's Dog Pound in Knockalton Nenagh and see the dogs for themselves. We don't want to put the dogs to sleep but sometimes we have no choice," the officer said.

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