Smithfield market in Dublin 7 is held the first Sunday of every month. The Fair is responsible for blatent suffering being inflicted on Horses with manyunwanted and neglected horses selling for as little as 8euro each to whoever wants to ride them home.Horses can be seen with gangs of kids whipping and beating them and many are rode terrified through the streets of Dublin. These horses have been found set on fire, starved, mutilated and abandoned on waste ground with some being driven into the canal and drowned just for the fun of it.
This source of Animal abuse must be closed down, not moved.
WE CALL ON THE MINISTER OF THE ENVIRONMENT JOHN GORMLEY TO LEGISLATE FOR THE CLOSING OF THIS FAIR.
THE ALLIANCE FOR ANIMAL RIGHTS HANDED IN 10,000 SIGNATURES IN 1993 CALLING FOR AN END TO THE TRADING. They were not acknowleged.
Gardai at the Fair when asked, say they are present for traffic and crowd control not to deal with animal violations.



The Dublin City council has long sought the removal of the fair, but has been blocked by an ancient market right of horse traders to hold their sales on the land.
Plans for an alternative site for the horse fair in the Ballymun/Finglas area of the city had to be abandoned by the council because of lack of funds.
It also costs thousands of Euro of taxpayers money to clean up the mess and rubbish generated by the traders every month.
According to a spokesperson from the DSPCA 95 per cent of the horses rescued from around the city each month were purchased in the fair, which takes place on the first Sunday of every month.
“Sadly at the fair we just see more and more horses that will be strewn around the green lands of the city within a matter of days,” DSPCA spokesperson Orla Aungier.