THE SISTER OF a woman who was mauled to death by her dogs, including an XL bully, has spoken out about the attack for the first time. 

Nicole Morey was returning home from her birthday celebrations on 4 June when she was attacked and killed by her pets at home in Fedamore, Co Limerick. 

Four months after her shocking death, Nicole’s sister Jolene Morey welcomed the government’s planned ban on the breed that’s due to kick in tomorrow – but warned it would not be enough to prevent this kind of tragedy in the future. 

She told Katie Hannon on RTE’s Upfront programme: “The law they’re bringing out, you have to have a licence, you have to have papers… But my sister had all them.

“Nicole loved them dogs. And the dogs loved Nicole, but they just turned on her.”

The 23-year-old’s death is believed to have prompted Minister Heather Humphreys’ decision to introduce the new two-phase legislation that will make it illegal to import, breed or sell an XL bully dog. 

From tomorrow, owners will have to apply for a Certificate of Exemption to keep their dog until the end of its natural life – once they have been microchipped, neutered and licenced.

Despite the introduction of the regulations, Jolene fears more people will suffer through the pain her family experienced. 

“I don’t think there’s going to be a big enough change in it,” she told RTÉ in an interview set to be aired this evening. 

“I think people are going to keep the dogs, and then there’s going to be more accidents and more attacks. But people won’t feel the pain until it hits their front doorstep. 

“I think there should be a stricter law brought in. They’re dangerous dogs. They’re not small little puppies. They’re not dogs that you could just mess around with. They can just switch in two seconds.”

Nicole owned four dogs that she shared with her ex-partner before her death: Cali and Rico, both pitbulls; Coco, a different breed; and Zeus, an XL bully.

Her sister’s death horrified the county after videos of the attack were shared widely online. The same videos were sent to Jolene with messages asking whether it was her sibling who was being attacked.

She remembers sitting in her room in darkness, ringing Nicole because she didn’t believe it was real.

“Then I texted her, I said, ‘Are you okay?’ And got no message back. And then a video got sent to me. And they asked me if it was with my sister. And I just remember clicking into a video and seeing her on the floor.

“I was just waiting for the phone call to say she’s gone because I had a feeling in my stomach that she didn’t survive it. But my mom was like, ‘No, it’s only bites and stuff.’ Then my uncle rang, and I just knew from his voice that she was gone.”

The footage was recorded by a CCTV camera at the house where the dogs were being kept.

Following the dog attack, Nicole was rushed to University Hospital Limerick where she was pronounced dead. An inquest into her death has been planned. 

Garda Regional Armed Support Unit shot the XL bully dead at the scene, after responding to an emergency call out, and the three other dogs were eventually destroyed by the authorities.

As of tomorrow, XL bully owners will have until 1 February to register their animals, or they could face a fine of up to €2,500 or up to three months in prison and their dogs will be seized and put down.