As the peak lambing season approaches, farmers are warning that dog attacks on livestock have reached “epidemic proportions,” and they are preparing for an increase in dog assaults…
The cost of dog attacks on livestock rose by 10% last year because of an increase in dog ownership, particularly among novice dog owners, according to data released by NFU Mutual…
At this time of year, “there is a general fear that as we reach the peak lambing season, there will be a rise in new visitors who are just ignorant,” Rebecca Davidson, rural affairs expert at the insurer, said in a statement.
Due to dog attacks on his sheep, the beginning of lambing season has been difficult for farmer Gordon Wyeth. Since the beginning of the lockdown, he believes that the number of assaults has increased by at least double. That day, we had six lambs [killed], and the following day a ram was bitten through the neck and died…
A husky then chased in-lamb ewes the next day. After that one, another sheep passed away,” he said. “It’s at pandemic proportions now.” “It’s worse than it’s ever been,” he said…
Farmers are concerned that the amended Countryside Code, which was released on April 1, does not go far enough in teaching dog owners.
Even if the dog looks to be causing no damage, its owners face a £1,000 punishment for “worrying,” a criminal offense that includes chasing or attacking cattle.
Sheep may die or miscarry even if a dog does not physically touch them because of the stress and exertion of the pursuit.”
Anxiety for farmers and their families ensues as a result of these assaults, which inflict unimaginable pain on farm animals.
Wyeth, a British sheep farmer with 12,000 animals spread throughout southern England, has been particularly hard hit.
For 35 years as a sheep farmer, his worst loss of 116 sheep and lambs occurred in a single incident, which he believes to have been the worst attack on record for the UK…
As he put it, “They were crushed in a narrow ditch and suffocated. Suddenly, we came upon a massive mound of dead sheep that had been thrown up against our fence. For that one, we couldn’t find the dog at all.
When we found out, we were disgusted. As a person who has a large number of animals, you get used to death and everything else, but it’s an emotional experience when it’s a waste and the animals are in pain.”
He said that dog walkers often pull down the warning signs surrounding the property and that authorities were unwilling to take action after assaults…
The National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for rural and wildlife crime, Chief Constable Darren Martland, stated that police forces were “strengthening their response to rural crime” and asked rural communities to be “our eyes and ears”.
Wyeth has been forced to battle dog owners both in the courts and on his own fields, despite livestock worrying being illegal. “You’d be shocked at the abuse we receive when we pull somebody up for not having their dogs on leashes,” he remarked.
According to Wyeth’s statements, he is an animal lover and has 10 dogs. To which he responds: “There is no dog that is terrible. It is the owner that is bad.”
Dr. Jenna Kiddie, the Dogs Trust’s director of canine behavior, urged all dog owners to keep an eye on their pets when they see, hear, or smell cattle…
Dogs may chase regardless of their breed, kind, age, or size,” she noted. “It is vital to remember that chasing is part of the dog’s natural behavior.”
In addition to the harm their dogs may inflict and the chance of being punished, dog owners have additional cause to worry.
A farmer’s right to kill a dog that is pursuing cattle is protected by the law, and Wyeth has previously shot beloved dogs. For weeks thereafter, he stated, “It’s dreadful.”
Nevertheless, he said, “We’ve just begun lambing, so I carry my pistol with me. My sheep will be attacked by a dog in the next two or three weeks, and I will kill it…”
