2024 - Incidence of sheep worrying again in our parish – dogs on leads please.

There has recently been a terrible incidence of sheep worrying in our Parish of Wilcot, Huish and Oare recently.  Twelve ewes in lamb were injured and five were killed by the dogs or were destroyed due to the severity of their injuries.  The scene for those who found them was horrific.

The Rural Police Force patrols are carrying out operations to find and prosecute owners of sheep worrying dogs this month in a national campaign. Following the updated legislation, the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Bill, Police will now be given greater powers to respond to livestock worrying incidents more effectively – making it easier for them to collect evidence and, in the most serious cases, seize and detain dogs to reduce the risk of further attacks.

No matter how well trained your dog is, it is vital that you keep your dog on the lead around livestock, even if you can usually trust it to come to call. If you live in or near a farming area, you must make sure that your dog cannot escape from your property, as it may find its way onto land containing sheep.

The National Sheep Association (NSA) are runing a week long campaign from March 25th Click HERE for the link. This will help you and your pet have fun and safe days out without disrupting the important work of sheep farmers. You should also read this advice if you are a dog owner living in or near a farming area, as escaped dogs can be a real problem for farmers.

It is every dog’s instinct to chase, even if they are usually obedient and good with other animals. Also other walkers on a footpath might not appreciate your dog running up to them.

Chasing by dogs can do serious damage to sheep, even if the dog doesn’t catch them. The stress of worrying by dogs can cause sheep to die and pregnant ewes to miscarry their lambs.

Sheep fleeing from dogs are often killed or seriously injured by their panicked attempts to escape, causing untold damage to fences and field boundaries in the process.

Dogs chasing ewes and lambs can cause mis-mothering issues, with lambs dying from starvation or hypothermia when they become separated from their mother and fail to find her again.

Dog bites can cause death in sheep or necessitate them being put down at a later date, or in less severe cases considerable veterinary bills and additional welfare issues as a result of flies being attracted to the blood and leading to a nasty health problem in sheep called ‘fly strike’. Injuries to sheep can also delay the normal farming routine, be it the mating season or administration of vital medicines and vaccines.

It is an offence to allow a dog to worry sheep. Worrying includes attacking or chasing sheep and, in some circumstances, farmers are legally entitled to shoot dogs if they are endangering their sheep. Find out more by clicking HERE  to visit the  ‘Staying legal’ sections below.

To hear from farmers about the effect dog worrying has on them, click HERE to watch the video.

Click HERE to see the leaflet.