THERE seems to be a growing number of instances of sheep worrying during 2017 . Sheep farmers have been facing a growing number dog attacks on livestock costing approximately £ 1.6 million in costs . New figures have revealed around 7 % of dog owners have admitted to letting their dogs chase farm animals , with 60 % saying they ’ ve allowed their animals to wander off the lead around livestock . Insurance experts have said this has contributed to the jump in claims over the last two years . What many owners don ’ t seem to know or understand is that it ’ s a criminal offence to allow dogs to freely roam off the lead around livestock .

In North Wales , over the last four years there have been 469 separate attacks . The Rural Crime team started recording the incidents four years ago , when they noticed an increase ,

yet there hasn ’ t been a requirement by police forces to record incidents of sheep worrying by the Home Office until recently . Rob Taylor of the North Wales Rural Crime team said one of the key elements to tackling this issue is education . Which is why they are working closely with local education establishments to help promote the ‘ L . E . A . D ’ ( Livestock Education and Dogs ) campaign .

All farmers want the public to enjoy the countryside , and they appreciate that a lot of people are dog owners who want to enjoy walks with their dogs . Yet dog owners need to understand that sheep are valuable assets and any loss of animals will have a detrimental effect on farmers livelihood . It will also be very distressing for farmers to discover any animals that have died as a direct result of sheep worrying .

A dog ’ s instinct will be to chase , even the most well behaved

. Therefore , it ’ s essential for dogs to be kept on a lead at all times . A sheep doesn ’ t need to be savaged to die during an incident with an out of control dog . The mere fact of being chased can cause them to die through stress and heart failure . There is also the possibility of injury caused trying to escape whilst in a blind panic . Dogs chasing ewes could also cause those animals who are pregnant to miscarry the lamb as well as the mis-mothering of lambs who become lost during an attack .

It ’ s considered to be an offence to allow a dog to worry and the dog owner will be held responsible . In some situations , the farmer will be within their legal right to shoot the dog that ’ s endangering a flock of sheep .

The Dogs ( Protection of Livestock ) Act 1953 states that ; ‘ if a dog worries sheep on agricultural land , the owner / or person in charge of the dog is guilty of a

criminal offence . If a dog worries livestock on any agricultural land , the owner of the dog , and if it is overseen by a person other than its owner , that person shall be guilty of an offence .’

One of the worst incidents of sheep worrying was in 2016 , where more than 100 sheep

were killed . The large number of sheep , many of whom were pregnant , were discovered herded near a fence , all dead from either shock or crush injuries . The loss of sheep was estimated to be worth approximately £ 17,000 . Local police were convinced the deaths were caused by a dog or dogs .

Recently a cross party parliamentary group have suggested that dog owners should receive higher penalties under new legislation . One of those suggestions would be to raise the maximum penalty awarded for persistent or repeat offenders in attempt to act as more of a deterrent .

A recent incident has highlighted that Farmers should try to avoid direct confrontation with offenders . A farmer recently was fined for breach of the peace , after a heated exchange with a dog owner that had allowed his dog to worry sheep belonging to the farmer . The police charged