ENGLISH SHEEP industry leaders are calling on Westminster to strengthen south-of-the-border legislation on sheep attacks by dogs, to follow Scotland's tougher approach.

The National Sheep Association believes the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill currently progressing through the UK Parliament offers a prime opportunity to bring much needed action.

“Simply including the instruction for dogs to be on a lead when in the proximity of, or likely to come into contact with grazing livestock, would reduce these terrible incidents and by increasing the fines would act as a deterrent for irresponsible dog owners who do not keep their dogs under control,” said NSA chief executive Phil Stocker.

The sheep farming body has reported a worrying increase in reports of attacks, causing stress and significant animal welfare concerns. NSA argued: "As a nation, the UK, quite rightly, demands high standards of animal welfare in farming but for government to continually ignore the stressful impact of dog attacks not only on sheep welfare, but also on the mental welfare of sheep farmers and keepers is therefore ludicrous."

The organisation is keen to highlight that dog attacks are likely to worsen in the coming months, with heavily pregnant ewes at risk of miscarrying lambs due to stress caused by dogs. A number of disturbing cases reported recently include sheep killed by a train after a dog chased them onto a railway line and a case of the RSPCA being alerted when a sheep was chased off of a cliff by a dog.

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South Devon sheep farmer Rich Rossiter’s flock of sheep graze the fields and cliff tops of one of the South Coast’s most popular areas and have been greatly affected by sheep worrying over the years: “We are frequently faced with sheep having been chased off of cliffs, into roads, pushed into cattle grids and physically attacked by dogs whose owners don’t believe their animals are capable of such things. This is easy to stop – keep dogs on leads. It is not difficult, and it is what a responsible dog owner would do.”

NSA has applauded the current actions being taken in Scotland, with the recent strengthening of legislation to increase penalties for owners who let their dogs attack livestock to a maximum fine of £40,000 and/or 12 months imprisonment. A new campaign from Police Scotland and other rural bodies titled ‘Your Dog – Your Responsibility’, is also highlighting the increased penalties for those found guilty of letting their pets worry, kill or injure farmed animals.

NSA Scottish Region coordinator, Grace Reid, concluded: "We are extremely pleased to see the recent strengthening of Scottish legislation relating to sheep worrying by dogs. Ministers across the nations are urged to welcome an equal approach if they are able to do so. However, it is clear much more education and responsibility is required when accessing the countryside to prevent the use of strengthened powers. In its simplest form, each dog owner should have complete and total control over their dog at all times and this sadly is not the case.”