Dog owner banned from farms after pets kill sheep

A dog owner has been banned from farmland after his animals attacked sheep

A man who admitted repeatedly letting his dogs chase and injure sheep, causing several deaths, has been banned from walking dogs anywhere near livestock for seven years.

A farmer called Northamptonshire Police in March to say two dogs had chased and injured two of their heavily pregnant sheep in a field near Preston Capes, south of Daventry, one of which went on to give birth to three stillborn lambs and later died herself.

Jose Lopez-Vidal, 62, of Laburnum Close, Woodford Halse, admitted five counts of being the owner of a dog worrying livestock.

He was ordered to pay almost £3,000 in fines and compensation and banned from taking dogs anywhere near agricultural land.

Police said its rural crime team identified that Lopez-Vidal's dogs were linked to other incidents where sheep had been attacked, including one in December last year and another in February.

All involved ewes or lambs left distressed, injured or dying.

As a result, he was charged with five counts of being the owner of a dog worrying livestock.

One of the affected farmers told officers: "This incident has really upset me, seeing what my ewes have gone through is heart-breaking.

"We respect our animals and look after them to the best of our abilities and I have lost confidence in people who go through our field as I am constantly worrying if they will have their dogs on leads, whether they will stick to the footpath or whether I will be verbally abused if I were to ask them to keep their dog on a lead and respect our footpaths."

PC Chloe Gillies said: "The repeated failure of Jose Lopez-Vidal to be a responsible dog owner has caused farmers... a huge amount of upset.

"Although Lopez-Vidal did identify himself to two affected farmers and apologised to them, he took no steps to change his behaviour or keep his dogs on leads to prevent further attacks.

"By letting his dogs run wild, his actions led to the unnecessary injury and deaths of ewes and lambs, causing heartbreak to the farmers and leaving them also suffering financially."

The order imposed on Lopez-Vidal was made under section 1A of the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953.

PC Gillies said it was possibly the first time "such an order like this has been issued in our county".

It requires Lopez-Vidal to prevent the entry of any dog which he has charge of from going onto land which he knows, or reasonably ought to know, is agricultural land, on which livestock is present, or is likely to be present, for seven years.