Ruff justice: police seek powers to seize dogs that attack livestock

Police want the power to confiscate dogs who repeatedly attack and worry livestock under new proposals to deal with the problem in rural areas.

The creation of a dog DNA database, powers to seize and retain troublesome canines and a new law requiring owners to keep dogs on a fixed lead around livestock are among the measures recommended by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) following a joint initiative between five police forces to gather data on the issue.

Police currently face a number of problems when prosecuting livestock worrying dogs, because authorities are unable to search an owner’s home for a canine that has attacked captive animals, and owners are not required to report incidents.

The all-party parliamentary group for animal welfare estimates that about 15,000 sheep were killed by dogs in 2016, costing farmers £1.4m.

Under the NPCC initiative, officers in North Yorkshire, Devon and Cornwall, Sussex, North Wales and Hertfordshire recorded 1,705 incidents of livestock worrying and attacks in their districts from September 2013 to 2017. The attacks resulted in the deaths of 1,928 animals and 1,614 injuries at an estimated cost to farmers of £250,000 .

Around 10% of the incidents involved owners dogs that had worried or attacked livestock before, and in most cases the animal was not on a lead or with its owner at the time.

“This project provides hard data showing livestock worrying is a very significant issue for farmers that impacts on their livelihoods,” said chief constable David Jones, the NPCC lead for wildlife and rural crime.

“We need dog owners to take responsibility for their animals – not just by putting their dogs on a lead when out walking, but by preventing them from escaping from home and causing damage to livestock,” he said. “We need livestock owners to report incidents so that we can gather intelligence and launch investigations.

“Above all, we need the powers to tackle this problem effectively and an overhaul of the outdated and sometimes ineffective rules surrounding livestock worrying.”

The NPCC also recommended an expansion of the legal definition of livestock to include llamas, alpacas, emus and ostriches, because they are not protected by law but are increasingly farmed in the UK.

The animal welfare minister Lord Gardiner said he would look closely at the group’s recommendations.

from Environment | The Guardian http://ift.tt/2CAkbf9
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