Dog walking in rural areas – what you need to know

With lambing well underway, Hertfordshire Constabulary’s Rural Operational Support Team (ROST) is once again calling on dog owners to ensure their pets are kept under control at all times while out walking in rural areas.

Rural Sergeant Alex Winning said: “It is crucial that you keep your dog on a short lead around livestock, even if you can usually trust it to come when called. If you live in or near an agricultural area, you must also make sure that your dog cannot escape from your property as it may find its way onto land containing livestock.”

Under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953, if a dog worries sheep on agricultural land, the person in charge of the dog is guilty of an offence.

The act considers sheep worrying to include attacking sheep, chasing them in a way that may cause injury, suffering, abortion or loss of produce, or being at large (i.e. not on a lead or otherwise under close control) in a field or enclosure in which there are sheep.

The act does not require livestock to be killed for this offence to be committed.

Dog owners can also be convicted for ‘allowing their dog to be dangerously out of control’ and in some cases owners have been cautioned or summonsed to court.

Recent changes to the law, which came into force last week, have strengthened protection for farmers and their animals.

Updates to the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) legislation now include:

• Expanded police powers, allowing officers to seize dogs suspected of livestock worrying, order DNA sampling, and enter premises to identify dogs involved in an incident.
• Increased maximum fines for livestock worrying offences, reflecting the seriousness and financial impact of attacks on livestock.
• An expanded definition of ‘livestock’, now covering a wider range of animals commonly kept on farms, offering greater protection for rural communities.

The Rural Team are also remining people to please be respectful of farmland and crops while out walking, to help protect the livelihood of our local farmers who are working hard to keep the nation fed.

If you see an incident of sheep worrying in progress you should call 999.

If the incident has already happened and is no longer in progress, you can report information online, speak to an operator in our Force Communications Room via our online web chat or call the non-emergency number 101.

Alternatively, you can stay 100% anonymous by contacting the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via their untraceable online form.