Around 50 lambs have been stolen from a Hampshire farm with the police calling the theft a 'huge financial cost' to the farmer.
The lambs, which consist of three-week-old Welsh Mule and Texel Suffolk cross lambs, were stolen from a farm in the Hursley area.
The incident took place some time between midnight and 6am on Thursday 28 March, according to Hampshire Police.
Officers believe the person, or people, responsible would have had to have used a vehicle to transport the lambs from the field.
Two lambs were found dead as a result of the theft. The farmer is said to be 'very concerned' for the welfare of the sheep.
PC Steve Rogerson from the CountryWatch team said: “Understandably the farmer is very concerned for the welfare of these animals.
“There is a possibility that the ewes could suffer and even die, and other lambs in the field could die as a result of shock.”
He added: “Those that were stolen are at risk of losing their lives in transit, or from being away from their mothers and not being kept in the right environment.”
The incident is all the more distressing for the farmer as he has lambed the animals himself and raised the young ones from birth, PC Rogerson explained.
Hampshire NFU Adviser Sandra Nichols said the union is 'appalled' at this theft as there are serious animal welfare implications for both the ewes and lambs.
“Anyone who has information should contact police and we also ask people to keep their eyes open, in case these animals should turn up somewhere,” she said.
“Please report any suspicious activity to police on 101. We have also been reminding our farmer members to check their roadside gates are secure.”
In March 2019 alone over 200 sheep were stolen from a farm in Wiltshire and 71 pregnant ewes were stolen from a Derbyshire farm.
It comes as a Freedom of Information (FoI) request made by the BBC shows how nearly 10,000 sheep stolen last year by livestock rustlers in England and Wales has only resulted in one charge by the police.
