A livestock worrying incident that caused the deaths of several sheep in Warwickshire has resulted in full compensation of over £11,000 for the affected farmers.
The attack, which took place in late December 2024, involved two dogs and affected multiple farms in the south of the county.
The incident had a devastating impact, both financially and emotionally, on local farming families, according to Warwickshire Rural Crime Team.
“As you can imagine, an incident like this had a massive impact on the community,” said a spokesperson for the team.
“Livestock worrying has a serious effect on farmers, who not only lose animals immediately, but may continue to suffer losses weeks or months later.
"Shock can cause complications with births, especially if ewes are in lamb at the time of the incident.”
According to the rural crime team, this was precisely what happened in the December case.
“Several sheep from different farms were killed by the dogs, and the shock caused further damage and losses afterward," they added.
"Not only did this cost farmers valuable in-lamb ewes, but also time and money repairing fencing, removing the affected livestock, and more.”
Thanks to information from the local community, the suspect was swiftly identified and a full investigation and interview were carried out.
“The suspect made a full and frank admission, which allowed us to explore alternative outcomes to prosecution,” the team stated.
They explained that pursuing the case through the courts would likely have resulted in a maximum fine of £1,000, leaving each farmer to pursue civil claims to recover the full cost of their losses.
Instead, the suspect agreed to a set of conditions, which included paying full compensation totalling nearly £11,500 and agreeing to specific controls in relation to the dogs involved.
In a message to the public, the rural crime team urged vigilance to prevent similar incidents.
“Please help us prevent future incidents. Keep dogs on leads near livestock. Together, we can protect our rural communities.”
In a separate incident in Essex, a dog walker was also ordered to pay compensation after his dogs caused the death of a pregnant ewe and traumatised others.
The 55-year-old man allowed his pets to roam off-lead along a lane in Ingatestone on 29 March 2025, where they ran into a nearby field, alarming the flock.
