Defra's worrying priorities

Countryside Alliance Chief Executive Tim Bonner writes:

On Tuesday Sussex MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle secured a debate in the House of Commons on the issue of sheep worrying by dogs in Sussex. Of course sheep worrying is not a problem confined to Sussex and the last few years have seen horrific stories of pet dog attacks on sheep up and down the country.

In the debate Defra Minister George Eustice quoted a police report from earlier this year suggesting nearly 2,000 livestock deaths from worrying a year across just 5 police force areas. The number of incidents was increasing compared to previous years and 92 dogs were shot as farmers attempted to protect their livestock. In 66% of cases, the dog owner or dog walker was not present when the attack took place.

By any standards this is a significant and growing animal welfare problem. What is striking is that it took a back-bench opposition MP to bring a reaction to this issue from Defra and that even then the most that the Minister could offer was an 'awareness raising exercise'.

Contrast this with a series of announcements that have come out Defra in recent months promising legislation on issues from animal sentience to the ivory trade which have a much less direct relationship to animal welfare. In particular Defra's commitment to an outright ban electric collars and boundary fences looks particularly strange. As I have written previously we do not believe that electric training collars have a place in the normal training of dogs but sheep worrying is one area where they can have a role. Many dogs showing a tendency to chase and attack sheep have been cured with the use of these collars. Meanwhile thousands of other dogs are kept safely in gardens by 'invisible' electric boundary fences.

It is illustrative of the Government's confusion over animal welfare issues at the moment that it is reluctant to act on a real and evidenced animal welfare issue like sheep worrying, but ready to legislate on electric collars where evidence suggests at most a marginal welfare problem. Worse than that a ban on electric collars and boundary fences could see more sheep attacked and more dogs shot or euthanised.

To view the Countryside Alliance's response to the consultation on plans to introduce a ban on electronic collars for cats and dogs in England please click here. Information about how you can have your say can be found here, and if you would like to contact your MP directly about this, or any other issue, the Countryside Alliance have produced an informative guide to help you with this which can be found here.

Tim Bonner
Chief Executive
Follow me at @CA_TimB