DOGS AND LIVESTOCK

I was disappointed that your dog walking tips article (March 2017) failed to emphasize the law concerning dogs on farmland and around livestock, as the majority of dog walkers seem to be completely unaware of their legal obligation. The Dogs (Protection Of Livestock) Act 1953 states “Your dog must not worry (chase or attack) livestock (cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, horses and poultry) on agricultural land, so keep your dog on a lead around livestock”. As we are very close to the start of lambing season and most of the countryside is agricultural land and not a massive

country park, I think this is a serious omission.

Also, it would help to clarify that National Parks, such as the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, Snowdonia and so on are still predominantly agricultural land. They are not ‘country parks’ even though they have ‘park’ in the title!

I’m a horse owner; my horse’s field has a footpath running through it. Most dog owners crossing the field don’t seem to understand their rights of access for themselves and their dogs begin and end on the footpath. The rest of the field is private property, not a park for their dogs to run loose and chase sticks and balls in because “the horses were at the other end of the field so I thought it was safe”. It’s not safe and it’s also illegal. Jo Stubbs, Nottingham

Editor Fergus Collins replies: The article was about controlling dogs when on walks in order to avoid unpleasant confrontations with livestock and people. We have published several articles on the issues surrounding dogs and farm animals and these can now be found at countryfile.com