Neglected livestock left to die at farm

COURT: Inspectors forced to put emaciated animals out of their misery at Angus business

Mortality rates in excess of 30% were recorded at the farm of an Angus man where inspectors found emaciated, lice-ridden and hypothermic livestock.

In one incident, an emaciated ewe was so ill it could not lift its head or get up, and post-mortem examinations of some animals revealed intestinal worm infections at more than twice the level of what would be considered clinical disease.

Details of the horrific sights encountered by veterinary inspectors were revealed to Forfar Sheriff Court, where 67-year-old Angus farmer George Pattullo will now be sentenced next month.

He previously admitted animal welfare charges relating to livestock on land at Lintrathen, near Kirriemuir, in 2013.

Pattullo pleaded guilty part way through a trial at Forfar, his wife Allison having previously had not guilty pleas accepted after she was originally charged in connection with the matter.

In an agreed narrative on the case presented to Sheriff Gregor Murray, details of several days of inspections carried out at the farm revealed 100 ewes from a flock of 350 had died, a mortality rate of 29%.

The accused also told inspectors that six cattle had been lost, and with a further two requiring to be euthanised on humane grounds, that equated to a 31% death rate among the total herd.

During one visit a vet picked up a hypothermic lamb for it to be taken inside, and numerous sheep carcasses were recovered, varying in states of decomposition from recently deceased to completely autolysed.

Strongyle count levels – an intestinal worm – were recorded at 1,550 in a faecal sample, where a level of 750 would be consistent with clinical disease, the narrative added.

There was no quad bike or tractor to inspect stock in the field or to transport feedstuffs out to them.

The report before the court said the winter of 2012/13 had been very difficult for some farmers and the high levels of mortality and poor condition of Pattullo’s livestock were considered to be the result of “inadequate nutrition combined with stock affected by liver fluke and parasitic gastroenteritis”.

Inspectors were also concerned that the accused had not contacted his own vet to investigate the level of losses and take the necessary action to protect the welfare of livestock.

Angus farmer George Pattullo arriving at Forfar Sheriff Court.