The National Sheep Association (NSA) said the ongoing failure of UK dog owners to recognise the threat their pet animals pose to farm livestock is leading to continued devastating attacks on sheep.
This message comes as the sheep farming charity holds its annual sheep worrying by dogs awareness week and shares its latest results from its annual survey on the scale and impact of the issue.
Findings reveal that 87% of survey respondents experienced a dog attack on their sheep flock in the last 12 months and the cause of this is mostly identified as the simple refusal of dog owners to keep their pet on a lead whilst walking in the countryside.
NSA project manager Nicola Noble said: “Dog owners often assume their beloved pet could not be capable of causing harm to other animals, yet it is an instinctive response of a dog to chase, and for some, attack prey animals such as sheep. Barking, chasing and physical attacks can all have devastating effects on sheep, especially at this time of the year when so many sheep in the fields are heavily pregnant or have young, vulnerable lambs at foot.”
The 2025 survey results include some sobering statistics that indicate despite continued work by NSA and other farming and countryside organisations the important message of keeping dogs on leads near sheep is still not being followed with distressing consequences.
Farming respondents to the survey on average reported four sheep deaths per year due to sheep worrying by dogs, this is an increase from previous years but still does not take into account additional losses from lamb deaths when miscarried by ewes due to stress from attacks.
As well as sheep deaths, extreme injuries will often cause long term pain and suffering for animals and financial loss to farmers with increased vet bills and a reduced number of stock available to sell.
Mrs Noble continued: “Sheep worrying by dogs not only causes suffering to livestock but is also a real cause of stress and worry to farmers. Farmers have reported in this and previous surveys that their mental wellbeing has been compromised by the continued threat to their animals.
“A high proportion (80%) of survey respondents also reported a negative experience when approaching dog owners to ask for their dog to be put on a lead with just under half receiving verbal and, in some cases, even physical abuse.”
Dogs straying from their homes and gardens is also identified as a frequent cause of attacks on sheep.
Some 43% of survey respondents found evidence of a sheep worrying incident rather than the attack being witnessed by the farmer or another person. This could indicate straying dogs to be the cause, or a failure of dog owners to confess attacks happening.
Over half the respondents also reported that attacks happened in private fields with no footpaths also suggesting straying dogs or a failure of dog owners to respect private farmland. Such cases make it difficult for farmers to pursue compensation, adding to their frustration and financial losses.
Almost half of this year’s survey respondents didn’t pursue compensation, reporting feelings of helplessness if and when cases were reported to the police. Despite this, NSA has urged farmers to report ALL cases to the police to try and raise awareness of the tremendous scale of this issue.
NSA communications manager Katie James added: “It is a common misconception that nothing will be done if farmers try and report cases of sheep worrying to the police, but if they are not reported the true scale of this serious issue will never be fully appreciated and the work of NSA to push for stricter legislation and enforcement will not be realised.”
To help gain a more accurate record of the number of sheep worrying by dogs cases happening NSA has this week launched a new online log service for all sheep farmers across the UK to report cases of attacks.
Mrs James concluded: “Although it not a legal obligation to report cases, NSA is urging farmers to use its new service, as well as making reports to the police to get a better and more accurate record of cases and their locations. The new NSA online log form is very simple and easy to complete.”
The online log can be found here, along with further advice for sheep farmers having experienced an attack of their livestock.
