Angy but Sad news

An older couple who are my husbands parents friends has had their 2 JRT shot at point blank range by a farmer with a shotgun The owners are devisted. No warning or attempt was made to stop the dogs from upsetting the sheep from the farmer (not sure about owners)

I understand the laws on this, but can a farmer really see a JRT enough of a treat to shoot and kill without any warning!

That's tragic and if he was that close to shot the dog then he could have grabbed it but sadly yes there is no requirement for the farmer to actually attempt to stop the dog he considers is worrying his sheep.
Becky

Thats whats so upsetting Becky, why couldnt he have just picked the dogs up??

I guess the farmer's argument would be for his own safety as well... he didn't know the temperament of the dogs and whether they'd attack him.

I think some farmers are just trigger happy but unfortunately they're legally entitled to be

In general, dogs don't mean the same to them as they do pet owners and if they are concerned for their livestock (which, lets face it are their main income) then they will take whatever action necessary to their mind.

Awful as it is; if the dog was worrying the sheep the farmer has every right to shoot the dog. Not alone could there be injuries or death for the sheep, but alot of them will probably loose their unborn due to the dog worrying them.
Dog should have been on a lead and under control.

I agree with the livestock thing, but was a warning given to the owner's to keep the dog's of the land? Was it a first offence? poor dog's

I have also seen the damage first hand even jack russells can do to lambs at lambing time, imagine waiting 5 months for your prize lambs to be born and a JRT kills them i'd be as cross as he!!

Have to say yes he was perfectly within his rights, it wasn't his responsibility to grab the dogs. His responsibility was to his flock, esp the unborn lambs.
It's sad, and they must be devastated, but dogs need to be on lead around livestock. No warnings need to be given, if the dogs are on his land he can shoot

Run free little jacks

Very sad indeed, poor dogs, but I am afraid I think its the owners fault this happened, its widely known farmers have the rights to shoot dogs worrying their stock, so I doubt very much if the owners were unaware of the risk? all very sad and two dogs have paid the price of thier lives becaue of owner complacency

Mo

TBH im more shocked that no warning was given. Im aware of the country code. Iv kept horses and worked with cows ect, but never have come across a farmer that hasnt shouted any kind of warning.? Its possable we havnt got the whole story. Very upsetting though

it's not about just the physical threat to the sheep, it's about the stress caused by the dogs chasing them. Lambing season has started and there are a lot of ewes with unborn lambs that might now lose them because of this attack. A jack russel is more than capable of killing a young lamb or even seriously injuring an adult ewe, they are strong enough and tenacious enough to drag a fox out of a hole in the ground so what chance does a sheep have? He is not required to give a warning, the law is very clear and the dogs should have been under control, it is down to the owners that they weren't and unfortunately they have paid the price On top of having their dogs killed the owners could also be prosecuted for any livestock lost as a result of their negligence.