DOG owners in Wiltshire have been urged to ensure they keep their pets under control when walking in or near fields housing livestock.

The call follows a serious incident near the Kennet & Avon Canal on the outskirts of Trowbridge in which two sheep were savaged by a cross-breed dog.

Farmer Richard Young, from Upper Westwood, shot the dog after early Sunday morning fishermen caught it worrying his sheep and were unable to get near it.

He said: “The whole thing has been deeply upsetting. My sheep were in a pen the size of a tennis court and didn’t stand a chance.

“I was trying to wean one of them. It was an orphan which had been rejected by its mother and I had been bottle feeding it for the past eight weeks.

“I had given the lamb its last bottle on Saturday morning and put it in a pen during the afternoon with another sheep I had nursed back to health after it ate a poisonous plant.

“When I arrived, I found an absolutely horrific scene and was forced to humanely destroy one of my sheep immediately, as well as the dog.

“The fishermen were unable to get near to the dog, which was running between them and the carcasses of the two sheep it had attacked. They called me out and when I got there one of the sheep was still alive but very seriously hurt.

“If it had been any of my other flocks, I would have found it easier to bear but because I have spent a lot of time with these two sheep, their loss has really hit me hard.”

The fawn-coloured dog, Max, is believed to be a cross-breed and was owned by Alan Piper, who had lost it the previous evening when it chased a deer while walking along the canal.

The dog had been off the lead during the walk but somehow it managed to free itself from its muzzle before attacking the sheep. Mr Piper is understood to be devastated by the incident involving his dog.

PC Nigel Willcocks, of Wiltshire Police in Trowbridge, said: “The dog was a rescue dog and a cross-breed. It was quite a strong and hefty dog weighing around 50 kilos.

“Mr Piper was talking it for an evening stroll along the Kennet & Avon Canal when he lost it after it chased a deer and spent half the night looking for it.

“Unfortunately, Max was seen worrying sheep near the Beehive off the Trowbridge Road and Mr Young was unable to stop it any other way than by shooting it.

“We would remind dog owners that they need to keep their pets under control and on a lead whilst walking in or near fields with livestock in them.”

Under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953, if a dog worries sheep on agricultural land, the person in charge of the dog is guilty of an offence.

The Act considers sheep worrying to include attacking sheep, chasing them in a way that may cause injury, suffering, abortion or loss of produce or being at large (not on a lead or otherwise under close control) in a field or enclosure in which there are sheep.

The National Sheep Association recommends that farmers only shoot dogs as a last resort, as the legality of a shooting depends on whether a farmer had a lawful excuse for shooting the dog in that individual circumstance.

The Countryside Code offers advice on walking your dog near livestock, saying responsible owners must ensure they keep it under effective control.

The Code says: “It is always good practice to keep your dog on a lead around farm animals. Keep your dog in sight at all times, be aware of what it’s doing and be confident it will return to you promptly on command. Ensure it does not stray off the path or area where you have a right of access.”

The Code also reminds walkers that a farmer ‘may shoot a dog which is attacking or chasing farm animals without being liable to compensate the dog’s owner’ for the loss of their pet.