United Kingdom: 'I'm crying my eyes out': Horror pictures show pedigree rams "savaged" after vicious Pit Bull attack

UNITED KINGDOM -- A woman has shared horrific photos of her pedigree rams after she says they were "savaged" in a vicious dog attack.

Sarah Spence posted on Facebook graphic pictures of the animals brutally mauled with blood on their faces and backs.

She also informed her followers that a six month lamb had been killed after it was ‘mutilated’ in the attack in Gloucestershire this weekend, Gloucestershire Live reports.

Writing shortly after the incident on Facebook, she said: “So here I sit again....crying my eyes out in a field ....with our three top pedigree rams that have just been brutally savaged by somebody's dog.

“Waiting for the vet to arrive but there is little chance these beautiful boys can be saved....the wounds to their faces are horrific.

“This dog was out to kill these sheep...they were so terrified they jumped into the river which is where we have just spent the last hour getting them out.”

Since her first post one of the rams was put down due to the extent of its injuries and she says it’s still unclear if the other two will survive.

She alleges the owner of the dog, described as a staffie (aka pit bull), has not come forward and the police are investigating the incident.

And she had strong words for those who do not control their dogs in rural areas.

“I will make it my life's work to ensure that our countryside is safe for our livestock and that dog owners learn to keep their dogs on a lead around farmland.......please, please, please it's a simple request.

“Maybe people who don't live and work with animals don't understand ......but to us these are more than just our farm rams, they are unique individuals that we work with and care for every day.

“To see this is happen to them is truly heartbreaking.”

Gloucestershire police have routinely advised dog walkers to keep their pets on the lead after attacks on farmers’ livestock.

(Mirror UK - Oct 8, 2017)

United Kingdom: Horror pictures show pedigree rams "savaged" after vicious Pit Bull attack

UNITED KINGDOM -- A woman has shared horrific photos of her pedigree rams after she says they were "savaged" in a vicious dog attack.

Sarah Spence posted on Facebook graphic pictures of the animals brutally mauled with blood on their faces and backs.

She also informed her followers that a six month lamb had been killed after it was ‘mutilated’ in the attack in Gloucestershire this weekend, Gloucestershire Live reports.

Writing shortly after the incident on Facebook, she said: “So here I sit again....crying my eyes out in a field ....with our three top pedigree rams that have just been brutally savaged by somebody's dog.

“Waiting for the vet to arrive but there is little chance these beautiful boys can be saved....the wounds to their faces are horrific.

“This dog was out to kill these sheep...they were so terrified they jumped into the river which is where we have just spent the last hour getting them out.”

Since her first post one of the rams was put down due to the extent of its injuries and she says it’s still unclear if the other two will survive.

She alleges the owner of the dog, described as a Staffordshire Pit Bull Terrier, has not come forward and the police are investigating the incident.

And she had strong words for those who do not control their dogs in rural areas.

“I will make it my life's work to ensure that our countryside is safe for our livestock and that dog owners learn to keep their dogs on a lead around farmland.......please, please, please it's a simple request.

“Maybe people who don't live and work with animals don't understand ......but to us these are more than just our farm rams, they are unique individuals that we work with and care for every day.

“To see this is happen to them is truly heartbreaking.”

Gloucestershire police have routinely advised dog walkers to keep their pets on the lead after attacks on farmers’ livestock.

 

(Mirror UK - Oct 8, 2017)

New Zealand: Dogs attack miniature horses, said to be "hanging off his face". Hmm, what kinds of dogs like to do that when they're attacking and killing livestock??

NEW ZEALAND -- When a screaming horse roused Sarah Ogle she rushed outside only to discover three of her miniature horses covered in blood and dog bites.

Although she never saw them, two wandering dogs had attacked the horses in their pens shortly before dawn on July 1. The dogs have not yet been found.

On Monday, the baby of the trio, Kit, was put down because of an infection from his injuries.

Yearling Kit collapsed on Monday as an infection 

took hold. He was later euthanized.

Ogle, who lives with her family on a farm at Normanby, said the same dogs are believed to have killed two sheep on a neighboring property and attacked a blind dog at another address that same night. She now feels under siege and fears they will come back.

"My kids won't go out, they normally go out right on dark to bring in the wood and they won't they have to do it in daylight, and they usually pushbike over the farm but they won't do that either.

"Even me, I'm in and out of the stables all the time in the dark if I hear a noise. I'm always out there. I went out there in the dark and it was flippin' scary.

"If those dogs are out there, what am I going to do? I went and bought a big heavy torch and I'm carrying my pocket knife."

Ogle's sister's children next door were also afraid to leave their property, she said.

Since the attack she had added extra mesh and doors to the stables to keep her eight horses secure.

The injured horses were recovering well, but Ogle is anxious for the dogs to be caught in case they attack again.

The dogs would have arrived home covered in blood from their killing spree.

"Someone must know where they are."

She said her nightmare began when her pregnant mare, Mia, woke her up "screaming blue murder."

"I ran to the window. It  was pitch black and all I could see was a horse in the paddock where it's not supposed to be."

She ran to the stables where she found Kit weaving on his feet. "I grabbed him, he was covered in blood. We bundled him into a stable and wrapped a towel around him."

As she tried to stop the young horse's bleeding and waited for the vet, her son moved the other horses into another pen.

The vet arrived and Kit underwent emergency surgery.

"They had been hanging off his face, we had to hold his face together, he was losing a lot of blood.

"They took a big chunk out of his chest between his legs and pretty much gouged out the top of one of his legs and he had punctures pretty much everywhere. We were working on his worst ones and as we'd clip around them, you'd keep finding more holes."

Dark Hunter, Ogle's show horse, had a split on his chin and lacerations on his face and legs. Paris, who is in foal, had deep wounds inside both front legs.

"The vet said it looks like they've clamped on, one either side, and hung on to the front of her legs. She refused to walk for a few days."

WHAT KINDS OF DOGS LIKE TO GRIP AND HANG FROM VICTIMS' FACES?

Mia, the matriarch, was covered in blood but uninjured. Ogle thinks she was attacking the dogs to protect her herd.

Ogle's sister, Joanne White, said she had been woken about 3.15am by snarls and howls from her backyard as two strange dogs tried to attack her dog through the fence around his kennel.

"It sounded like wolves fighting, like they were killing each other."

White's husband yelled out the window and the dogs, a big tan animal and a slightly smaller black one, fled.

Although they didn't hear any more noise, the dogs had gone next door and killed two sheep.

Later, they returned to the pens where Ogle's horses were stabled.

She said she had received help from the the miniature horse community to pay her vet bills.

South Taranaki District Council regulatory service manager Doug Scott said the council was keen to find the dogs responsible.

"Our main concern is to stop this happening again, get these dogs off the street. We're very keen to work with any person who knows where they are," he said.

"When the owner yelled and the dogs ran away, that tells me they're unlikely to attack a person, but it's really hard to say and I wouldn't trust them."

The council was currently prosecuting a dog owner over a different incident where some cattle were attacked, he said. The dogs involved in that attack were shot by the farmer.

(Stuff NZ - July 8, 2017)

United Kingdom: Frank Lewis, 18, stole 10 cats from a cat rescue. He tortured them, stabbing them in their legs to prevent them escaping while he turned his dogs loose to attack and maul them to death

UNITED KINGDOM -- A sadistic teen stole cats from an animal sanctuary to use as “live bait” for his dogs to kill.

Frank Lewis, 18, cut the cats’ legs to slow them.

A court heard he stole ten cats. Three were found dead and another three are missing.

Prosecutor Georgina Buckley said: “He used the cats for sport.”

Sanctuary owner Theresa Ahmed called Lewis “pure evil”.

Georgina Buckley, prosecuting, said: “Lewis essentially used the cats for sport. He used his dogs to hunt down and kill them.

“He caused lacerations to the cats himself to try and hinder their escape.”

He admitted burglary and criminal damage at Swansea Crown Court.

Judge Hopkins said: “You tortured a sheep before beheading it, and then took a photo such was your satisfaction at what had been done.

 

“You then broke into a cat sanctuary and stole 10 cats. You used them as bait for your dogs.

“They are acts of great cruelty amounting to sadism.”

Lewis, of Croeserw, near Port Talbot, was sentenced to 30 months in a young offenders’ institute.

His 15-year-old accomplice, who was found not to have taken part in the killing of the cats, was given a nine month curfew order earlier this month.

FRANK LEWIS AND HIS FRIENDS HAVE THE TRADEMARKS OF A SERIAL KILLER:

According to pet-abuse.com, animal abusers are five times more likely to commit violent crimes than non-abusers and violent childhood and adolescent offenders against animals are likely to repeat the criminal behavior as they become adults. Studies have shown that most serial killers tortured animals as children.

  

 

(The Sun - Jan 23, 2017)

United Kingdom: Sheep rescued after getting a traffic cone stuck on its head

UNITED KINGDOM -- Animal rescuers in Britain were called to a farm where a sheep was seen with its head stuck inside an orange traffic cone.

The RSPCA said rescuers were summoned Sunday to a Chorleywood, England, farm on a report of a "stuck" sheep, and they only learned what they meant when they arrived.

"We thought it must be stuck in brambles or something like that, but when our officer arrived she realized it's head was trapped -- in the cone," an RSPCA representative told the BBC.

RSPCA Inspector Rachel Smith said she was able to sneak up on the sheep and grab the cone, allowing the animal to simply walk out of its predicament.

Smith said the sheep was uninjured, "just a little embarrassed we suspect."

(UPI - Dec 9, 2016)

United Kingdom: Manx Loaghtan ram mauled and killed in dog attack

UNITED KINGDOM -- Police are investigating another dog attack on livestock in the west of the Island.

A Manx Loaghtan ram has been attacked, mauled and killed in a field at Ballacosnahan Farm on Patrick Road - the attack happened between 24 - 25 October.

The Western Neighbourhood Policing Team is appealing for witnesses who saw loose dogs in the area at the time to come forward.

Officers also ask for the owner of the dog to come forward believing they would have been aware of what happened.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Peel Police Station on 842208.

HOW SPECIES RELY ON EACH OTHER FOR SURVIVAL

The Manx Loaghtan is a breed of sheep (Ovis aries) native to the Isle of Man. The sheep have dark brown wool and typically grow four to six horns on their heads. It has been designated an "at risk" heritage breed by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. By the 1950s, there were only about 40 left in the world. Even today, with specific breeding and attempts to save the breed, it is said that there are fewer than 1,500 registered breeding females in the UK.

There appears to be a link between the presence of Loaghtan sheep and the ability of the Chough bird to thrive. Studies on Ramsey Island, Bardsey Island, and the Isle of Man have found that as the number of grazing sheep fell, so did the number of breeding Choughs; when sheep grazing increased, so did the number of breeding Choughs. This appears to be occurring on Jersey as well.

As the Loaghtans graze, they crop and trample the grass. This enables the birds to get at surface-active and soil insects. Also, the dung they leave draws beetles and fly larvae. These insects in turn are a resource for the birds when the ground is hard or other insects are scarce. - Wikipedia

(Manx Radio - Oct 27, 2016)

United Kingdom: Farmer photographs Pit Bull attacking and killing sheep

UNITED KINGDOM -- A farmer from Wales has used social media to share a graphic photograph of a dog in the process of attacking an animal, in a bid to raise awareness of the problem of sheep worrying among dog owners.

Fiona Davies, who farms at Llanberis at the base of Snowdon, said sheep worrying had become a big problem over the past two to three years – at the moment she was seeing at least one sheep attacked every weekend.

Mrs Davies said the picture was taken by a member of the public on Friday (5 August) and passed on to her with permission for it to be published on Twitter.

The sheep is thought to be owned by a neighbouring farmer, but the dog in question is known to her as it has previously attacked one of her own sheep.

“I wanted to raise awareness of what a big problem dog attacks are. It has always been an issue, but over the past two years it has got really bad,” she said.

Mrs Davies, who runs a camp site from her farm, said the picture had been viewed more than 10,000 times since she had published it, along with the message that anyone who loves their dog should look after them so they don’t cause such damage.

The attitude of some dog walkers was shocking, she said. “When you tell 90% of people their dog should be on a lead they say fine. But 10% get very mouthy, with some questioning why the sheep are loose and not housed.”

Farmers Weekly has also spoken to the member of the public who took the photograph and passed it to Mrs Davies.

He had been taking pictures of the scenery when the Staffordshire Pit Bull terrier-type dog appeared and started to attack the sheep.

He initially tried to intervene to stop the attack, but because he was dressed in lightweight cycling gear he was worried he would get injured if the dog turned on him.

So instead he decided to take some pictures as evidence and report the incident to the police.

The owner did eventually drag the dog away and seemed concerned that the incident would be reported to the authorities, said the witness.

Well of course he did. He doesn't want the police to take away his wigglebutt. Of course, since a human wasn't attacked, the police won't do anything - not even take the mauler from him. 

Mrs Davies features in a film launched last month highlighting the devastating impact of dog attacks on livestock.

North Wales Police (NWP) rural crime team’s first educational film – Livestock Education and Dogs (Lead) – was released on 14 July.

The film, shot on location in North Wales by SkyWebMedia/Fassen8 Productions, carries a simple message to dog owners: “Keep your dogs on a lead around livestock, especially sheep.”

(FWI UK - August 9, 2016)

California: Sheep pulled to safety by Rancho Adobe firefighters

CALIFORNIA -- A handful of Rancho Adobe firefighters spent their afternoon Thursday rescuing a subject a little fluffier than usual: a sheep that was trapped when a barn collapsed overnight.

The rescue mission at the Skillman Lane property outside Petaluma started at about 3:30 p.m., Rancho Adobe Engineer Kyle Heard said.

 

  

“We ended up gathering some of the homeowner’s wood to help shore up the barn, and we used some of our own shoring and our airbags to pump up the barn floor,” he said.

After about 20 minutes, the sheep was pulled to safety.

While the sheep seemed pretty tired, Heard said it didn’t seem to have suffered any serious injuries.

Firefighters placed the animal on their tarp and transported it into another barn.

(Press Democrat - Feb 18, 2016)

Pennsylvania: Veterinarian Clyde Shoop Charged with Animal Cruelty

PENNSYLVANIA -- State police have filed animal cruelty charges against a veterinarian from Jim Thorpe after finding more than a dozen horses starving on his property in Parrysville.

Those horses were taken to a rescue near Quakertown. Many of their ribs were showing as they still work to recover.

 

Last Chance Ranch near Quakertown has been a saving grace for the horses, their emaciated bodies suffering from starvation and dehydration.

Authorities took 16 of them from a veterinarian's property on Sunny Rest Road in Parryville, near Palmerton, just last month, with the help of Carbon County's animal response team.

"It was very upsetting to everybody on the team. We brought in crisis workers to help everybody out," said team member Diane Shapless.

Police charged Clyde and Kimberly Shoop with 11 counts of animal cruelty. Clyde runs a veterinarian office in Jim Thorpe.

Newswatch 16 knocked on the door, only to have a woman answer and then slam it shut, telling us never to come back.

 

"That a man who's supposed to be dedicating his life to saving animals, and helping them, and making sure they stay healthy, to find animals that were in his care in this condition is just absolutely appalling," said Emily Monsen, Last Chance Ranch.

Three of the horses died. Now, nine of the horses are getting plenty of water and care at the Last Chance Ranch.

Some of the horses staying there were so weak they couldn't stand up on their own. Workers called the local fire department, which brought hoses and used them as slings to help them get up.

Some sheep, 10 dogs, and several other animals were also taken from the property.

Rescue teams say Shoop actually helped them on a call in 2013. They say summary charges are no consolation for this type of abuse.

"Not really," said Sharpless. "Giving water to animals is just something that should always happen."

According to the Pennsylvania Department of State, Clyde Shoop was fined $500 in 2002 for operating as a veterinarian on an expired license from May 1, 2001, to Dec. 12, 2001. His license was reactivated Dec. 13, 2001, records show.

The affidavit said state police in Lehighton were notified Jan. 20 that there were several dead horses and other animals in poor health on the property. On Jan 21, state Trooper Erin Cawley, animal cruelty liaison for the state police in Lehighton, observed a dead horse lying in a rear pasture of the Sunny Rest Road property, as well as five horses that appeared to be "dangerously thin for the current temperatures."

 

 

Police said the remains of three other horses were observed Jan. 22 underneath several pallets, and the remains of another horse were located on an additional part of the property underneath a partially burned mattress.

Moreover, two horses, a goat, a dog, two sheep and a lamb — all dead — were found in a pit in a wooded portion of the property, police said.

The Department of Agriculture is continuing to investigate.

(WNEP - Feb 4, 2016)

Earlier:

• Pennsylvania: Firefighters help rescue twelve neglected animals

Texas: Family pet shot, killed by neighbor

TEXAS -- "He was the sweetest and best animal, and the best friend to my kids,” Ashley Holmsten said.

She held back tears, still in shock after their family’s 5-year-old Labrador Retriever named Riggins was shot and killed Saturday by one of their neighbors in Grimes County.

At first, Ashley says they thought he was lost.

"We looked all day, drove every road, my kids were looking out the window, yelling his name," Ashley said.

Somehow, Riggins and their other dog, a German Shepherd, got out of their fence and found themselves on someone else’s property.

Dr. John Lee Walker (he's a dentist) lives about 200 acres away from the Holmsten's. Chris Tritico is his attorney.

"He has had for over a year now, a problem with wild dogs attacking his sheep. I have given you the photographs. It shows the horrible treatment that his sheep had received from these wild dogs," Tritico said.

Does he have any photos of the sheep these dogs supposedly were attacking? I might be inclined to side with Walker if he had proof (video, photo). Also, if he was having repeated problems with 'wild dogs' attacking and killing his livestock, why not get a dog or a donkey or a llama to protect them?

The photos are too graphic to show.

"There was no collar on this yellow dog, nothing to indicate that this was someone's pet that had gotten loose. The yellow dog was with a black dog and they were attacking Dr. Walker's sheep," Tritico said.

The Holmstens said they received a call from Walker's wife once they realized the dog they shot was someone's pet.

"She was very sad, and she said we shot your dog, and I was like you what? How did you shoot our dog," Walter Holmsten said.

He said Mrs. Walker told him that Riggins was running around with the sheep but never said anything about how he was attacking them.

"We had a bunny and a chicken, he played with them, there was no threat, he never injured anything in his life," Ashley Holmsten said.

Grimes County Sheriff's Office is investigating the case.

(KPRC Houston - Jan 29, 2016)

United Kingdom: Kieran Taylor, 18, stabbed a sheep to death and set its body on fire

UNITED KINGDOM -- A disturbed teen has been banned from drinking alcohol after pressuring underage girls into having sex with him and setting fire to a sheep.

Kieran Taylor, 18, was also told he must obey a curfew and attend behaviour therapy after taking part in sexual activity with three girls, some of whom were up to three years younger than him.

The loner also kicked and stabbed a sheep to death before burning it.

Taylor, of Tilgate, West Sussex, pleaded guilty to three counts of engaging in sexual activity with a female child, arson and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal at an earlier hearing.

He 'pestered' one girl to give him oral sex, and the ordeal made her so upset she started to cry.

Another young victim got drunk with Taylor and was 'confused' when he put his hand down her leggings.

Appearing before Hove Crown Court, prosecutor Timothy Forster said: 'He took her to nearby woods. She was scared, and he persistently asked for sex. She said he did it as though she was his property. Another time a group had been at a house and when others were asleep or out of the room, Taylor pulled down her leggings.'

The third victim was asked for sexually explicit pictures from Taylor. They also had sex.

All of the incidents took place between November 2013 and October 2014.

Ian Morley, defending, said: 'The pressure he placed on these girls was not so great as to say we are dealing with a rape case. It was the sort of persistence that unfortunately is not uncommon in young sexual relationships, when young people are starting out in their sexual lives.

'The cruelty against the sheep is not the most serious offence he faces. The arson was a schoolboy attempt to destroy the evidence but in the circumstances it made matters even worse.'

Judge David Rennie spared Taylor jail last Friday.

He said: 'You have been lucky because you did a bad thing and nobody would argue if I had sent you down to the cells. I am giving you the chance to get the help you need. You have to be careful, though, because if you breach this sentence I will send you to prison and it would be a miserable experience for you.'

He sentenced Taylor to 11 months in prison, suspended for two years, for the underage sex offences.

He handed him a further four months for the animal cruelty, as well as the order banning him from consuming alcohol.

(Daily Mail - Jan 14, 2016)

Lancaster County PA livestock business cited for animal cruelty after dumping dying animals on dead animal pile

PENNSYLVANIA -- The New Holland Sales Stables in Lancaster County has been cited for cruelty to animals.

According to the citations, the incidents occurred on Feb. 16.

The sheep, one citation stated, was “left lying, in plain view to the public, on a pile of carcasses from the prior evening depriving the animal of necessary sustenance including but not limited to neglect, lacking sanitary shelter and failing to protect the animal against inclement weather to preserve the animal's body heat.”

The animal was not able to move, the citation said.

A similar report was filed in regard to the goat.

In each case, the animal had to be euthanized because of the severity of its condition.

(WGAL - Aug 8, 2015)

NOTE: Unfortunately, it appears that this is "business as usual" with New Holland Sales Stables. These photos are also from past auctions there:

New Holland Auction, PA 5/13/13

Do You Believe This Mare Can Make The Trip To A Canadian or Texas Slaughterhouse?

River Road man, Iradj “John” Dashti, accused of animal abuse pleads not guilty

WASHINGTON --Sequim man Iradj “John” Dashti, 61, pleaded not guilty to two counts of alleged misdemeanor animal cruelty in the second degree at his arraignment hearing in Clallam County District Court on July 31.

Clallam County deputies first seized two donkeys, two sheep and four goats from Dashti’s property at 21 Serenity Lane off River Road on June 24 due to low levels of sanitation.

Deputies later reported to Dashti’s property on June 29 to investigate a dead, 100-pound pig, that was later found to be fed and watered.

Sequim resident John Dashti, 61, faces two misdemeanor
counts of animal cruelty in the second degree.— image credit:
Sequim Gazette file photo by Matthew Nash

However, deputies obtained another search warrant and seized the rest of Dashti’s animals including a dog, quail, pigs and rabbits except for a few free-range chickens they were unable to capture.
The animals now reside at Chimacum’s Central Valley Animal Rescue.

Prior to seizing the animals, Dashti was given multiple warnings by Animal Control Deputy Tracey Kellas regarding animal care in the past month.

Attention to Dashti’s property heightened following an anonymous online post showing photos of carcasses on Dashti’s property.

 

Dashti told the Sequim Gazette in a previous interview that he wasn’t hiding anything and that some of his animals were killed when tree branches fell on them during last winter’s storm that flooded his property.

Dashti said he kept some carcasses because a Seattle company buys them for $60-$80 each.

However, Chief Criminal Deputy Brian King said Dashti also told law enforcement he’s kept the carcasses as collections and for research, too.

Dashti must pay a $250 bail bond by Aug. 7 or face jail time.

His readiness hearing tentatively is set for Sept. 8.

His misdemeanor charges could lead Dashti to pay up to $5,000 per charge or up to 364 days in jail per charge.

Animal cruelty in the second degree means a “person knowingly, recklessly or with criminal negligence inflicts unnecessary suffering or pain upon an animal.”

Dashti’s landlord filed to evict Dashti but he had not been evicted from the property as of Aug. 4.

(Sequim Gazette - Aug 5, 2015)

Earlier:

• River Road resident, John Dashti, charged with animal cruelty