A FARMER has asked dog walkers to keep their pets under control after two ewes in lamb died following a sheep worrying incident.

Mr Graham Ventham of Piper's Hill Farm, near Amport, was keeping the sheep on his land opposite the Hawk Conservancy for another farmer.

A passer-by saw a dog chasing sheep and Mr Ventham later discovered the two dead ewes in the field. They were worth about £80 each.

Mr Ventham, who has been at the farm for six years and lets the sheep graze free of charge because they are good for the land, says there are footpaths running alongside, at the top of and across the field.

The sheep are enclosed by an electric fence but there is no boundary around the outer perimeter of the 120 acres because the previous owners were solely arable farmers.

"The problem is that people let their dogs off the lead and don't know where they run to," said Mr Ventham.

"They tend to use it like a park because it's not ploughed at the moment."

Dogs are able to jump the electric fence and cause havoc inside. Mr Ventham said: "The outer perimeter needs to be fenced properly and I will start doing that now."

Pc Ted Reynolds warned dog owners that sheep worrying was an offence. "Dogs should be kept under proper control at all times," he said.

"The courts have the power to impose conditions that the dog should be kept under control for 12 months. But ultimately, if those conditions are not met then the destruction of the dog is inevitable."