Sheep-killings by dogs worst yet — farmers

Press, 19 August 1978, Page 1

Sheep-killings by dogs worst yet — farmers

By

LANCE EARLY

Sheep-worrying by dogs on farmlands surrounding Christchurch is particularly bad this year. Some sheep owners say it is the worst they have" known. One of the worst affected areas lies between Hoon Hay and Halswell. In the last two months, almost 200 sheep have been killed, and many others mauled. On prices paid at Addington Market this week — $2O a head — they would have been worth almost $4OOO. Within two months, Mr Norman Grimwood, who manages a property on the main highway at Halswell, has lost 67 sheep, and another 55 have been badly mauled. He considers the worst dogs are German shepherds, red setters, or crosses from the two breeds. Then come Labradors and fox terriers. With his neighbour, Mr “Paddy” McCaw. Mr Grimwood sat up for 16 nights in an effort to catch the marauders, but the sheep killings continued. However, this week two sandy-coated German shepherds were traced to their home. The matter was put in the hands of the Heathcote County Council. This pair were regarded as the most persistent worriers; they were followed after the death of 21 sheep near Worsleys Road. Now that the dogs have been positively identified, the fanners expect the council to destroy them. Mr Grimwood learned that the owners of the dogs had been away for 10 days. He strongly suspects that because of the price of meat, many dogs are being underfed or not fed at all. “Half of these people don’t know where their dogs are, and when you confront them, they say their dog

would never do a thing like that..” Dog owners, he says, have not been tving up their pets at night. Only recently 14 loose dogs were counted in Hendersons Road, Hoon Hay. at 6.30 a.m. Mr W. M. Williams, who has been using a block at Halswell for grazing, has been putting his ewes in a woolshed overnight to try to ensure their safety. But because the ewes will begin to lamb, this cannot be done indefinitely. Mr McCaw, who has managed a property for the

Sisters of the Good Shepherd for 27 years, has described the sheep-worrying as the worst he has known. Recently a Waikari farmer sent sheep to Halswell to be grazed, but decided the risks were too great, and took them back home. The Mount Vernon Fanning Company, which runs from Bowenvale to Hillsborough, has lost 85 sheep in the last month. Three dogs have been shot; all were found without collars. The manager (Mr Brent Elder) has camped out at night in an effort to get other dogs. Because the ewes have begun to lamb, the situation has become very difficult. Mr Elder said yesterday that his sheep were still being attacked. He was after a pack of three dogs known to be worriers. Mr Elder believes the number of unregistered dogs would outnumber those which are registered. He agrees with Mr Grimwood that many dogs are not regularly fed, and are left to fend for themselves.

Mr Elder has decided to shoot any dog found on the property. In the Wigram Road area early this winter, a flock of lambs was decimated. the toll being 60. Those that survived were moved elsewhere. Even outlying districts are experiencing sheep-worrying problems. Several hoggets on the property of Mr C. A. Winter, at Kaiapoi, were killed recently. Mr Winter bailed up a terrier, and caught it. but not before it had bitten him. He duly delivered it to the Kaiapoi Borough Council. The terrier’s mate, a Labrador, was traced to its owner, who admitted he knew it w’as a tvorrier, but he said, “I had to give it a run.” The dog was destroyed. Sheep have also been worried in the Ohoka district. One farmer. Mr R. C. Kimber, lost 22. Twelve had been tavaged to death and the rest driven into a creek where they drowned. A dog was shot later near Kaiapoi. Another was caught in a cage; it carried an old collar. Sheep owners find that dogs involved in killing often travel a long way. Mr Grimwood gave the instance of a dog, shot on the Addingtor trotting ground, which had come from North Beach. Mr Grimwood and other fanners and farm managers would like more cooperation from councils, and more stringent bylaws governing the control of dogs. “What can we do if we can’t farm our land?” Mr Grimwood asked. He and Mr Williams said yesterday that from now on even the most innocent dog which stepped inside their gate, would “get the bullet.”