TWO six-week-old lambs have been killed and one has been left with serious injuries in what a farmer has branded ‘the most horrific dog attack he’s ever seen’.

John Smith, who runs New Barn Farm in Tockholes, was out in one of his fields when he came across a lamb with blood dripping from its ear.

Mr Smith said: “I was going to check on my sheep as normal and found one that looked a bit frightened.

“I drove past it and then came across another lamb which was running around with its ear hanging off and blood all over it.”

Approaching the lamb to assess its injuries, Mr Smith, 36, said he then saw another lamb which had had its head ripped off.

He said: “It was horrific. The most horrific thing I’ve seen.

“Three lambs had been attacked. One was dead, and the one with its ear hanging off had to be put down as its injuries were just too severe.

“The other one has had some treatment and is doing ok at the moment. They were only six weeks old.”

Lancashire Telegraph:

Mr Smith contacted the police later that day to report the incident.

On Tuesday, he said, the owners of the dog had handed themselves in to police.

He said: “I don’t know whether they saw their dog attack the lambs, but they said it had got away from them and they wanted to make things right.

“It’s cost about £300 in treatment so far.

“It’s not the money or anything we are bothered about, it’s the situation.

“It’s a regular, ongoing occurrence.

“I took over the farm from my dad about five years ago and this is the fourth time in those five years there’s been a dog attack.

“There’s footpaths everywhere, but in the field where my lambs were killed there wasn’t one. The dog had come through Tockholes Woods and jumped over a wall.”

Mr Smith said people like to think their dogs wouldn’t chase sheep, when in reality the vast majority do.

“I’ve got signs up asking people to keep their dogs on leads, not just because of sheep and lambs but because of other wildlife,” he said, “it’s common sense to keep your dog on a lead around farms, it’s not rocket science.

A police spokesperson said: “We are aware of an incident on May 14 at a farm on Tockholes Road."