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Fife farmer hits out after pregnant sheep put at risk by ‘frustrating’ hillwalkers

Pete Black of Newton of Collessie Farm in Fife says walkers are putting pregnant sheep at risk. Image: DC Thomson.
Pete Black of Newton of Collessie Farm in Fife says walkers are putting pregnant sheep at risk. Image: DC Thomson.

A Fife farmer has been forced to move pregnant sheep inside as hillwalkers are putting them at risk by leaving gates open in his field.

Pete Black, of Newton of Collessie near Ladybank, has been forced to take extra precautions on his farm after his livestock was jeopardised.

The farmer, who recently featured on the BBC Two series, ‘This Farming Life’, is now urging locals to spread the word about closing gates when walking through farm fields.

Pete said the issue has been exacerbated in recent weeks, due to a gate between two groups of pregnant ewes being left open repeatedly.

Pete said his sheep were being kept separate to ensure they received proper feeding. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson.

He said the sheep were deliberately being kept separate due to one half of the group being pregnant with twins or triplets, meaning they were to be fed more.

Pete said: “It’s very frustrating, this particular incident was with two different groups of pregnant ewes.

“Both groups of sheep look exactly the same with a gate between them, but with three weeks from lambing time it’s crucial they are kept apart for feeding.

“Once they were mixed together we had to evaluate whether to regroup them as this can stress them out, cause them to bump their tummies together and risk abortion.

“Not regrouping them means some may be getting too much feed and others might not be getting enough.”

Risk of abortion to pregnant ewes

After one of the farm’s pregnant ewes suffered an abortion, Pete implemented further measures to ensure the safety of his flock.

He said: “We had a younger ewe with triplets so you could argue she would have aborted anyway but in our mind for a couple days she didn’t get the correct food requirement, along with a number of things that could’ve created that.

“It’s the unknown of what’s going on when we’re not there.

“We put string around the gate to keep it closed so the fact someone had untied this and still left it open feels like an act of rebellion

“We even put up signs and they were damaged after night one.

“We’ve now decided to keep the sheep inside which is a little bit early than normal but at least we have them under a watchful eye – but we shouldn’t have had to take that measure.”

Lockdown saw increased issues at the farm

Pete said the farm, which is known for breeding Clydesdale horses, has had continuous issues with disrespectful visitors since the beginning of lockdown, including people leaving behind bagged dog poo and letting cattle out.

He said: “Covid and lockdown have drawn outsiders to the farm that normal people have walked over for generations.

Pete Black with a Clydesdale horse. Image: DC Thomson.

“We had issues with cattle being let out in the summer time and if they had gotten out on to the road and a family had been driving with their car, the endless things that could go wrong is unthinkable.

“We have 400 acres of lightly stocked land which people are free to walk as they wish but for some people respect goes out the window.

“It takes a lot of time and effort to buy land and keep it right.

“It’s maybe a field to someone else but to us who work at the farm, it’s our home.”

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