Our Coast, Our Sea - Keep dogs on a lead!

26 April 2010

Northumberland Wildlife Trust is urging members of the public to keep their dogs on a lead as much as possible when they are out and about this spring.

Whilst dogs may not appear to be doing any harm, if allowed to run around unsupervised, they will upset nesting birds and especially ground nesting species.

If disturbed, birds may permanently abandon their nest with the eggs or young chicks inside or, equally as serious, they may be too frightened to return to the nest to sit on their eggs for a long period of time, which could result in the eggs cooling down cold and failing to hatch.

Various other types of wildlife and their young, including foxes, badgers and mice are also at risk from unsupervised dogs.

Most recently, two sheep have died following dog attacks at the Trust’s Linton Lane reserve. These Soay sheep were owned by Flexigraze, an organisation that provides animals for conservation grazing on many of the Trust’s reserves.