Call to kill dogs that mauled sheep

Two "cute" spaniels that ripped the skin off a terrified sheep and ate it alive should be destroyed, says an Invercargill woman who witnessed the attack.

Angela Castle said she tried to shield her children from the "gross" spectacle as the two dogs attacked the lamb in a paddock off Kew Rd yesterday morning.

"I saw them ripping at it, I kept saying to the kids, ‘don't look'. It was gross, they were really pulling it to pieces, they ripped its skin off."

It reminded her that dogs, no matter how domesticated, were still primal animals, she said.

"I wouldn't have expected those cute-looking dogs to have done that."   why not? dogs are dogs@

She believed the dogs should be destroyed so they could not do the same to other sheep.  At least she made sense in so much that the farmer said no, they were someone's pet. So if the dog is cute, they don't get killed, but if it's an ugly dog, then slaughter house?!?

When the sheep's owner, Selwyn Helms, was alerted to the attack he rushed to the scene and caught the dogs, who did not resist.

(...) 

Despite this (3 times dogs ate his sheep), he was not so sure the dogs responsible for yesterday's attack should be destroyed, saying they were someone's pet.

He said he wanted the owners to keep better control of their animals, before adding: "I don't really want to see them put down but if they do that when they are around sheep they have to be."  Aren't farmers happy that sheep don't kill! 

Police and city council animal control officers were quickly on the scene. The bloodied dogs were led to the animal control wagon, put in the back and taken to the city pound.

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