A CHARITY plea has gone out after a sheep was left needing stitches having been mauled by a dog off its lead.

The dog had got into the fenced off Earth Trust Farm in Little Wittenham, near Wallingford, when it attacked the sheep on Saturday leaving it with wounds on the face and groin.

The owner left the field without reporting it. Shepherd Emma Blomfield, one of the farm's tenants, found out from a passerby who raised the alarm.

She said: "The ewe required urgent treatment: there was a puncture wound to her groin and she needed a significant number of stitches on her face.

"I am lucky that she survived the shock but we won’t know until spring whether she has miscarried her lamb."

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The field where the sheep are grazing is separated from the footpath by a barbed wire fence, and the Earth Trust charity has said had the dog been on a lead, it would not have been able to get near the animals.

It has since urged dog walkers to keep their pets on leads around all livestock.

Ms Blomfield said: "It is very upsetting to see one of your animals in pain; the welfare of my sheep is paramount and this is an incidence of unnecessary suffering caused by an avoidable act.

"It is not the dog’s fault, I like dogs, but owners need to be more vigilant when walking around farmland.

"Even if you think your dog is well-behaved, situations can escalate quickly. Please, please keep your dog on a lead around livestock."

The shepherd has had previous experience of similar attacks after six sheep drowned in 2016 after being chased into the River Thames by a loose dog in Church Meadow, Wittenham Clumps.

Earth Trust head of land management Chris Parker said: "Grazing is a critical part of the management for our meadows, as it helps to keep them in the best condition for wildflowers to flourish, in turn providing nesting and foraging habitats for other wildlife.

"We welcome dogs to our site and the majority of walkers are responsible, but we need all of them to be aware of the risks a loose dog can pose to livestock.”