A sheep has been dramatically rescued from a cliff face in Wales after being chased by a dog, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) has revealed.
The RSPCA Cymru in Wales has reminded dog walkers to keep their dogs on leads at all times when near farm animals.
This comes after a number of RSPCA Cymru personnel had to rescue a sheep that had been chased down a cliff near Aberreiddy in Pembrokeshire by a dog.
The rescuers captured footage of the rescue as they abseiled 50m down the cliff face, caught the animal and then abseiled further down to the beech below.
RSPCA Animal Welfare Officer (AWO) Andrew Harris lead the rescue and the sheep was later safely released with the rest of his flock.
Thankfully the sheep in this incident was uninjured and even gave us a little ‘bah’ as we released him back into the flock. However, it could have been much worse for the sheep and the dog that chased it over the cliff edge.
“As the weather gets warmer and more people walk their dogs in the countryside, we urge people to take care around farm animals and ensure that their dog is kept on the lead at all times when in or near fields containing livestock,” Harris said.
Second dramatic rescue this month
The RSPCA Cymru officers are no strangers to dramatic rescues; a little over two weeks ago officers had to rescue another sheep that had fallen from a cliff.
A team of RSPCA inspectors and Animal Welfare Officers (AWOs) rescued a sheep by boat after it fell down cliffs near Cwm-Yr-Eglwys in Pembrokeshire.
The sheep had reportedly been stuck at the bottom of the cliffs for five days; an attempted rope rescue was deemed unsuitable due to the inaccessibility of the cliffs, the RSPCA Cymru added.
The rescue was carried out by a team from across Wales and England, who are specially trained in boat rescues.
Once it was back on dry land, the sheep was returned to its owner and was uninjured by its dramatic experience.
AWO Andrew Harris was also involved in this rescue, which took place in the first few days of April, 2017.
Thankfully the weather conditions were perfect with little wind and a bit of sunshine. However, the sea was still a bit rough.
“We carry out several of these types of rescue a year across Wales and it’s fantastic that we can undertake to save animals that, for whatever reason, have fallen from safety,” he said.