10-year ban for farmer who let animals rot

THE owner of a farm where 12 cows were discovered dead and rotting, chained together in a barn, has been banned from keeping livestock until 2020.

A court heard another eight cattle were found barely alive, covered in dung and with no food, in the same building on Alan Reid's Stirlingshire farm.

One bullock had a horn which had been allowed to curve round and into its head because Reid, 59, had failed to call in a vet.

Reid, who claimed he had been overwhelmed by months of bad weather and had "nowhere to put" his animals' excrement, was sentenced to 160 hours' community service at Falkirk Sheriff Court, in addition to the ban.

Sheriff Paul Arthurson said: "This is an appalling case."

The court heard that officials from the Scottish SPCA found the suffering animals in the byre at Shipperton Farm, near Bonnybridge.

Depute fiscal Joanne Smith, prosecuting, said: "The SSCPA investigated after hearing of cases of neglect. Twelve cattle were found chained together and rotting in the barn.

"Another eight live cattle were found within the barn. No food was on offer to them. Two animals were made the subject of charges – one had the horn growing into its head and the other was emaciated, and covered in dung.

"The bullock with the ingrowing horn was chained to a gate with another animal, and the gates to the farm were also covered with dung.

"They were dying because they were so malnourished."

Hugh Neilson, defending, pleaded unsuccessfully for Reid to be allowed to continue farming.

He said: "His family moved into the farm 55 years ago, and he has worked there all his life with no previous convictions.

"He regrets the condition his farm got in to. He has been trying to sell off more animals to make it more manageable.

"He is not getting any younger, he turns 60 this year, and it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks.

"Or course he will learn new skills if he has to, but he would prefer not to. Animals are all he's known."

Mr Neilson added: "He loves his animals and he wants to continue to look after them.

"The accumulation of dung shouldn't have happened, but there had been months of bad weather and he had nowhere to put it, although I accept that this isn't a good excuse."

After the case, the Scottish SPCA welcomed the ban.

Chief Inspector Paul Anderson said: "Reid proved himself to be entirely unfit to keep livestock and the length of this punishment is likely to put him out of livestock business on a permanent basis.

"The vast majority of livestock farmers in Scotland work to very high animal welfare standards, but unfortunately there are a few who don't.

"In this instance Reid fell far below acceptable standards, causing a great deal of suffering, and has rightly been punished following our investigation."