Farmer shocked over complaints about his dog bothering own sheep

By Lauren Beavis

A farmer was left "baffled" after his sheepdog was reported to the RSPCA - for rounding up his own flock.

Tom Trueman, 42, received a complaint from the animal welfare charity after his border collie had been seen "worrying" sheep.

The incident was logged by the RSPCA and he received a letter with two animal welfare pamphlets titled "dog behavior" and "how to look after your dog".

But after making further queries, he was stunned to discover the incident involved his own sheepdog Tilly, who had been helping him round up his own flock of sheep that had escaped onto a nearby road.

The eighth-generation farmer from Buckfastleigh, Devon, said: "The whole thing is laughable really!

"Usually if you see a sheep, a sheepdog and farmer you put two and two together.

"I honestly hadn't got a clue what it was about and naturally you panic because they wouldn't give me information at first over the phone.

"The inspector didn't call me until two days later - and that is when I connected the dots and realised it was my dog and my sheep but it wasn't at all what had been reported.

“When they first told me my dog had been reported for sheep worrying, I was very confused - Tilly never strays from the farm."

Tom said the incident, which occurred a few weeks prior, had seen him driving his sheep across his yard into another field when some of them broke from the flock and ran down a nearby lane.

He then sent Tilly, the eight-year-old collie, to help him return the flock safely to the farm.

A car was coming around the corner, so Tom said he called the car to a halt and Tilly was sent around to gather the sheep back up the lane.

Tom said: "The strangest thing was I got down there before a car came down the corner, and then we drove the sheep up and drove up the road.

"So the person who reported me - who must have been that driver as there was no one else around - would have seen me controlling the dog?

"She's a black and white collie, I look like a farmer - probably wearing wellies at the time - and we're in the countryside.

"Normally that adds up, but obviously not in this case.

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"I mean, it is just baffling!"

After explaining the situation to the RSPCA inspector, Tom said they swiftly cleared up the misunderstanding.

He said: "The inspector was a farmer's daughter from Devon, so she understood the situation and we both had a good laugh - she even said to tear up the letter and put it in the bin.

"It did cause me two days worth of unnecessary stress - and I didn't need that."

Tom, who comes from a family with 260 years of farming history in the area, believes the report was likely made by someone unfamiliar with farming.

He said: "To be honest, it's probably just ignorance - impressive ignorance."

This is not the first time Tom has received a report from the RSPCA, however, as he said another "frivolous" incident saw an officer visit his farm to check on his horses.

He said: "Around 20 years ago we had two very elderly former racehorses, we used to put them out for grass for around two hours a day whilst we clear out their stables and give them some space to run and be outside.

"A report claimed our horses were outside with no grass - and when the inspector came to see for himself he saw how wrong it was!

"It is getting a bit daft in the RSPCA: they do an important job but a lot of people abuse their system by reporting farms just because they don't like farmers.

"The next thing you know I'll be reported for verbally abusing my sheep!"

Since Tom shared his story through a video on social media he has been amazed as its viral response - even gaining one million views on Instagram.

He added the response from the public has been "mixed".

Tom said: "The video has gone everywhere - I'm quite shocked that it has got so much attention.

"I've had a lot of people saying how could they be so stupid.

"Mostly people are just flabbergasted that this had happened!

"A few people were slating the RSPCA, others said at least someone had the decency to report it.

"But decency and common sense go hand in hand."