Hawke's Bay police have made a further appeal for any information into a series of dog attacks on sheep in the greater Flaxmere area during the past month.
Last weekend, a farmer who had several hundred sheep grazing on an orchard property off Portsmouth Rd lost more than 40 sheep
in an overnight incident which also left several other sheep injured. It was the second time in three weeks the farmer had lost stock to a marauding dog, or dogs.
Senior Constable Greg Andrew said there had also been an incident a week earlier at another property where several sheep were killed. He said while the dog, or dogs, responsible remained at large the threat to all livestock remained, and while attacking dogs were known to travel great distances to seek out sheep, he believed those responsible for last weekend's incident may have been reasonably local.
The farmer said while he had encountered losses in the pass the latest attack was the worst he had seen.
Mr Andrew said the wounds inflicted as well as the terrain it took place on meant the attackers would have arrived home with blood and mud on them.
