Crowdfunder set up for victim of sheep theft
James Burns with his flock © Ali Fox A Hampshire tenant sheep farmer is hoping a new crowdfunding initiative will help him cover the next few months’ rent, following the theft of almost half of his flock.
Friends of James Burns, who runs a small county council holding near Fareham, have set up the Just Giving page in response to the break-in that took place earlier this month.
Mr Burns told Farmers Weekly he became aware of a problem when the sheep woke him at 2am on 11 August with a lot of baa-ing and bleating, but he put it down to a fox or badger.
The next morning, however, he noticed that his flock of 100 ewes and lambs had broken into the section of a field reserved for mowing.
“Once we had recovered them and done a head count, we found that 18 of the Beulah Speckled Face ewes and 22 lambs were missing,” he said.
Search party
The farmer and some friends spent the rest of the day looking for them, unsuccessfully, in neighbouring arable fields.
But they found evidence that the sheep had been moved down a track to a car park some 10 minutes away, leading to the conclusion they had been stolen.
© Ali Fox
“It was heartbreaking, not least because of all the work we have put it, starting from scratch,” said Mr Burns.
“We’ve not had much luck since taking on this holding 18 months ago.
“Last year the drought meant our cereals only yielded 1t/acre (2.4t/ha), then our bailer caught fire, and now this.”
Mr Burns puts the value of the lost animals at about £5,000, and while some of this may be recouped from insurance, there is a 30-day delay on payment. “Our rent has to be paid before then,” he said.
He also needs to pay for replacement fencing, and plans to install CCTV on the sheds and trail cams in the hedges.
The Just Giving page, set up by a friend, has so far raised £840.
“We are grateful for the contributions, and for the kind, supportive words from others in the farming community,” he said.