Dog owners are being urged to be extra vigilant by keeping their animals under control when walking in the Yorkshire Dales as the lambing season starts.

Farmers are within their rights to shoot dogs which are seen chasing livestock, a Yorkshire Dales National park officer has warned.

He has called on dog owners to keep their pets on a lead to prevent them being a threat to sheep and other wildlife, like nesting birds.

Alan Hulme, YDNP area manager, said a large number of dog owners were unaware of the problems the animals could cause.

"Each year a number of lambs will be taken by dogs, yet this is only the tip of the iceberg. What we cannot count are the hundreds of lambs that are miscarried following worrying by unchecked dogs, even before the onset of the lambing season proper," he said.

"Of equal concern is the threat to ground nesting birds, such as lapwing and curlew, the very wildlife visitors to the national park come to see.

"Dogs that disturb nesting birds leave eggs and chicks exposed to the elements, risking their survival."

He urged walkers to stick to the marked paths on the public rights of way across the fells and keep dogs on a lead.

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