Please use the countryside responsibly- so fed up

[jacks11]

On a rare day off from my day job, I have once again spent the day dealing with a series of thoughtless and/or completely entitled idiots behaving totally irresponsibly on our land. I had thought the one (very small) silver lining of this awful situation would be that this lambing season would see us free from so many problems from people out for a walk etc. But still having issues.

Today I stopped no fewer than 7 families traipsing through either the yard, our garden (one family stopping to have a seat on the picnic table/bench in our garden) or the lambing sheds to have a look. One family also stopped off to admire the lambs in one of the fields then preceded to take there youngish children (under 10) into said fields to see them closer. Several gates left open, people climbing over gates etc. I caught someone feeding our old pony apples and a doughnut! We’ve had rubbish being dropped. Dogs off leads etc.

What I cannot understand is how so many are getting to us- they must be breaching the guidance to only exercise locally or walking at least 7 miles from the nearest village. Which I doubt with the ages of some of the children.

When DH politely approached the family in our garden they were really rude, citing their “right to roam”- not even slightly apologetic when pointed out they were in our garden so they had no right to be there. Ditto several other people- don’t seem to realise right to roam does not apply to private gardens or land used for commercial reasons- I.e. yards/lambing sheds and you must behave responsibly (e.g. close gates, don’t let dogs off leads near livestock, don’t leave rubbish, don’t worry livestock, don’t walk across crops etc).

When you add in the situation with Covid, you’d think people would be careful about touching gates etc unnecessarily- but no. Lots of people have vulnerable family members and this is just an added headache- having to constantly be aware that people may have touched the gates/railings/doors etc.

Please use the countryside responsibly- some of us live on the land you are using as a playground. You are putting our livestock at risk- please don’t feed livestock/horses for that reason- and sometimes yourself in danger. There is no excuse for leaving rubbish.

Rant over!!

I can't believe the selfishness of anyone doing this. I am always astounded by dog owners who don't keep their dogs on lead while on marked footpaths, particularly when in open parts (e.g. along the edge of fields). I see lots of signs around me asking people to ignore horses and definitely not to feed them, yet so many do exactly the opposite.
Even my good friends disagree with me on needing to keep dogs on leads, yet I know even their dogs don't have perfect recall if something very "exciting" comes along (squirrels and the like).

I am in Scotland.All farmers in my area have taken to padlocking gates to hill access with signs about lambing leaving an impossibly unusable stile for access. I can walk miles but I cannot use Stiles neither can my dogs unless I let them off lead to scrabble over. Farmers can't have it all ways. It's always the responsible that lose out.

I am in Scotland.All farmers in my area have taken to padlocking gates to hill access with signs about lambing leaving an impossibly unusable stile for access. I can walk miles but I cannot use Stiles neither can my dogs unless I let them off lead to scrabble over. Farmers can't have it all ways. It's always the responsible that lose out. You really don't need to be there at all. Have you heard of hill lambing? Not all lambing takes place in a shed.

Tarscout- good for them . Why do you feel the need to walk on their land anyway ? Aren’t there any roads near you ? Walk on those . The residents of my local village seem content to go for walks around the roads atm and always have done .
Jack - I’m so upset for you that I mentioned your situation to my husband this morning . He has two suggestions . Several tips in the field closest to where they enter your land . A huge load of dung dumped at the point they enter your property . I would end up in prison if I was in your situation.

Anyone reading this and still walking on footpaths through farmland can fuck off too.

Just read that back and realised it says tip instead of tup.

One thing farmers cant do though, is shut off public footpaths. Farmers have never liked public footpaths, and will use covid as an excuse to shut them off. That is illegal.

DH had to deal with someone who had their out of control dogs in our sheep fields the other day and they went ballistic when told to get them under control and get off we live in the middle of nowhere so they clearly drove and couldn't choose the fucking acres and acres of land with no livestock on?
people are just ridiculously selfish at times.

I live in a very popular walking area and we have a National Trust car park nearby. We go out for shopping past it. In the last two weeks I’ve seen between 3-8 cars in it. Yesterday the a Police were blocking it off in a BMW X5. So all the walkers had parked in gateways, passing places in the narrow lanes and other off road locations such as fields. It’s probably better to have left the car park open and just let a few in and ensure they were spaced out. The police tend to go overboard but don’t analyse the possible consequences.

One added annoyance is cyclists using the footpaths. I own several and do keep them in good order but the council has taken down the stiles and replaced them with parallel barriers. The cyclists now use the paths all the time.

I'm not surprised farmers have never liked footpaths, with ignorant, arrogant shits like this around.

What a shame you couldn't just threaten them with a shotgun. How about a watergun?!

My understanding has always been that if your dog is off lead around livestock, a farmer is generally within his rights to shoot it.

I think there needs to be much greater awareness of the consequences of feeding livestock that belongs to someone else. I think people see it as a treat, like giving bread to ducks.

When I've tried to explain why it's not a great idea to give carrots to a horse that you don't know, they respond that farmers sell big bags of "pony carrots" so they must be fine for horses to eat them.

Hell is other people. I have no idea why I ever thought being pretty much in isolation and out of contact with other people was a bad thing!

OP, my wholehearted sympathies. I too am a keen walker, although certainly not at present, but I have no idea what drives some others to behave with such crass disrespect for the countryside and have a renewed sympathy with farmers who hate even the respectful people masquerading over their land. I've witnessed people parading across people's farmyards, looking in at the windows of their houses or, as in this case, using their own private garden equipment or interfering with machinery left outside. The brass neck of some people really is unbelievable.

I've seen people touching lambs (really, who would be this stupid), interfering with nesting birds and collecting their eggs. At least it brought some gratification when a couple of kids - unstopped by their parents, I'd add - interfered with nesting geese and got more than they bargained for, and one very silly family (watched by us in some amusement from a safe distance) got between a cow and her calves. The cow and her herd were not impressed and I've never seen four people hotfoot it over a fence so fast!

Mostly it's pure ignorance, but it takes a special breed of rude fucktard to use someone's garden furniture and then start citing 'My Rights' when challenged. It's times like this really bring out the worst in some people, unfortunately.

Tabby - I wonder why that is . Feck off !
Those of you with footpaths through your property , get out with your slurry tankers now . The police are unlikely to prosecute atm . It’s a risk I’d take.

Not feeding other people’s animals is always paramount in my thoughts. I think people are not connected to the countryside in a meaningful way now. I think there should be much more awareness of farming as a livelihood and respect shown to the land.

“Roaming” has long been pushed by people who want access to moorland and won’t accept it’s owned by anyone. It then gets used to roam over farmland and so on.

Farmers near me park heavy machinery in obvious gateways to stop access. There are enough footpaths and there is no need to roam anywhere near livestock.

Tabby - do you know what’s illegal ? Trespassing .

Trespass is not a criminal offence. It’s a civil action taken by the landowner and costs money!

I padlocked the gate which leads to the footpath over my horses paddock after people left it open. They were also feeding my horse, dogs off leads running around the field shitting and kids dropping litter. I couldn't care less if its illegal. Farmer and locals totally agree with me. I doubt the council could care less. I'm moving him next week and will unlock it then. People are stupid and noone knows the Countryside Code anymore.

A friend had a dog not so long ago killed by a horse while walking through a field. Luckily it was the dog and not the child.

Just because there’s a path there does not mean it’s safe. Cows/horses are unpredictable and dangerous.

I hate people touching my horses, it encourages fights between them and one of them starts biting if it’s been fed by hand.

If it does not belong to you, stay away.

"Tabby - I wonder why that is . Feck off !
Those of you with footpaths through your property , get out with your slurry tankers now . The police are unlikely to prosecute atm . It’s a risk I’d take."
That's very rude isnt it. People have fought for years for public rights of way. Farmers are not allowed to block them off. It would be like me blocking the public footpath outside my house so people cant walk past. It's wrong.

A friend had a dog not so long ago killed by a horse while walking through a field. Luckily it was the dog and not the child

And the horse owner would be liable!

Farmers are not allowed to block them off. It would be like me blocking the public footpath outside my house so people cant walk past. It's wrong

Yes, totally illegal. Doing it anyway, I'm much happier and can sleep at night.

Jesus Wept. I'd be locked up by now, veggies would be growing well though!

We just want everyone to use them responsibly. There is a huge network of paths for use. My paths are fenced off but the horses kept on the land put their heads over the fence. Paths are impossible to police so we expect users to be sensible. Sadly some are not.

Perhaps @Tonyaster I am not a lawyer. However, walking through private land with potentially dangerous animals in is the height of stupidity regardless of the law. Some prey animals can get aggressive at the sight of a dog especially if they have young.

The horse in question had never been aggressive before, dog ran behind it and got kicked in the head. Owners fault in my opinion. I couldn’t be sure my own horses wouldn’t kick someone walking up to them either, horses are unpredictable.

My horses are on private land. I don’t want them being touched with people who are potentially infectious, touching my gates or feeding them things that could make them sick. I wouldn’t go into someone’s garden and start touching random dogs so why is it different

I agree OP, huge sympathy from rural Scotland. Same issues here.

Here's my best lambing story.

Ten plus years ago. Brother in law arrives home to find a hill walker sitting on the front lawn outside the main farmhouse, with a lamb and a jug. At first he thought the lamb was hurt.

It then emerged the lamb had been smaller, born outside but perfectly fine, sleeping in the sun. The walker picked it up, carried it to house. Couldn't get an answer when he shouted, so went in and filled a jug out cupboard with cows milk and was trying to pour it into lambs mouth.

It's lucky my mother in law was out.

That lamb had to become a pet, taken from her mother and rejected via someone's stupidity.

That's a true but extreme story. Most just involve aborting lambs, sheep being mixed, tups being let into sheep fields at wrong points, cattle hiding calves and farmers being sworn at as people use their right to roam.