NFU Mutual is urging visitors to rural areas this Easter to keep their dogs on a lead to avoid attacks on sheep and lambs.
Latest figures from the insurer estimate that farm animals, worth almost one-point-eight million-pounds, were severely injured or killed in dog attacks in 2024.
All dogs are capable of chasing, injuring and killing farm animals and those that attack are often impossible to call off.
Bites can kill and seriously injure livestock, and being chased can cause stress and exhaustion.
Responsible ownership is of particular concern this year as Easter is late, and most lambs are already born and in the fields.
Police Scotland have been complimented on their proactive approach to road safety on the NC500.
The popular tourist route has attracted criticism from communities in the area about irresponsible driving as well as other antisocial behaviour by some visitors.
Speaking at a meeting to discuss fears about speeding on the route, Maree Todd MSP said that she was reassured to hear about the enforcement efforts currently undertaken.
Police Scotland are also engaging with rental car companies, and the American consulate, to explore methods of educating tourists on safe and responsible driving, both before and on arrival in Scotland.
Inverewe Garden has come up trumps in The National Trust for Scotland’s ‘PLANTS’ project the largest horticultural audit in its history.
Designed by Osgood Mackenzie and deemed the ‘impossible garden’, Inverewe is home to plantlife from across the world - including a specimen that was thought to be lost.
Primula ‘Inverewe’ is a hybrid between two Candelabra Primulas. The vibrant flower does not set seed and can only be propagated, a process of producing plants from a single parent plant.
To preserve the unique plant and encourage the longevity of the variety, the Primula ‘Inverewe’ is set for propagation as a result of the project.
