DOG owners are being warned to keep their pets under control in the countryside as the cost of insurance claims from livestock worrying has reached a record level.

New figures show the cost of dog attacks on livestock reported to leading rural insurer NFU Mutual increased by nearly 50 per cent across the UK in 2016.

And in the North-East the cost of claims rose from £7,458 in 2015 to £10,135 in 2016.

Tim Price, rural affairs specialist at NFU Mutual, said: “It’s not just big, aggressive-looking dogs that attack livestock – well-behaved family pets can worry sheep or cattle.

“And once a dog has attacked livestock, there is a high probability that it will strike again.”

Between January and April, when pregnant ewes and lambs are often grazing on low-lying pasture in areas more accessible to walkers, the cost of claims more than doubled.

With many families expected to visit the countryside during half-term and the Easter holidays, NFU Mutual is urging people across the UK to keep their dogs on a lead at all times.

The organisation has also warned that farmers have the right to shoot dogs if they are chasing sheep or cattle.

Mr Price added: “For small and hobby farmers in particular, livestock worrying is devastating.”