A FARMER has pleaded with dog owners to clear up after their pet after losing 50 per cent of his calves.

Tom Gould is a Commoner of the New Forest and manages a herd of around 40 cows. However, he lost 18 calves last year after the pregnant cows grazed on land covered in dog poo and became infected with Neospora caninum.

Mr Gould told the Daily Echo the herd were turned out to the New Forest and brought back to calve, but a slowing of calves prompted concern.

He said: “Blood tests showed Neospora-caused abortions and that’s mainly caused by dog mess not being picked up.

“There has always been a bit of Neospora rumbling around in the Forest but not to the extent it happened last year.

“More and more Commoners are coming to me saying ‘do you think that’s why my cows aborted’.

“We need everyone to help us because it’s an awful set back to lose half of your income.”

Mr Gould said the initial impact would cost in the region of £30,000 but the issue could continue for many years.

He continued: “There’s a 20 per cent greater chance the cattle will abort again. They will also pass it down to their daughters so they can’t go into the herd.

“I need people to pick the (dog) poo up and take it home. I know there’s very few bins in the forest but we need people to take it home.

“The impact in the first instance is financial. It will go on for four to five years until we have cleared the cows that are carrying the disease.

“We need the public’s help otherwise it will cripple us. Once a cow has had Neospora it can’t get rid of it. For the interest of a healthy cattle, we’ll need to cull.

“I don’t want to wipe out half my herd, I quite like my cows. I just see it as a silly thing that could be avoided quite easily.”

Dr Alex Crook, of Cedar Farm Vets in Ringwood, has also urged people to pick up after their dogs.

He said: “Back in the spring last year I ultrasound pregnancy scanned Mr Gould’s cows after they had been with the bull, and the vast majority were confirmed pregnant.

“Mr Gould then turned them out to graze on the New Forest. They came home in the autumn to calve but unfortunately a number of them had aborted their foetuses.

“I took some samples to test for the common diseases that can cause abortion in cattle, and we found that the cows had been exposed to Neospora caninum, a protozoal parasite.

“Dogs carry and spread this parasite, and so I would like to urge anybody who walks their dog on the New Forest, or on any other farm footpaths, to pick up their dog’s waste.

“Not all dogs carry Neospora caninum, however it is possible for any dog to pick it up on a walk, then later spread it to other geographical areas and cattle through their waste. Most will show absolutely no signs of the disease at all, so the owner will be none the wiser to the protozoal parasite being spread in the dog’s faeces.

“The abortions have cost Mr Gould a huge amount of money. His herd are unfortunately now far more likely to abort any subsequent pregnancies throughout the rest of their lives.

“Please pick up after your dog, and dispose of the waste properly.”