Laws permit a farmer to shoot a dog worrying sheep but what about a drone?
A farmer from Colemore, Hampshire said his sheep were 'running in circles' in what looked like a dog attack but turned out to be a drone.
"Now you can shoot a dog that’s attacking sheep, but apparently you can’t shoot a drone that’s being used to harass, scare and distress them," Albert Carter of Slade Farm told Petersfield Post.
"They were stirred up, running in circles, it looked like a dog attack so I went into the field, but it turned out it was a drone.
"Now you can shoot a dog that’s attacking sheep, but apparently you can’t shoot a drone that’s being used to harass, scare and distress them. If you can shoot a dog, I can’t see why you can’t do the same to a drone."
Last month, an inhabitant of the stately home had had enough of drone pilots taking a look at the property and shot the machine out of the air.
'Significant risk'
Then President of the Country Land and Business Association, Henry Robinson said drone technology is benefitting a wide range of industries and the potential 'is very exciting'.
"We cannot rely on existing data protection regulations which are not easy to use to protect an individual’s privacy from a non-commercial drone operator.
"The growth in the use of drones with high resolution cameras for leisure purposes presented a significant risk to privacy and requires swift action."
It was reported that consumer drone sales rose by 24% ahead of the Christmas shopping rush in December 2014, with electronics dealer Maplin Direct reporting domestic drone sales of over 10,000 units over a 12-month period.
The organisation, which represents landowners, farmers and rural businesses, is concerned that current drone-use regulations are not robust enough to ensure that privacy is maintained considering the growth in drone availability and popularity as gifts in recent years.
CLA's five top tips for responsible drone operation:
1. Fly safely and understand the law; you are legally responsible for every flight and could be prosecuted if found to be operating a drone in an unsafe manner.
2. Respect the privacy of others and obtain permission before flying over privately owned land or property.
3. Never fly within 50 metres of people or buildings.
4. Animals can be easily be frightened by drones which can cause injury to them and others.
5. Use common sense when operating a drone: keep it in sight at all times and do not fly above 400 feet.
