Daily Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manhã reported on Monday how six sheep were found dead on a plot of land near the main EN125 road through the Lagos village of Arão, after having been set upon by at least two stray dogs over the weekend.
According to the newspaper the GNR has been informed of the incident and are investigating.
Speaking anonymously, residents in the area told the newspaper “it is not the first time that dead sheep have been found there.
“There are lots of dogs around here and as the animals are left lose on the plot they are easy prey, particularly at night. Days ago another three died”, one resident said.
A GNR source told the newspaper “the situation is being looked into.”
This comes following complaints in recent weeks from residents on the opposite side of Lagos, in the Monte São Pedro area of Valeverde, in Luz, of a similar problem.
Locals there claim a large pack of roaming dogs is “growing and becoming increasingly more
aggressive.”
A resident in that area told The Portugal News “there are many stories of people who were attacked, animals that were attacked... I’ve lived in Monte São Pedro for little over a year and as soon as I moved here I was warned by another resident that whenever I walk my dog outside the complex I should take a stick, because ‘there are stray dogs in the area that every now and then attack’”.
The resident went on to say that the dogs in question were “initially one or two but now are six adult dogs.”
“This is an area that is used frequently by walkers, people exercising, cycling, and I’m worried that one of these days it’s going to end badly. I don’t walk outside the complex anymore and I have also banned my daughter from it. It’s a shame because it is a lovely place, especially to walk our dog.”
Regarding the situation in Arão, the resident said “I hadn’t heard about it but I’m not surprised. Unfortunately there is still a lot to be done for animals that are abandoned or left to their own devices, and in those cases instinct takes over.”