CALLOUS rustlers have stolen 75 rare birds worth £1,000 from a farm in Steep Marsh. The wanton act, which occurred between 11pm last Thursday and 12.30am on Friday, has dismayed their passionate breeder, Dave Neal. And the angry owner of the birds has now offered a reward of £500 for their safe return. "It's a pointless, depressing act," said Dave. "We had some of the best species in southern England. They knew what they were doing and what they were looking for." The poultry thieves stole several breeds, including lavender araucanas, wyandottes, salmon faverolles, and marsh daisies from the rare breed farm. "We've spent years collecting and breeding them, and our lavender araucanas were probably the best in the south of England. "The breeding society of New Zealand wanted to use our breeds for photographs as they were the right colour," said Dave, who also breeds sheep, pigs, turkeys, and geese. "The worst thing was that one of the goslings they stole was one of the first born here. It had a bag leg and my wife taught it to walk," he said. The thieves also killed two chickens and attacked a turkey, leaving the bird with broken feathers. "The weird thing was that several hens were sitting on eggs and they left them, so they had a little bit of feeling. The turkey is a bit vicious, though, and probably attacked them," Dave explained. Looking back on the night in question, Dave related his frustration after being told of an unusual occurrence. "A friend phoned us and said 'I can see torches down there', and thought we were lambing. "I came down with a dog, but stupidly only went to the gate. It wasn't until the morning that I found they were all gone." Dave is convinced the crime was to order, saying: "We've got electric fences and generators here, but they went straight for the chickens. They knew what they doing." He added: "The police said they hadn't seen anything of this scale, but apparently it happens quite a lot with racing pigeons, and there was an identical incident in the Midlands. "Because of bird flu, a lot of breeders have stopped breeding. Farmers have scaled down and people have given up. Therefore, the supply and demand is that much higher." But Dave has been encouraged by a positive public response. He said: "We've had so many people calling with offers of replacement eggs and birds. Many of the people we have sold birds to have offered to give the birds we bred for them back to us." And he hoped that the public could help return the birds to their rightful home. "My parents have offered a £500 reward for any information leading to a conviction or a return of the birds," he said. Also stolen were two large wire mesh poultry crates and one large black and yellow poultry crate. Anyone with information should contact Pc Andy Brookes on 0845 0454545.
