There have been calls to educate the public following an incident in Monmouthshire over the weekend where 50 sheep were found dead after a suspected attack.
Gwent Police tweeted a graphic image of the aftermath, which shows the dead animals covered in blood and piled against one another, on January 16.
Calls have since been made for "urgent and significant change" to rural policing in Wales, including more efforts to teach people about the countryside code and how to "safely and responsibly behave in Wales’ rural regions" following the incident.
In their tweet, Gwent Police said: "We are investigating the death of 50 ewes in north Monmouthshire, following a livestock worrying incident where the sheep were forced into the corner of a field and died there."
The tweet has received almost 360 retweets as of Monday afternoon.
In response to the incident, the Welsh Shadow Minister for Rural Affairs has called on the Welsh Government to work towards founding a "National Rural Crime Taskforce for Wales."
Member of the Senedd Janet Finch-Saunders said the new approach would involve a mixture of education and legislative changes.
“Whilst the sector readily accepts that there is no immediate remedy to prevent these appalling attacks from occurring, a new National Rural Crime Taskforce for Wales will ensure that the solution houses the correct and required mix of education, campaigning and proposed legislative changes," said Ms Finch-Saunders.
“As part of this taskforce’s remit, authorities would explore how to better educate the public on the Countryside Code.
"Whether through short videos or immersive digital content, this taskforce would empower us all to learn how to safely and responsibly behave in Wales’ rural regions."
She added that more work needs to be put into ensuring that rural crimes are brought to the attention of the police.
In 2020, the Countryside Alliance’s rural crime survey found that almost a quarter of all rural crimes such as this were not reported to police.
“As the Countryside Alliance has rightly commented, good rural policing is about far more than numbers of police officers on the ground.
"We must look to form effective partnerships which ensures that local authorities, town, and community councils are brought into the fold."
