Hi-tech way to beat rustlers
PUBLISHED: 18:00 02 December 2008 | UPDATED: 08:29 28 March 2014
DECEMBER 2, 2008: A hi-tech solution may have been found to beat sheep rustlers – scanning the animals' retinas.
The idea came from a police officer in Antrim, Northern Ireland. He noticed that the credit crunch had led to an increase in animal thefts.
One local farmer lost 100 of his top breeding sheep – worth £100 each – in just one night.
Since the programme began 18 months ago, about 3,000 sheep have been scanned across 20 farms.
The process, which costs only £1 a sheep and takes 30 seconds, is done with a £2,500 portable scanner made by Optibrand, a technology company based in Colorado.