Vegan activist found guilty after kidnapping lamb from Dorset farm
3rd April 2025
A vegan activist, Louise Murguia, has been found guilty of animal cruelty after she stole a lamb from a field in Dorset.
The court said that the 49-year-old woman nearly killed the lamb that she kidnapped from farmer Stuart Ludwell’s land.
The incident happened on 23rd March at Hile Farm in Sturminster Newton.
The activist claimed she thought she could take better care of the animal, as she believed it had a broken leg and was in distress; despite this, she failed to seek medical care or contact the farmer, The Express reported.
Instead of returning the animal, the woman kept the lamb in her home for three weeks before police turned up and found it in her room.
The court has heard the female lamb weighed almost half what it should have and needed more than a week of intensive treatment to ensure it survived.
Vegan who kidnapped lamb and made it wear a nappy guilty of animal cruelty https://t.co/vvxYLIAfK9
— Gareth Wyn Jones (@1GarethWynJones) April 3, 2025
‘I love and respect animals’
Mr Ludwell explained that the night before the kidnapping, one of his ewes had died suddenly, leaving two lambs orphaned, which required hand-rearing.
As he wanted to avoid distressing the other animals, the farmer waited until morning to collect the other lambs. However, when he returned, he could only find one lamb.
Three weeks later Mr Ludwell received a tip-off that his lamb was taken by Ms Murguia. The woman lives in the same area and often walks her dog nearby.
The woman told the police she had taken the lamb because it appeared to have a broken leg, and she thought it would not survive without her help.
Murguia posted on Facebook at the time: ‘I am a vegan, hate me if you like. I love and respect animals.’
Mr Ludwell said in his victim impact statement in court: ‘I was relieved [the lamb] was alive but shocked by its poor condition – its sibling was nearly double the size, and it could barely stand.
‘It took over a week of intensive medical care to ensure the lamb’s survival and a significant amount of money and time.
‘The entire ordeal has left me angry – stealing a lamb under the guise of welfare only to keep it in solitary confinement,’ Daily Mail reported.
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