An ‘anti-farmer’ vegan activist who stole a lamb from a field, stuck it in a nappy and made it live in her bedroom nearly killed it with her botched attempts to hand rear it, a court heard.

Louise Murguia, 49, kidnapped the female lamb from farmer Stuart Ludwell’s land overnight on March 23 last year because she thought she could take better care of it.

Murguia, of Sturminster Newton, believed the lamb had a broken leg and was in distress, but failed to get medical care for the animal or contact Mr Ludwell.

Instead she took it home where she shampooed its coat to remove the identifying number on the fleece and fed it cow’s milk.

She kept the animal confined in her house for three weeks before police turned up and found it malnourished in her room.

The court heard the animal weighed almost half what it should have and needed more than a week of intensive treatment to ensure it survived.

It belonged to farmer Mr Ludwell of Hile Farm, Sturminster Newton in Dorset.

One of his ewes had died suddenly the night before the theft, leaving two lambs orphaned that would need to be hand reared.

Louise Murguia, 49, kidnapped the lamb from farmer Stuart Ludwell’s land overnight on March 23, 2024 because she thought she could take better care of it

Murguia believed the lamb had a broken leg and was in distress, but failed to get medical care for the animal (Pictured: The lamb after being rescued)

To avoid distressing the other ewes and newborns, Mr Ludwell decided to wait until morning to collect the lambs.

But when he returned to the field with his wife and two children, they could only find one of the lambs. They assumed the other must have been taken by a fox.

It was not until three weeks later he received a tip off that it had in fact been taken by Murguia who lives nearby and walks her dog in the area.

She later told police she had taken the lamb because it appeared to have a broken leg and she thought it wouldn’t survive the night.

But she did not seek medical treatment for it and simply made a splint for its leg herself.

When it was recovered by police on April 15, it weighed just 5.8kg, while its twin brother, who was hand reared by the Ludwell family, weighed 9.95kg.

After the lamb failed to thrive on cow’s milk, Murguia bought a formula on Amazon but this failed to improve matters.

Murguia posted on Facebook at the time: ‘I am a vegan, hate me if you like. I love and respect animals.’

While Murguia had the lamb, Mr Ludwell went viral on social media after he posted pictures of a dead lamb that had been killed by a loose dog in a sheep worrying incident.

He stated ‘this is what dogs do to sheep’ as a warning for dog walkers.

While most were supportive of Mr Ludwell’s actions, there were some negative comments from animal rights activists.

One of those was Murguia. She told a local magazine, the Blackemore Vale: ‘I am a proud vegan and I am anti-farmers because they exploit animals. Farmers abuse the lambs from day one.

‘Why people think [that] farmers care so much is just ignorant. I just wish people weren’t so obsessed with eating meat full stop. 

‘Plant-based is so much better for the animals, for the environment and also for the ozone layer. But I feel I am in the minority and people are just blood-hungry.’

When it was recovered by police on April 15, the stolen lamb weighed just 5.8kg, while its twin brother, who was hand reared by the Ludwell family, weighed 9.95kg (Pictured: The lamb is rescued by police officers)

Murguia has now been banned from keeping sheep indefinitely after she was convicted of theft and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal

Mr Ludwell said in his victim impact statement in court: ‘I was relieved [the lamb] was alive, but shocked by its poor condition – it’s 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.’

Murguia has now been banned from keeping sheep indefinitely after she was convicted of theft and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal.

Luisa Rose, prosecuting, said: ‘Officers attended the address, she did not answer, but was located in her bedroom with the missing lamb, which was in a nappy.

‘She claimed she was due to take it to the animal sanctuary later that day.

‘The officers who seized the lamb said it looked very small, lacked energy and was limp in the officer’s arms.

‘It was examined by a vet who compared it to the brother born on the same day and concluded that the lamb had been receiving inadequate nutrition.

‘She was interviewed by police and said she was an animal lover, she had seen a sick and dead sheep in the field and returned at night to take the lamb, which she said had a bad leg.’

Murguia admitted one offence of theft and one of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal.

Ben Thompson, defending, told Bournemouth Crown Court Murguia had difficulty accepting what she did was wrong.

He said: ‘She took it home to care for it and cared for it in the best way she could. It was incredibly unorthodox.

‘She shampooed the lamb, made a bed for it on the sofa and was feeding it cow’s milk. When it wasn’t gaining enough weight, she bought some specialist milk from Amazon for £35.

‘It came from a well intentioned but incredibly poorly executed place.

‘She wanted to get her to the animal sanctuary but got attached and kept hold of the lamb longer than she should have, but she didn’t think she was mistreating it.

‘She knows now that what she did was wrong and she shouldn’t have interfered, but at the time her heart ruled her head.

‘It was well intentioned but incompetent care. Unwise and ultimately illegal.’

Recorder Nicholas Haggan KC sentenced Murguia to a 12-month community order with a six-month alcohol treatment requirement and six rehabilitation activity days.

He also made an indefinite restraining order preventing Murguia from contacting Mr Ludwell, going to his farm or feeding any livestock within two miles of it and banned her from keeping or owning sheep indefinitely.