Here the reindeer is attacked by the dog: "I am frustrated"

In Kalls Sami village, the emotions are upset.

They have, like several other Sami villages, repeatedly had to endure disturbances in the middle of the period when it is most important in the year that the reindeer get peace and quiet.

This is despite the fact that the reindeer law is clear.

A dog must be tethered when it is in one of the reindeer husbandry's grazing areas.

Exactly how often this happens is unclear.

The cases do not have their own criminal classification, but are sometimes classified as vandalism, sometimes as animal cruelty, sometimes as hate crimes.

And it is rare that police reports lead to convictions.

- Unfortunately, this is a reality we live in. It happens too many times that dog owners do not have their animals connected, says Markus Mattsson, chairman of Kall Sami village.

Caught on film

What was special about the dog attack in Storlien in Jämtland County during the weekend was that this time it was captured on film.

Markus Mattsson received the pictures last Saturday.

A private person had seen in the distance how the dog attacked reindeer.

The company themselves tell SVT Sápmi that they were too far away to be able to intervene.

But instead they chose to document it and alert the police and the Sami village.

Mattsson saw it as a chance to highlight the problem and posted the pictures on social media.

There, they have now aroused a heated debate that far too few either care or understand why the dog should be tethered.

- These are grotesque images.

I choose to show them so that people can see what it looks like, he says and hopes that it will make the negligent dog owner think that spring is an extra sensitive period, he says.

Reindeer are stressed

According to Mattsson, the reindeer must have been chased across both the European road and the railway before the dog finally caught them.

- I sent out a colleague in the afternoon who tracked and it turned out that around ten reindeer were hunted.

How do you react to the fact that the person who filmed does not intervene?

- It is quite right in that situation not to intervene like that.

It can be a danger to one's own health to intervene, says the reindeer owner who, despite the images being offensive, is grateful that they were taken.

SVT has been in contact with the police who say that they will investigate how the dog has come loose and if it may be a crime.