Sheepdogs worth up to £20,000 have been stolen from a farm in Aberdeenshire.

The thieves took four border collies from a shed at the farm near Huntly on Wednesday night.

Owner Roddy Scarborough believes the dogs were targeted by the thieves as nothing else was taken.

The 56-year-old sheep farmer said: "The collies are kept chained up in their kennels overnight so they obviously knew what they were doing. We've never had anything stolen before.

"They obviously came to take the dogs. It's hard to put a value on them - probably four or five thousand pounds a piece.

"They're working sheepdogs and there's very few things I can do without the dogs. It's annoying that they would take any of them but to take all four is terrible."

Mr Scarborough said he will struggle to handle his 2000 sheep without the help of his dogs - three females and two males aged between five and ten.

Officer Megan McDonald, of Huntly Local Policing Team, said: "This is a distressing crime for the dogs' owner.

"Not only are these dogs working sheepdogs but they are also family pets.

"The commercial and financial impact this is having on the owner is huge. The dogs are worth an estimated five-figure sum because of their training and breeding.

"We appeal to anyone who has any information that can help locate the dogs and reunite them with their owner to contact us."