A couple have been left heartbroken after their brood of pedigree pet chickens were the latest targets of a new trend in livestock theft.

Melvyn Newell and Ennis Otter, of Little London Road in Hailsham hand-reared many of their 21 hens and cockrels, all varieties of the special Bantam breed, and treated them like part of the family.

All shared breakfast with their doting owners and many were given Arthurian names such as Lancelot, Morgan and Gwyneviere because their feathers were the colour of chain mail.

One cockrel, called Aga because he was hatched on their old-fashioned cooker, was even treated to a tape of bird songs to get him to sleep and a home-made feather duster bed.

But there will be no more cock-a-doodle-dos at the suddenly silent rural cottage after thieves broke in on two separate occasions while Mr Newell and Mrs Otter were away on short breaks to France.

Seven of the feathery friends were taken from their coops in April and the remaining 14 were whisked away last week.

The especially-bred poultry were worth £750 and it is believed they were probably taken for the cash.

The couple, in their 60s, said they too traumatised by their loss to replace them with new chickens.

Mr Newell said: "It is quite an emotional shock.

"We have had them for eight years and had built quite a connection to them.

"They were all born here and were very original, beautiful creatures. We feel really bereft and it just feels very quiet and still around here now."

Mrs Otter said the worst thing was imagining how they were being treated by their captors. She said: "They have been used to gentleness and kindness all their lives and I presume they were grabbed and stuffed into cages.

"I can't bear thinking about it."

On May 31 The Argus reported that rider Martin de Sutton, of Brighton, was beaten unconscious by horse rustlers.

He arrived at his horses' field, next to the Kingston roundabout, near Lewes, with wife Vanessa to find two men had smashed locks off the gates and were stealing their two animals and valuable equipment.

A spokesman from Sussex Police said: "Thefts of livestock such as this are fairly infrequent, but nevertheless, when they do happen, they can cause considerable distress to the owners.

"Often, such livestock is kept in remote rural places, which in itself means that it is more vulnerable to theft."

Anyone with information should call Hailsham police station on 0845 60 70 999 quoting serial 1878 of the 29th May 2007, alternatively Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.