An appeal has been launched to track down a "drunken idiot" whose behaviour led to more than 120 buffalo and six horses running free.

Workers at The Buffalo Farm and Shawsmill Stables, near Kirkcaldy, Fife, were left disgusted after CCTV revealed a man freeing and then kicking the animals.

The man entered the private property around 4.20am on Sunday, unbolted the stable doors and let loose six "beloved" horses.

Footage at the property shows the man then kicking a number of the horses as they ran onto the icy main road.

The gruesome pictures also show one horse which sustained serious injuries after falling on the icy road.

Michael Payne, 37, of the Shawsmill Stables said: "Six of our horses were let loose because of this man.

"When we looked at the CCTV you can see him kicking the horses after he frees them.

"One of the horses fell on the ice and has really bad gashes on its leg which the vet can't stitch because of where it is."

It is thought the man also opened 18 heavy steel gates at The Buffalo Farm, around two miles from the Shawsmill Stables, letting out 120 animals.

Steven Mitchell, 35, who owns The Buffalo Farm, shared CCTV footage in a bid to find the "drunken idiot" responsible.

He said: "This guy has opened all of the gates and let all of the animals out and mixed the cows and buffalo together.

"The animals have then gone out and destroyed all of the feed supply in the yard.

"They could have easily ventured down to the main road and caused an accident, especially with the bad weather.

"One of the cows ended up giving birth dangerously early when it was out because of the stress of it all.

"Thankfully both mum and calf are ok, but the calf could have been trampled because of this irresponsible behaviour."

The man is described as slim, 5 ft 7in tall, wearing slim fit jeans and a light long-sleeved top.

Shawsmill Stable posted on Facebook: "We believe that this individual was on their way home from a night out in nearby Kirkcaldy and may have walked or been dropped by taxi along the route of Oriel Road/Old Torbain Road heading towards Cardenden and had to walk the remainder of the way home.

"It would appear they broke into Buffalo Farm first then carried on to us causing destruction and harm to animals at each place.

"The man can be seen on the CCTV footage falling over face first onto the palms of his hands so may have some injuries."

A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said: "Police in Fife have received a report that gates to a shed containing buffalo were deliberately opened in the Bogiliy Road area of Kirkcaldy.

"The incident was reported to police on Sunday 4 March.

"Inquiries into the full circumstances are ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact officers via 101, quoting incident number 1715 of 4 March."