(Long Post) "Neighbor" dog killed 2 pullets **TRICKY SITUATION**

[Howard E]

Other than their pets, are they good tenants? As in take care of the place and pay rent on time? If yes, then pets gotta go. If not, then pets and tenants gotta go. No reason for all the drama.

In case of the latter, you don't have much standing, but sounds like boyfriend may be acting property manager, in which case, he puts on his property manager pants and hands them an eviction notice.

Next bunch are told......no pets.

PS: No reason at all to put up with bad tenants, although renting can be an adventure. Old farmhouse across the road from me is rented. Tenants in the past 4 years include nice college student turned deadbeat with arrival of her 3rd child out of wedlock. She was replaced by guy we quickly learned was a fugitive of justice. He was replaced by professional couple who lasted a year before they took jobs in another state......they were replaced by current young couple with two dogs and teenage son.

Last 3 have all had dogs of some type or another. One set with pug and pit bull got as far as my electric fence......and went home with tail tucked between legs and never came back. A super hot electric fence resolves most issues with neighbor's dogs. The get the crap kicked out of them and don't (often won't....as in can't be made to) come back.

 

[Bethany101]

If you live in the USA you have foxes or raccoons or coyotes, or hawks, eagles, bears etc.
Just because you don't see them doesn't mean they aren't there, they most definitely are. You need to have a fenced in area for your chickens, if the neighbor's dog doesn't get them something else will - for sure.

We do not have foxes in this area. There is only one species of fox in Washington state, and it is quite rare.

 

[Bethany101]

Other than their pets, are they good tenants? As in take care of the place and pay rent on time? If yes, then pets gotta go. If not, then pets and tenants gotta go. No reason for all the drama.

In case of the latter, you don't have much standing, but sounds like boyfriend may be acting property manager, in which case, he puts on his property manager pants and hands them an eviction notice.

Next bunch are told......no pets.

PS: No reason at all to put up with bad tenants, although renting can be an adventure. Old farmhouse across the road from me is rented. Tenants in the past 4 years include nice college student turned deadbeat with arrival of her 3rd child out of wedlock. She was replaced by guy we quickly learned was a fugitive of justice. He was replaced by professional couple who lasted a year before they took jobs in another state......they were replaced by current young couple with two dogs and teenage son.

Last 3 have all had dogs of some type or another. One set with pug and pit bull got as far as my electric fence......and went home with tail tucked between legs and never came back. A super hot electric fence resolves most issues with neighbor's dogs. The get the crap kicked out of them and don't (often won't....as in can't be made to) come back.

I suppose so. They always pay the rent on time and as far as I'm aware they are taking care of the house. They are absolute weirdos but the dog really is the only issue. And yes, my boyfriend is absolutely the legitimate appointed property manager/landlord, whatever you want to call it, and $200 per month of the rent goes to him, from his grandma, to act as such. He is being paid to be responsible for the property, and when the grandparents die the property will be his as stated in their Will. I may not be getting paid or have as much authority as either of them, but I damn well am just as responsible for the property as he is. However, the Tenants do not seem to recognize him or myself as having any authority. At least it seems that way. Not sure if he has the authority to evict them without consent of his grandparents. I'm guessing no. They need the money and probably won't be finding anyone to replace them very quickly right now.

 

[Bethany101]

This is just an open statement to all the folks saying to "Just install an electric fence".

1. No property alterations are permitted without consent of the owner.
2. IT IS A 9 ACRE PROPERTY AND WE ARE IN OUR 20S WITH REGULAR JOBS. WE CAN NOT AFFORD $10,000 FOR FENCING!!!!!
3. The property is divided into several lots, as the grandparents (property owners) intended to turn it into a small subdivision. I don't have a copy of those property lines. So, even if we were to put up fencing around either our own parcel or the other rented parcel, where exactly am I allowed to/supposed to put this electric fence?
4. Half of the property is already bordered with electric fencing from when horses lived here. It has not worked in years.
5. It is the grandparents' responsibility to make those modifications, as we do not own the property, nor do we have permission to make such modifications.
6. The dog was not part of the rental agreement, and rules were put in place when it became evident he would not be leaving. The dog is not to leave the parcel of residence unsupervised, otherwise he is considered "at large" and a potential threat. That one is actually a county law, stated to me by the animal control officer I spoke to when their dog attacked mine.

 

[Howard E]

Electric fence being suggested is of the type used to control livestock. More like $200.....for the complete setup......probably less if the stuff previously used for horses can be repurposed.

Just a couple strands of hot wire surrounding the small area you use to enclose your chickens. But if you are only on 1 acre, is could surround the entire backyard area just as easy.

 

[Howard E]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/dogs-and-electric-fences.1210854/

 

[Bethany101]

If you live in the USA you have foxes or raccoons or coyotes, or hawks, eagles, bears etc.
Just because you don't see them doesn't mean they aren't there, they most definitely are. You need to have a fenced in area for your chickens, if the neighbor's dog doesn't get them something else will - for sure.

They have a fenced in area. Some kind of predatory mammal is living under the existing chicken coop. They/it repeatedly breaks out of our live traps, damaging them. Have never seen the critter so no idea what it is. For this reason, they are currently in a temporary 6x8 chain link enclosure next to the house. Because it is cramped in there with 8 chickens, I let them free range for several hours on my days off. They are typically supervised, or at least checked on every hour. They roam no more than 40-50 feet from the actual house. They prefer staying along the house, actually, because they are afraid of the dog. They have seen him before. This was the first time they were ever left *truly* alone, and for no more time than they would have been if I was physically here.

 

[Bethany101]

Electric fence being suggested is of the type used to control livestock. More like $200.....for the complete setup......probably less if the stuff previously used for horses can be repurposed.

Just a couple strands of hot wire surrounding the small area you use to enclose your chickens. But if you are only on 1 acre, is could surround the entire backyard area just as easy.

Once again, we do not have permission from the property owners to make these modifications. We could attempt to resupply power to the torn up, ripped, falling apart electric fencing surrounding the field, but again, it has not worked for over 10 years, and is not around our residence. It is around an empty field. Our house is not on just one acre, there are 3 parcels, and I don't have a copy of the lines that dictate where each one ends. I likely will not receive any mapping, because we do not have permission to install. We do not have permission to install. We do not have permission to install.

 

[humblehillsfarm]

When I was maybe 14/15 years old, our neighbor had a black lab. They let it roam and it would roam for miles. One day it chased my friend and I down in our cow field until we climbed a tree. The dog circled the tree for an hour before leaving. I told my mom and stepdad and they asked the neighbors to keep the dog contained, which they did not. We had several ducks at that time and one day the dog came down and attacked our ducks, killing one. My mom heard what was going on and ran out to stop it and the dog went after her. My stepdad, a military green beret, without hesitating, grabbed his shotgun and unloaded it into the dog, killing it. I was terrified the neighbor would reciprocate with one of our animal but he never did. I was honestly so terrified and angry at the dog that 15 years later, I'm still glad they killed it. I would say that ideally, the dog would be captured and rehomed, but if you fear for your safety in capturing it, you have to protect yourself, your family, and your property first and foremost. You asked them nicely numerous times to contain the dog and they did not. So 1) try to rehome/send it to the pound if possible and 2) dispatch it if not possible. The dog will come back for more, of that there is no doubt. I realize that may be an unpopular opinion, but I understand the difficulty in trying to build a secure enclosure overnight. We are all imperfectly human after all.

 

[Bethany101]

When I was maybe 14/15 years old, our neighbor had a black lab. They let it roam and it would roam for miles. One day it chased my friend and I down in our cow field until we climbed a tree. The dog circled the tree for an hour before leaving. I told my mom and stepdad and they asked the neighbors to keep the dog contained, which they did not. We had several ducks at that time and one day the dog came down and attacked our ducks, killing one. My mom heard what was going on and ran out to stop it and the dog went after her. My stepdad, a military green beret, without hesitating, grabbed his shotgun and unloaded it into the dog, killing it. I was terrified the neighbor would reciprocate with one of our animal but he never did. I was honestly so terrified and angry at the dog that 15 years later, I'm still glad they killed it. I would say that ideally, the dog would be captured and rehomed, but if you fear for your safety in capturing it, you have to protect yourself, your family, and your property first and foremost. You asked them nicely numerous times to contain the dog and they did not. So 1) try to rehome/send it to the pound if possible and 2) dispatch it if not possible. The dog will come back for more, of that there is no doubt. I realize that may be an unpopular opinion, but I understand the difficulty in trying to build a secure enclosure overnight. We are all imperfectly human after all.

Thanks for understanding. I'm really banging my head against a wall. I have practically no power or say in this situation. Literally the only thing that I can personally do to end this nightmare is to 1. Kill the dog. Or 2. Try to catch him and risk him killing me. 3. Calling the police, who are not responding to any calls that are not related to the immediate threat of a human life, i.e domestic violence, mugging/burglary, etc.