Am I over-reacting about my Neighbor and his dog who ate my chick? (kinda a lengthy vent)

[HEChicken]

My chickens are fine around dogs... but not the one who killed one of them and scared the living crap outta the rest (including the two she had in her mouth when Uncle caught her and began BEATING her). My dog comes into the coop with me and they go straight up to him. He will sniff them and they will peck him if he gets too close. But they don't run in fear like they did when the other dog came up to their home.

Uncle should have had the COMMON SENSE AND DECENCY to leave his dog at home instead of bringing her onto OUR property, to OUR chicken coop. Honestly... my dog has protection issues and I keep him in my yard away from Uncles business, home, and dog (because Nanuq does not like her to put it lightly...) to prevent any mishaps. I would only expect the same from a grown man. It's called responsibility.

Heat, I totally agree with you on both these points. I do believe chickens can recognize one dog from another and react differently accordingly. I had an old dog when we got the chickens and he was completely trustworthy around them. Slightly afraid of them perhaps, and gave them a wide berth. In return, they pecked and scratched around him without paying him any mind. Then he died and we decided to get a new dog. Went to a rescue where we could get a trial period with a potential new dog to be sure it was suited to our family and home prior to committing to adopt. Brought the new dog home and took her out on leash to see how she would react to the chickens. To my surprise, upon seeing the dog, the chickens went into panic mode and started flapping and screeching and running all over the place. The same flock that never reacted to my old dog at all. (To her credit, the dog didn't react and has now been a member of our family for a year, and the chickens are now as relaxed around her as they were the old dog, but that is a whole 'nother story). So yeah, I totally believe that your chickens are fine with your dog and, understandably, NOT fine with your uncle's dog being around.

 

[Nicole01]

Anytime you leave your flock roam, you are risking their lives to several predators. If its not your uncles dog, it will be someone else's. Dogs can sniff pretty far away. Chicken poop is a very easy scent. Plus, there will be hawks, eagles, and whatever else going after your chickens.

We spent a fortune on our run. We have welded wire along with hardware cloth. We roofed the run with steel panels to match our house.

Our coop(12x4x9) is a room built inside our garage. It's too hot to leave them inside, so I also free range.

I've steered dogs 5 times in the last year out of my yard. I have pepper spray and a stick. I've had hawks swoop 2 times in the last 2 months. Eventually something is going to get them at some time. We are building a fence starting next spring to keep the dogs out. Eventually, we will have our 4 acre lot fenced to keep the dogs running at large out.

The dog should of never been brought to a coop. Beating the living daylight out of dog is cruel. I would of called animal control family or not. The dog will be back. I see the same 2 dogs back in my yard after my flock.

Your uncle did repay you and that is good. I'd be going out and replacing the ones lost.

Good luck.

 

[Nyowpotopop]

See, I also awknowledge that if you wanna keep chickens as anything but pets that building an expensive coop is pretty useless, though. Why spend $500 on a coop and $300 on a run for fresh eggs for the next 6 years when you could just buy other people's eggs for way cheaper? Even at $3/dozen (expensive for around here), a dozen farm fresh eggs a week for the next 6 years would cost like $850 dollars. If you wanna wait 7-10 years just to break even.... And that's not even including the cost of feed.

So finding a way to keep the dog out may have to be done through other means.

 

[Heat]

Anytime you leave your flock roam, you are risking their lives to several predators. If its not your uncles dog, it will be someone else's. Dogs can sniff pretty far away. Chicken poop is a very easy scent. Plus, there will be hawks, eagles, and whatever else going after your chickens.
We spent a fortune on our run. We have welded wire along with hardware cloth. We roofed the run with steel panels to match our house.

Our coop(12x4x9) is a room built inside our garage. It's too hot to leave them inside, so I also free range.
I've steered dogs 5 times in the last year out of my yard. I have pepper spray and a stick. I've had hawks swoop 2 times in the last 2 months. Eventually something is going to get them at some time. We are building a fence starting next spring to keep the dogs out. Eventually, we will have our 4 acre lot fenced to keep the dogs running at large out.
The dog should of never been brought to a coop. Beating the living daylight out of dog is cruel. I would of called animal control family or not. The dog will be back. I see the same 2 dogs back in my yard after my flock.
Your uncle did repay you and that is good. I'd be going out and replacing the ones lost.
Good luck.

On Page 2 I stated that I am building a covered run to protect the chickens from various predators. And had I of been there when he beat the living daylight soutta his dog I would have called animal control... but I didn't get the details until the day after, he didn't even approach me until 5 days after the incident. So why call animal control out 2 days after the incident when it was the first time he ever beat her?

And he did not repay me. I do not consider his offer to buy more chicks repayment. Especially since he wants them as his chickens, just living in our coop and me taking care of them. That is like saying sorry my kid ate your kid, I can buy you another one for you to raise but I will call it my own. Really doesn't make sense. Plus I honestly started with 6 hatchlings, one died the next day, and hubby replaced one with 6... I will protect the ones I have and worry about more chicks next year... but I have to finish my covered run because as you are aware... it takes time and can't happen over night.

 

[7L Farm]

nope, I'm right here in AR. I have plenty of predators and I do free-range my birds. There are also laws that state that I am allowed to do that as long as my birds don't leave my property (they don't). There are also laws that say my neighbors' dogs aren't allowed to be on my property, especially if they are harming my livestock. The law also says that any dog caught harming livestock can be shot on sight.

It's not my responsibility to take care of my neighbors' pets. It is my responsibility to weigh my predator deterrents (my dogs) vs wild predators. The rare losses I've had from wildlife are nothing compared to the losses from roaming dogs. And those losses aren't just livestock but destroyed property and aggressiveness towards my family.

Your right!! If a dog comes on my property I have the right to shoot it no IFS ANDS about it. The dog owner needs to keep his dogs on his property the end. If your chickens go on his side of the fence he can shoot them. Thats how it works here in Texas.

 

[crazyrescuelady]

Quote: I agree with dainerra. Sorry but if a dog is on my property a second time, given that I've allowed a second time to occur, after it has killed my chickens it will be dead. No question. BY STATE LAW I have the right to shoot any animal or predator that is a danger to my animals, property or person.
Okies don't play around.

 

[Heat]

Your right!! If a dog comes on my property I have the right to shoot it no IFS ANDS about it. The dog owner needs to keep his dogs on his property the end. If your chickens go on his side of the fence he can shoot them. Thats how it works here in Texas.

I agree with dainerra. Sorry but if a dog is on my property a second time, given that I've allowed a second time to occur, after it has killed my chickens it will be dead. No question. BY STATE LAW I have the right to shoot any animal or predator that is a danger to my animals, property or person.
Okies don't play around.

In Washington you have every right to protect your livestock, and chickens fall under that category... I don't want to shoot the dog which is why I asked him to remover her immediately... And that is why I keep my chickens and dog in my property.... don't want someone to shoot them for trespassing.

 

[ChickaBamBam]

If you're over reacting then I guess I would too!

So your dog has some protection issues. Protecting is the job of a dog, yeah? There's no law I know of that you can't tie her up near the coop door when you are not able to be out there and directly supervise.

Best of luck to you.

 

[Nicole01]

Quote: Originally Posted by Nicole01 Anytime you leave your flock roam, you are risking their lives to several predators. If its not your uncles dog, it will be someone else's. Dogs can sniff pretty far away. Chicken poop is a very easy scent. Plus, there will be hawks, eagles, and whatever else going after your chickens. We spent a fortune on our run. We have welded wire along with hardware cloth. We roofed the run with steel panels to match our house. Our coop(12x4x9) is a room built inside our garage. It's too hot to leave them inside, so I also free range. I've steered dogs 5 times in the last year out of my yard. I have pepper spray and a stick. I've had hawks swoop 2 times in the last 2 months. Eventually something is going to get them at some time. We are building a fence starting next spring to keep the dogs out. Eventually, we will have our 4 acre lot fenced to keep the dogs running at large out. The dog should of never been brought to a coop. Beating the living daylight out of dog is cruel. I would of called animal control family or not. The dog will be back. I see the same 2 dogs back in my yard after my flock. Your uncle did repay you and that is good. I'd be going out and replacing the ones lost. Good luck. On Page 2 I stated that I am building a covered run to protect the chickens from various predators. And had I of been there when he beat the living daylight soutta his dog I would have called animal control... but I didn't get the details until the day after, he didn't even approach me until 5 days after the incident. So why call animal control out 2 days after the incident when it was the first time he ever beat her? And he did not repay me. I do not consider his offer to buy more chicks repayment. Especially since he wants them as his chickens, just living in our coop and me taking care of them. That is like saying sorry my kid ate your kid, I can buy you another one for you to raise but I will call it my own. Really doesn't make sense. Plus I honestly started with 6 hatchlings, one died the next day, and hubby replaced one with 6... I will protect the ones I have and worry about more chicks next year... but I have to finish my covered run because as you are aware... it takes time and can't happen over night.

Absolutely it takes time! It took us a year to finish our run. We were in a bit of sticker shock once we bought the supplies.:/

Your uncle should be repaying you for the chick lost. He should also keep his dog on his property. This at minimum.

People around here let their dogs roam. It's extremely frusterating. The only way we can keep them out of our yard is putting up a chain link fence. It will keep the dogs out, but not the hawks. We have dogs ourself, but they are always watched by us and are in the house most the day. We do not let our dogs run.

I can't keep my flock locked up during the day inside the coop/run. One, they will be extremely noisy and two, it's way too hot without any natural shading. We are planting trees next to the run, but it will take years to grow. We were not expecting to build a fence either. I'm unsure how long it will take since we are doing it sections at a time. We will try and do as much as possible for free through CL ads. It will take 2-4 years before its finished. We will have a flock for as long as we are able to care for them. In the winter we cover our run in plastic to keep the snow out.

I never said "sorry my kid ate your kid...". You are confusing my post with someone else. My hens are my pets. We take very good care of them and making sure they are safe. It's not cheap unless you are using recycled materials.

We can not keep other peoples dogs off our property.:/. It's been this way since we built this house 12 years ago. Your uncle has a crappy attitude towards your animals. They are your pets, not just chickens!

 

[FireTigeris]

Who would win in a fight between your dog and his dog, if your dog would clearly win- then let him know you'll have your dog guarding your property and he's to use the front path/driveway and not bring his mutt?