Coop Damage - Dog or Raccoon?

[winbrooke]

A loose dog mauled my chicken coop twice now. She chewed the wood on my Garden Ark and ruined part of it. She also put holes in the roof and made a hole in my grass. I'm asking the dog owner to pay for the damages and he's trying to say it could have been a raccoon.

I witnessed the dog attack, both times, and I know my coop did not have the damage earlier in that day.

The dog owner is a jerk.

Any suggestions on how to prove it was a dog and not a raccoon when I take him to court? I had to file a small claims case over it.

I'm so mad about it all, but thankful my 3 chickens are safe. I spent a month building my coop and I considered it a thing of beauty. The neighbor called it a "cage".

Thanks for any advice before I go to court.

 

[cluckcluckluke]

Straight up a raccoon won't be able to do any of that!!

 

[aart]

Call the cops or animal control to document the incidences.

Take pictures of the damage..and keep the camera handy so if you see the dog chewing on it again, you can take pictures of that. You could install a game camera too to have pictorial proof of dog damaging coop.

If you can measure the width of the bite marks, somewhere it's clear one or two bites happened, that might help exclude a raccoon too....unless the dog is the same size as a raccoon.

Good Luck.

 

[blackswamp]

Somebody once said a neighbors dog in the neighbors yard is a pet. The neighbors dog in my yard is a predator. I would tell the owner this then I would explain what the three S's are to him.

Shoot
Shovel
Shut up

 

[TK421]

If you're considering a lawsuit, then get a decent game camera. For $150 you can bring video to your neighbor, and avoid the courtroom. Also, I'd be happy to look at photos of the bite marks (with a ruler in the photo for scale). Dog and racoon teeth patterns are different and can be differentiated if you have a good impression where the animal sunk his teeth into the wood, although I agree with cluckcluckluke that a racoon probably wouldn't have done this.

 

[nayeli]

Has anyone else witnessed it, or even seen the dog in your yard? Did you document it in any way? If there are clear teeth impressions it will be easy to tell, even if there aren't does he know that? I would ask him once again to pay for the damage that you SAW his dog cause, raccoons are noctornal which counts them out! If he refuses let him know that if you catch his dog on your property again you will protect your property and you will sue him for trespass (it is still trespass, at least where I am, I am taking a college law course).

 

[nayeli]

Also dental impressions can be matched to the dog!

 

[blucoondawg]

You are a witness, most likely the judge has no reason not to believe you, pictures and police reports will be helpful as would pictures or video of the dog on your property but even without the pictures any judge in his right mind will believe you witnessed the dog in action, what reason could you have to make it up? If raccoons regularly came around chewing stuff on peoples coops and yards then it would happen all the time, his whole defense is ridiculous and the judge will see that, most judges also are a pretty good judge of character and can easily peg a liar or a complete jerk by assessing their arrogance and ridiculous stories. I would file a police report to have on hand in court and take pictures of damage and of the dog if it comes back.

How large is the dog? The suggestion to measure an clear bite marks is a good one, raccoons have a very small mouth compared to a dog of larger size, it will probably be impossible to find a nice bite impression though.

 

[aart]

Let's see....OP was 1-20-14.....poster has 2 posts....hasn't been back to acknowledge any responses.........don't think we'll hear any more about this one.

 

[gander007]

A raccoon has smaller teeth ad a dog has bigger ones ...

I have had a lot of coon attacks on coops and very little
damage is incurred .....