Dog killed my chickens, I killed the dog

[Jackie B.]

Quote:
I am so terribly sorry to hear you lost so many chickens. On a random note, my husband has a house on E. College Street. What part of Griffin do you live in? Next time we're in town and if I have any chicks you're interested in (black and maybe blue frizzles, BLRW), maybe I can bring some down.

 

[SilkieGirl]

I am very sorry for your loss, I have had the same thing happen and had to do the same. I used to raise pygmy goats and the main thing I had to be careful of was neighbor's dogs all in all with the total attacks on my herd throughout the years we lost over 10 goats to dogs alone, people dont care that their dogs run loose or what they do, they just dont want to deal with it when it comes home to them. In one incident in particular the fired to scare the dog away then the dog, about a 100 pund malamute, came snarling at me at that point there was no choice, The goat the dog attacked had to make an emergency vet visit for a torn leg, made a full recovery, none of the rest who were attacked by dogs were as lucky. I have also had a few silkies killed by stray dogs. what is sad in the end, its not the dogs fault but the ignorance of his or her owner who has not properly trained the dog and did not keep the dog on their property and it is everyone else who ends up having to deal with what happens. Where I live there are foxes, coyotes, raccoons, weasels, bobcats, oposums, hawks, falcons, owls and with all that combined nothing compares to what we have lost to dogs, and it is fairly easy to train a dog, if you start from when its a pup not to hurt a chicken my pekingese thinks the baby chicks in the brooder are hers and she will sit there and watch them for hours at a time and even plays with the older birds. All in all there is no excuse for a dog who kills chickens.

 

[NightingaleJen]

I'm very sorry to hear about your losing your birds (and your other pets—how awful!) and having to shoot someone's dog. What a shame. I hope the owners of the dog work with you and that you don't find it necessary to go to court.

It's very sad that this dog had to be shot—I have always had dogs, and have one now—but the owner has to take responsibility somewhere. It sounds like Jennifer has dealt with MORE than enough. Also, she has a right to protect her child, property and livestock. She did the right thing, though I'm sure she (like many of us would) feels terrible that she had to shoot someone else's pet because it was attacking her pets.

People forget how dangerous dogs, especially dogs roaming about, can be. A friend of ours up the street who also has collies had one of her collies attacked and killed by a dog last spring in his own yard. If you know anything about collies, they have lots of hair and it takes some tenacity to tear them up enough to kill them, but that's what happened to this poor sweet dog. After this, three other dog owners came forward saying this dog had attacked their dogs as well. Still, the owners did nothing and were even belligerent about it—until the stupid dog broke off his leash and attacked another dog. The dangerous dog was...well, attended to by Animal Control that night.

No one danced a jig or popped champagne over it. Most of us felt badly that the owners were so irresponsible and thoughtless that they never bothered to train their animal, thus preventing a sad end for it, to say nothing of those whose animals had been hurt or worse.

When an attack is occurring, I'm sorry, but there's not time to empathize, wonder about waiting children or consider giving the attacker a second chance. Doing so could well mean maiming or death, whether of livestock or people (and a dog in kill mode can be very dangerous). You do what you must. I've always paid a price for my own irresponsibility in the past. Irresponsible dog owners cannot be exempt from this, no matter how painful it is for them or the one forced to commit a violent act in defense.

Jennifer, I'm sorry you have to deal with this, that you had to do what you had to do (though it was the right thing) and especially that your little one is in such a state. I can't imagine.

 

[mywifewasonherenowiamalso]

if it happens again shoot the owners they are stupid for letting the dogs run on others property and cause damage. i have had the same trouble and with mine. they eat the baby geese hatching on the ponds and chase cattle and deer

 

[Black Cochin Bantams]

Quote:
I hope this post had a punctuation error.!?
Can't agree with violence against owners. Want to wake up the owner sue them.
Perhaps should have read.

if it happens again shoot. the owners they are stupid for letting the dogs run on others property and cause damage. have had the same trouble and with mine. they eat the baby geese hatching on the ponds and chase cattle and deer

 

[Judy]

Quote:
I hope this post had a punctuation error.!?
Can't agree with violence against owners. Want to wake up the owner sue them.
Perhaps should have read.

if it happens again shoot. the owners they are stupid for letting the dogs run on others property and cause damage. have had the same trouble and with mine. they eat the baby geese hatching on the ponds and chase cattle and deer

Yup, must have been punctuation, since everyone agreed to the following when they joined BYC:

In general, you agree not to post any material that is illegal....

 

[ChickLover98]

If I was in that situation, I would either sue the owners or make them replace my chickens. I wouldnt shoot the dog, just report it to animal contorol. This has happened to me before, but the dog got my one and only chicken. We called animal control, who came and took the dog and made it go live with a relitive of the owner who let it eat our chicken.

 

[K-9mom]

"If the dog was hungry and wanted to eat, that would have been one thing..... This dog was fat and taken care of. It did it for sport. There were 2 dogs but the other one ran away before I could get a shot on it. I had never had to shoot anything before but I would do it again to protect my birds."


This is EXACTLY what the Chicken owner told me when I responded to his home for the second time after several chickens were killed by a Husky down the road. I am an Animal Control Officer and after the first situation, the chicken owner told me he was going to go to Cabela's to buy a gun so he could shoot it. I told him he had the right. Unfortunately he didn't do it fast enough and the dog came back for more. But as he said, if it were Coyote's/Fox/Fisher that were hungry and needed food, shame on him for not protecting his birds but at least they were used. But this Husky just comes in and slits them up all over the yard for sport.

P.S. I put a Disposal Order on the dog and the owner is disputing it with the State Dept of Agriculture so the dog is boarding at my facility until the Commissioner can hear the case. The Husky owners in the area want to rehome the dog (the current owner no longer wants her if he has to have rules but they talked him into disputing the order). Even the State ACO is flip/flopping. My thought is that these chickens were in a fenced yard (with goats), children's pets, and twice the small children watched the dog tare them up. The Husky Rescue person just says "That's what Huskies do" and I shouldn't condemn the dog. Personally, this dog has been loose on SO many occasions that she is a queen at escape and will find chickens, ducks, etc to kill at her next possible chance.

Tina

 

[cafarmgirl]

Quote:
Well actually, in all honesty, that IS what Husky's do. Many have an extremely high prey drive and a very strong desire to be out running and hunting and can be very difficult to contain. This is exactly why they are not a dog for just anybody to own, especially people who are ignorant of the breed and incapable of maintaining them. This of course applies to a lot of dogs but Husky's can be especially challenging.

I am no bleeding heart for livestock killing dogs, I will not hesitate to shoot one thats after my animals. I just hate that ignorant owners allow their dogs to get into trouble and the dog pays for it in the end. I really wish there were much stronger penalties for owners of dogs that get out and cause so much destruction.

 

[dainerra]

Quote:
sorry, in some areas this isn't an "animal control" issue. Our county has no leash law. The only recourse for a dog that attacks livestock is to shoot the animal. Call Animal Control and you will be told that they only pick up stray dogs, so won't come out if the dog is wearing a collar or "look like it has a home" They will tell you to shoot the dog. Call the Sheriff and they will come out (if you know who owns the dog) and advise the owner that the dog can/will be shot if caught going after livestock.