Emergency! 3 yr old BR attacked by dog

[BarredRockMom]

I am so sorry that this happened to you and your hen! I agree that the dog will likely be back.

I understand that some folks think that other steps are better avenues for a remedy and some have different ideas about how to go about things so as to keep peace amongst neighbors.

I say feel free to send it into the light, dig a hole & cover it up.

Consider it 3 steps toward keeping the peace.

 

[nightowl223]

I would report it to the police, as well, and if the dog's owner can be identified, he or she can be made to pay for the hen or a replacement hen, according to nearly all state laws. You can certainly check on your state law, but there should be no reason why the dog's owner shouldn't owe you a hen.

 

[mitch1114]

I am so sorry! It's awful when one of your chickens gets caught by something. Do you have fencing around your property?

We have a fenced area for the chickens which is attached to the garden, which is also fenced. We had a dog for 4 months a little while back (it got hold of a chicken without killing it and bit my son on the face so we got rid of her). We had fenced in an area for her and the chickens like to escape their yard and wander around the "dog yard". My husband just took one side of that fence down this weekend because we didnt need it anymore since we dont have the dog. That's where this dog came into the back yard at. This is our 4th year having chickens and this is the first time something like this has happened. I've called animal control before for other animals but they say they wont come out here because we are outside of city limits. Is there another office I should call? Sorry if I was rambling a bit.

 

[nightowl223]

We have a fenced area for the chickens which is attached to the garden, which is also fenced. We had a dog for 4 months a little while back (it got hold of a chicken without killing it and bit my son on the face so we got rid of her). We had fenced in an area for her and the chickens like to escape their yard and wander around the "dog yard". My husband just took one side of that fence down this weekend because we didnt need it anymore since we dont have the dog. That's where this dog came into the back yard at. This is our 4th year having chickens and this is the first time something like this has happened. I've called animal control before for other animals but they say they wont come out here because we are outside of city limits. Is there another office I should call? Sorry if I was rambling a bit.

No worries about the rambling - sometimes that gives a lot of information. If you're out of city limits, then you should contact the county sheriff. That's what he or she's there for. Report the loss of livestock due to a loose dog attack, and file a complaint. And take a few moments to find out what the breed if hen is running, price-wise, in your area, like from a Facebook buy/sale/trade page or from Craigslist. Take the higher range of price to use as the value of the loss.

 

[DuckWhisperer06]

We have a fenced area for the chickens which is attached to the garden, which is also fenced. We had a dog for 4 months a little while back (it got hold of a chicken without killing it and bit my son on the face so we got rid of her). We had fenced in an area for her and the chickens like to escape their yard and wander around the "dog yard". My husband just took one side of that fence down this weekend because we didnt need it anymore since we dont have the dog. That's where this dog came into the back yard at. This is our 4th year having chickens and this is the first time something like this has happened. I've called animal control before for other animals but they say they wont come out here because we are outside of city limits. Is there another office I should call? Sorry if I was rambling a bit.

We live outside of city limits too!
Although, we have a pretty small town, and the city limits sign is at the end of our property, so sometimes they still consider us ‘in the city’.

That being said, we’ve given the local police and fire stations a call telling them where we live and that we’ll be shooting every now and then for practice (we live in Texas so it’s not unusual to hear gunshots from people practicing...or not practicing)

The way I see it, your birds are being killed by a dog that nobody seems to give a care about. It’s all happening on your property so by all means get rid of the dog. Whether you decide to call the county sheriff or do away with it yourself.

Like others have said, most of us are dog lovers and obviously wouldn’t want to harm the dog, but the thing is, the dog is doing harm to you and your birds.

IMO, if the dog comes back a second time (if not, do it the first time) give a warning shot. If it comes back after that, well, you decide if you want to call someone to come take the dog or deal with it yourself.

As much as I wouldn’t want to hurt the dog, I would do it myself, if you call the county sheriff, (don’t quote me on this, I’m not exactly sure what happens) they’ll probably take the dog to the pound. This gives the dog a chance to get a new home... where this can happen all over again. Possibly worse since it now has a taste for chicken.

 

[HeatherlovesherBirds]

I love my birds ,but I think you should try and figure out who owns the dog. I would drive to sub division and ask around or maybe even see the dog outside a house and tell them what happened...I love my dog's like my kids and would never shoot a poor dog. Maybe his family is bad and they don't feed him) her.. maybe you could call police and tell them you will shoot the dog if it comes back...be the squeaky wheel...it always gets the grease... if a dog killed one of my chickens or a few I'd be heart broke...but I would definitely solve the problem other ways then killing the dog...maybe you could catch him/ her and take the dog to shelter in your area... Like I said I love my dog's like my kids most normal people do...most humans have dogs as a family member not pets...it's the owner you should shoot not the dog.

 

[mitch1114]

I love dogs and wouldn't want to hurt one. But I also want to protect my chickens (and my kids). My husband thinks he found out who the owner is and is going to talk to them. I dont think he trusts me to be nice. Actually I dont know if I trust me to be nice about this. We'll see what happens when he talks to them.

 

[Al Capon]

IMO, if the dog comes back a second time (if not, do it the first time) give a warning shot. If it comes back after that, well, you decide if you want to call someone to come take the dog or deal with it yourself.

"Warning shots" are no bueno. You either have cause and reason to be firing off a weapon or you don't. Warning shots can get you a Reckless Discharge of a Firearm charge in short order.

If you've got to shoot, kill the dog.

 

[MROO]

No worries about the rambling - sometimes that gives a lot of information. If you're out of city limits, then you should contact the county sheriff. That's what he or she's there for. Report the loss of livestock due to a loose dog attack, and file a complaint. And take a few moments to find out what the breed if hen is running, price-wise, in your area, like from a Facebook buy/sale/trade page or from Craigslist. Take the higher range of price to use as the value of the loss.

 

[DuckWhisperer06]

"Warning shots" are no bueno. You either have cause and reason to be firing off a weapon or you don't. Warning shots can get you a Reckless Discharge of a Firearm charge in short order.

If you've got to shoot, kill the dog.

I’m not saying don’t shoot the dog, I’m just saying the dog might be startled enough not to come back, without any injuries to the dog.