I'm going to court.... what should I ask for damages?

[Cosmopolis Chick]

I know I've seen this question addressed on here
before but I cannot find the thread - and time is short.
I'd appreciate any input, thanks.
The court date is this Thursday!

Two dogs killed two of my chickens. One more hen is damaged and may not lay again.

Here are the bare facts:

• a police report was made, I have the owner's name & address, I filed a complaint
• I have heard nothing from the dog owner - it has been 3 months
• the dogs (& owner) are not from my town, they're from the next town over. I am within city limits.
• the dogs are well-known as unrestrained, at-loose dogs for years according to my police
• I commonly sell laying hens here for $25.00
• one hen that died was my broody, she had 8 chicks and I had to finish raising them myself. I have no other broody hen so now I can't just buy fertile eggs - I have to buy chicks ($$$). I depend on selling pullets (POL) as part of my income.
• the vet bill was $165.00
• the 3rd hen that lived was bitten in the head and had to be nursed in the house for 2 weeks, now occasionally lays a shell-less egg, she had to retired to pet status at 14 months of age (food =$$$). she will live here in dignity until she dies of old age but I'm limited in how many hens I can keep and depend on egg sales to pay for feed - double-whammy

That's as brief as I can make it. I was quite distraught, my girls were traumatized and the week following 'the incident' I got 5 eggs instead of the expected 30.
I don't blame the dogs at all. They are/were not bad dogs, just normal dogs.
I thought I had my hens securely fenced, 6' wood fencing on 3 sides and 6' chainlink on the side facing the house.
The police believe the dogs pushed against the gate and it allowed one or both to squeeze in. One dog had taken a hen out of my chicken run, down the alley, and was chewing on her when the police arrived.

My question is, how much is justified to ask for damages?
BTW, I have no idea if I can collect.

 

[HEChicken]

I price them out at around $75. Although you can buy a chick for $3 at the feed store, the cost to feed them to laying age adds considerably to the purchase price. I don't sell them POL - I sell the eggs. A hen supposedly is born with the ability to lay around 1000 eggs, and I charge $2.50/doz for eggs. So I then determine, based on her age, how much potential income I had left in her. I.e. a POL pullet is worth more than a two-year-old.

When I was in this situation, my hen was 14 months old and I figured the replacement cost to be around $75, based on the cost to purchase a replacement chick, feed it for 5 months, and the loss of income on the eggs during that time.

 

[Mattemma]

I would charge more for a broody hen.Sometimes it is hard to get them broody.Sorry you have to deal with this.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

Punative damages...pain and suffering...etc. If you can prove through police reports that these dogs have a history of being "at large" and the owners do not restrain these animals; judges will be more willing to award damges of this type

 

[RedJungleFowl]

i would charge them 100 to 200 because u have to feed them and heat then which comes u have to pay for all that and u going have to find a new hen or broody hen which is hard to find

 

[Feanor]

So sorry for your situation but I agree with the others, factor in the potential income they cost you, I'd say $50 per hen in eggs and the cost of a brooder ($150) to replace your broody hen, and the cost to raise three chicks to laying age (I think I read somewhere that food, energy, etc. came to $30 from chick to layer, not including your labor cost to take care of them). Since they can be replaced, I would not include the potential income of selling their potential chicks. So that would be $390 plus the vet bill, plus a payment of say, $200 for your trouble and the effort you'll have to go through not only to take care of the injured chickens but to look for, order, and raise your new chicks to adulthood. Certainly ask for more than you expect to get but within reason, because the only thing the judge can do is deny or reduce, and in this case he certainly wouldn't deny it since there is so much evidence. Just have a list very detailed with all of these charges and expenses.

Best of luck

 

[TeamChaos]

Just a side note- be sure you're clear on what the small claims limit is in your state. Also, punitive damages are rarely awarded in small claims court- you'd need to prove that the owners of the dogs specifically intended to cause YOU harm. Same with "pain and suffering"- damages that do not have a clear monetary value are usually left to a jury to consider and parse out, there is no jury in small claims court and by nature of it being for small claims a judge is unlikely to take it into consideration.
It sounds like you are being fair and level headed in your calculations. Make sure you make proof avail. for any value you provide (like the food x age calculation if you use it to establish value, a receipt from a comparable sale of hen, income from eggs pre and post attack etc.) Did you have to make additions to your coop to exclude the dogs from causing further damage? How many babies has your broody hatched out for you in the time you had her? How many of those chicks went on to provide you $ in some way? How old was she when killed/ how long can a chicken be expected to live? That's how I'd calculate my broody's value.

I am so sorry for your losses!

 

[animaladdictions]

I bet the owners won't show up to court. Theyre probably poor and can't afford to replace the birds or they'd of tried to settle out of court. I hate to see anyone get sued but sometimes there's no choice. My guess is if they'd have come over and talked to you like decent civilized people, it wouldn't have had to go this far. Did you not even get a simple apology or anything? Some people out there just don't realize the importance we place on our birds! It drives me crazy! I had 2 chickens killed by a neighbors dog not long ago too. It also put a hole in the side of one of my call duck hens. I didn't sue, but I did have the pound come out and take the dog. I haven't seen it since so I'm guessing they never got it back. I felt horrible for doing it but I didn't know what else to do. I hope you get what you want in court. I agree that you should ask for the value of the hens and the amount it would cost to feed them to laying age, plus vet bills and a reasonable amount for your heartache. Keep us posted on how it goes. Good Luck!

 

[MamaMarcy]

I think you'll find that entitled compensation is the cost of a new chicken. $20-25 each. I do not believe they will cover what would have been made on eggs, etc. Your losses in this are most likely limited to the chickens themselves and market replacement rates. You may get vet bills covered, but I doubt you'll get anything for decrease in egg production, loss of broodiness, etc.

 

[dainerra]

it really depends on your area. I can't remember what state it was (was checking laws for someone else) but that state limited damages for poultry to $5. Otherwise, you are pretty much limited to replacement costs since chickens are considered property. Pain and suffering is probably out since you are legally seeking compensation for destroyed property but I would find out the specifics in your area.
good luck!