Legal Action Against My Neighbor and Her Dogs

[moodyALchicken]

Thought I would start a thread about my court case against my neighbor. I had my girls a total of 5 days before a neighbors dogs (she has 6) ripped apart my coop and killed all my birds. We have photos of one of her dogs with one of my dead birds and photos of a dead bird and feathers from another bird in her yard. Neighbors came forward and have given evidence that her dogs are a nuisance. We have filed a "vicious dog" complaint and property damage with the local police dept. They were very cooperative. We will be filing a restitution claim against her too (we are providing estimates for replacement of pullets and coop repair to the court). We took photos and called the police immediately after finding the birds in her yard. She was sure that her dogs were not responsible and not capable of doing that kind of damage, even though she had dead birds in the yard. I will keep you posted, as I know this happens more frequently than we would like and maybe my experience will help others in similar situations.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

A shame she didn't fess up with the evidence in her yard.
It happened to me and the neighbor immediately brought over the money for damages.
What a hassle to have to go to court.
In most states, chickens - or any livestock - win over dogs in court.

 

[centrarchid]

Keep us posted on what evidence is desired in courtroom. This can help others react quickly to get it recorded and properly prepared.

 

[appps]

I hope they learn a lesson about keeping their dogs contained from it all.

 

[marktoo]

Sorry for your losses & appreciate the education on the legal aspects of this situation. Good Luck!

 

[JanetS]

Sorry for your loss and good luck.

 

[redsoxs]

Good luck with your pain of a neighbor. I have a similar neighbor who always has me on my guard with her stable of mongrel mutts in my yard. No losses yet but it's because I'm vigilant - not because my neighbor is.

 

[moodyALchicken]

Well we went to court last week and were successful in getting compensation for our birds and coop repairs! We were actually considered witnesses for the dog being "at large" part and the restitution was separate. The evidence I supplied were pictures we had taken the day of the incident, which I presented scrapbook style with little captions of what was going on. So if anyone has something similar happen, get right up in their yard and take pictures. The officer said it was ok as long as we didn't "harass" her (it was a residence with no "no trespassing" signs). I also supplied printouts of what it would cost to replace the juvenile birds through Murray McMurray and fencing from TSC plus tax. We also had a neighbor who's dog had been attacked by her dogs write a letter for us. We didn't even go in front of the judge. She settled, but was extremely unhappy about it. She had to pay our restitution and fines for her dogs. Plus her dogs are now on "probation" and if caught again, they get taken away. I have to say that my husband was instrumental in getting the compensation. The city prosecutor was concerned that even though we had pictures of the dogs with the chickens we couldn't prove that the dogs actually broke into the coop. We just kept saying we want compensation. My advice is to stand strong and make them pay. I'm pleased that we made her life uncomfortable for a bit and hurt her pocketbook, but it wasn't as satisfying as I had hoped. It was such a waste of life.

 

[aart]

Condolences and Congrats...did she have to pay on the spot or are you still awaiting payment?


Surprised this thread didn't turn into a dog killing rant-fest.... but glad it didn't.
Maybe it should be closed and locked for posterity...it's a nice a concise story about what to do in your situation.

Thank you for sharing it.

 

[ClewisOK]

Some people.

I hope she gets her dogs under control before they harm a person or get shot (that's what happens here with loose, aggressive, destructive dogs!). Her animals shouldn't have to pay the price for her irresponsibility and selfishness.