Losing my patience with neighbor's dog....

[JacinLarkwell]

I live on a lake, out in the country, and there is no animal control to call. I'm sure the family cares about their dog, but so far, they have not shown much responsibility for her by letting her run free and going on to other people's property. I'm a little frustrated with the owners, in this situation, but they are good people too.

I liked the earlier idea to just mention you have rat poison out (even if you really don't), and say you saw her sniffing around it, and would hate for her to accidentally get sick from being where she shouldn't be next time

 

[gtaus]

Since you seem to be on friendly terms with the neighbors and the dog, if it returns again contain the dog in your yard and see how long it takes them to look for him. Of course make sure it has water.

Thanks. I like that idea and may use it if the dog continues to show up uninvited. I have considered it, but since I know it takes me all of 10 seconds to walk to the neighbors to return the dog, I have been taking that opportunity to talk to them.

You know, I think I am dealing with a single mother and her ~teenage kids. She probably got the dog about the same time she had the children, so I suspect the dog has been part of the family as long as the children can remember. Although I find their actions lacking in responsibility, I don't think the family needs more drama in their life with someone shooting their dog on a one week vacation. I don't want to be that guy. I do like your suggestion, thanks.

 

[gtaus]

One time, my neighbor up the street a ways was with friends outside in the backyard and wasn't keeping an eye on her dog, a red lab named Clifford. He's a wild thing and is still a puppy (not a year old yet). He came down to my house FOUR TIMES that evening. (Luckily didn't show too much interest in the chickens).

Well, that is kind of the situation I'm in here, too. The dog has not yet done any real damage that I could not handle, but I just want to make sure that she does not get the chance to kill any birds.

Did your neighbors finally take of their dog and prevent it from bothering your chickens?

 

[MildlyOffensiveChicken]

I’d keep the dog until they come looking for it next time.

Silver lining: You’ve gotten a good test of your fence. Improve it no matter the outcome of the current dog.


Nuclear option:
Years ago, and prior to being a chicken keeper, a neighbor had a 100lb SA Boerbal mastiff type dog. Very mean, they would let the 7 yo daughter walk it. She couldn’t control it. After it chased me into the house a 2nd time while I was mowing, I talked with the police. They did nothing. I knocked on their door at dinner time a few days later, and told them “if I see the dog again, I will kill it, bbq and eat it in front of your house.” They called the police and were told “keep your dog secure or get rid of it”. Never saw the dog again, they went inside when they saw me, I moved a year later. LEO here tend to be very hands off....probably not your style. Same family that told their kids to not allow vehicle by, they would stand in the road and try to stare down vehicles when playing.

 

[gtaus]

It's time to get serious or you ARE going to lose your
birds. These people have had plenty of warnings and
have to continued to ignore them. Either shoot the dog
or set out poison.

Well, thank you for your reply, but I think you have offered limited options. I have lived here for over 30 years, and have seen these kids grow up and return with kids of their own. Although I don't know each of the children by name, I know the owners of the other cabins and have great relationships with them. The last thing I would want to do is shoot the dog of their grandchildren when they come to the lake for their 4th of July vacation.

Either do something or stop complaining.

Wow! Does everything come down to 2 choices? I don't think so. There have been many other helpful suggestions and I appreciate all feedback. Even feedback that I may not agree with. I appreciate your feedback as well.

First of all, I am doing something. I have strengthened my chicken run fencing and have increased my watching of the coop/run. I have returned the dog 3 times to the owners and talked to them personally, and friendly, about the situation that concerns me. I have also walked my entire chicken run rethinking about possible weak spots in the fencing. I know the dog could not get into the chicken coop, it's like Fort Knox in that respect. It would take a bear to break into my coop.

As to complaining, I clearly stated in my initial post that..

I am posting this because I want dog owners to know that they need to be responsible for their pets.

I realize that I'm talking to the choir here on the BYC forum, but I don't think that posting my experience with neighbors and expressing my frustrations is just "complaining." I have received some helpful, non-lethal, suggestions from the BYC community that I can try.

I believe that talking about long term relationships with the neighbors and the short term situation with their dog is something that I expect many backyard chicken owners have faced, or may face in the future. Dealing with neighbors can get complicated.

 

[gtaus]

Poison? If you had a clue as to how painful that is for an animal you wouldn’t even vocalize it. Someone who poisons a dog is a monster.

My grandfather had 2 black lab hunting dogs back in the 1940's. One day, they broke off their chains and took off running. Although they did not cause harm to anyone, one of the neighbors set out poison for the dogs, which did kill them. My grandfather never forgave the neighbor. Never. It's a terrible way to kill an animal. Having an animal trespass on your property - without doing any damage - is no reason to end their life. At least, that is what I believe.

Dispatch it, fine. I’ve shot many. The dog is being a dog. Advocating setting out poison is terrible.

Fortunately, my chicken run fencing has been strong enough to prevent any attacks. I have had to chase a few stray dogs off from snooping around the chickens, but usually they never return. This situation is a bit different as the old lab has been returning and getting smarter every time. I've had to step up my game in response, but there has been no actual attack.

As I said, I live on a lake and we get lots of visitors here during the summer, and some of them bring their dogs. Usually, the dogs just come over, check out the chickens, and leave. They show little to no interest in them. Setting out poison is not an option that I would consider.

 

[gtaus]

I would definitely not poison or kill him.
He's only being a dog, and it's not his fault if his owners aren't being responsible in looking after him.

Correct. I'm not upset about the dog, it's the owners I am working on and I hope my talking to them about my concerns is getting through to them. Another few days of their lake vacation and they will be gone for another year. I'm just working hard to make sure no attack happens.

 

[gtaus]

I liked the earlier idea to just mention you have rat poison out (even if you really don't), and say you saw her sniffing around it, and would hate for her to accidentally get sick from being where she shouldn't be next time

Yeah, I kind of liked that white lie idea too. If it comes to more serious intrusions, it's an option to consider. However, I don't want to be that neighbor that is known for putting out poison that could kill their pets, so even a white lie about poison might not be in my best interest.

 

[gtaus]

I’d keep the dog until they come looking for it next time.

Yes, that was a good suggestion and one I would consider.

Silver lining: You’ve gotten a good test of your fence. Improve it no matter the outcome of the current dog.

Yep, if nothing else, I hope people take out of this that we should constantly be thinking about weak spots in our protection. I don't expect I can stop all possible attacks, but I have been fixing some issues that I did not previously know were potential problems.

 

[MACCanadianCoop]

I’d keep the dog until they come looking for it next time

I was going to suggest this as well. Will be interesting to see how long it takes the fam to realize their beloved pet is missing