Lost most of my flock this afternoon

[donna1]

We are new to raising chickens. A neighbor just left their chickens to go back to Florida. So, we started feeding those orphaned birds, never dreaming two years later we would be chicken lovers. After dogs killed some, including the hen with five chicks, we closed in a horse stall and really took on the responsibility of caring for the babies. Now, I have fallen in love! My husband made a tractor for the little darlings. Little did I know they don't always get along, so, one day two weeks ago, Mr. Rooster and one hen were out in the playpen. When I came back after picking up grandchildren, I found the tractor torn up, dog paw prints everywhere, my rooster and hen gone. My heart was broken and I'm still not over it. Why, and I'm sure everyone agrees, can't people take care of their pets. Since, then, I've seen the dog here chaising my cat. Last winter he came after me. Now, I'm sure I know the culprit, I want to shoot him, if he comes around again. Everytime I leave, I wonder what I'll find when I return.

 

[Plain Old Dee]

HorseJody - you are very wise. Wild predators rarely take more than they need to survive. Although I've heard stories of coons killing several chickens at a time, I rather imagine it is more than one coon involved when it happens. Other than that, the only mass murderer of chickens is usually dogs (or man if you want to go there). Most state laws require a person to fence his livestock in, not out. Dog owners are responsible for keeping their dogs under control - 100% of the time. (Yes - 100%!) Free ranging hens is an acceptable practise, so long as the hens remain on the owner's property. If they leave the property, they are pretty much fair game.

The reality is, dogs get loose from time to time - but that does not alleviate the dog owner from liability for the dogs misdeeds. My hens were killed while in their completely surrounded and covered run. The dogs tore through the chicken wire. Their owners were 100% liable for the cost of replacing the hens and repairing the damage. They were wonderful about offering fair compensation - but I was so disheartened that I didn't want chickens any more and settled for having them clean up the awful mess. (I'm glad they were outside, because the gore was more than their stomachs could tolerate and they tossed their cookies more than once.

)

I don't know that the OP will get the full amount that they have calculated, but I also don't think it would hurt for them to ask for it initially, and negotiate from there. Seeing the full cost involved may give the dog owners a bit of a wakeup call.

Around here, the courts allow for the cost of replacing an animal to include loss of income that animal would have provided. (Milk, eggs, meat, future babies, etc) I don't know that feed costs are allowed, but it's a good starting point.

 

[poultrypatch]

Donna1 and all...
Sorry to hear of your dog problems !!
I still say: YOU OWN A DOG AND CARE ABOUT IT = KEEP IT CONFINED AND SAFE
YOU LET IT ROAM AND IT GETS INTO TROUBLE = YOU DON'T REALLY CARE ABOUT IT.
YOUR DOG IS IN MY YARD BOTHERING MY ANIMALS = DEAD DOGS

I think it's a very simple idea. NO, not a dog hater..have many Poodles of my own. They are confined to MY yard. BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT THEM !!! I spent lots of money having this almost acre of chainlink fence put up...you should too.

JUST THE THOUGHTS OF A PERSON THAT LOVES HER ANIMALS....not really a nasty person. )

Liz
Rochester, MA

 

[joebryant]

kipepeo, sorry about your having to see, deal with, and go through all that you have. I can't imagine how horrible it must be for you and your family. Hope you're feeling better soon.

 

[sommrluv]

Thought about this thread the other day, as someone decided to open my gate to my fence. My dogs are fenced because they will roam if given the chance. This is our third fencing solution, and works well.

As a responsible dog owner, I wouldn't blame anyone who had to shoot my dog or if it hit by a car, my responsiblity. It would be sad, but I would understand. But boy, it irks me when someone has decided to cut across my property or snoop!

 

[savingdogs]

I am so sorry about the loss of your flock. After a recent experience we just had when a neighbor's dog came over and attacked our dog, I doubt you will ever see your compensation.

I hope I am wrong. I never thought I would like chickens as much as I do and if I were to lose them that way it would be hard to not feel darn sad about their lives being cut short.

I am a dog owner, lover, and rescue humane society dogs we adopt out so there is a continual supply of new dogs. Because of this, I have chosen to not let my chickens free range. We also have neighbor dogs who are allowed to roam free. So until we can afford a sound fence 100 percent around my whole property, and some better cross-fencing, I won't be able to free range my chickens. There are also wild predators but I suspect the neighbor dogs would be much less hesitant to approach our cluster of buildings. And the biggest danger is my own dogs despite them being well behaved and well trained animals. Dogs are predators, birds are prey. No amount of training will ever change that.

Our rescue organization coaches and teaches people about keeping their dogs under their control 100 percent of the time. That is responsible dog ownership. In the case of an "escaped" dog such as fence gets blown down by wind or whatever unforseen thing happens, the dog owner should be responsible for whatever damages their dog does.

But I agree in the real world this kind of responsibility is not the norm.

We need to promote responsible pet ownership of all animals overall in our society not matter what they are.

I have this compulsion to help stray dogs I find on the road and my husband and I have gotten good at helping this kind of dog, so we do it. Especially if I can see dog tags so I'll be able to quickly find the dog's owner, but only when I see the dog is in physical and immediate danger of being hit by a car because it is in the road, that kind of thing. And it is friendly.
You'd be surprised at how little thanks we have gotten in our years of doing this for dogs. Although my husband and I have literally helped more than 20 dogs in this way, we have never received a reward. Not that we did it for any reward, we did it for the animal's sake. But some folks were actually annoyed that their dogs were stopped on their rounds, or the dog had been missing and they were annoyed to get it back, or it was inconvenient to come get it right away, could I return it to their house and just shut the gate? A few folks gave us a nice thank you but the same dog would show up later in the same area as before. More than once I've talked the person into giving me the dog to find a new home for it as that is what I do as a hobby for the humane society dogs.

Responsible dog ownership is a behavior that needs to be taught to the general society at large. Even I as an admitted dog-crazed person agree that if my dogs were attacking their chickens my neighbor would have the right to shoot it. While it makes me sad to contemplate, it also give me impetus to repair that hole in my fence where my one dog tries to escape, etc., kind of bumps it up on the budget priorities.
Because so many dogs are around here my chickens cannot free range. People are just not perfect about containing the dogs (and I would have to count my own family among them). We have not lost any of our chickens to predation yet but have only had them since May, so I'm sure at some point I'll also be "feeling your pain."

 

[chickensioux]

I am so sorry for all of your losses.

 

[poultrypatch]

Horsejody....
CONGRATS FOR TELLING IT LIKE IT IS !!!! I said something on another thread and was "edited" for it.
Completely agree with you and how you put it !!
The truth is that 99% of the people just don't give a darn about others or what their animals do to other's animals. They seem to think it's a big joke and go away laughing. And yes, VERY lucky if anyone ever sees any monetary compensation.
Liz
Rochester, MA

 

[thndrdancr]

I am so sorry for you loss, I too lost a horrid amount of hen and couple of roo's to the neighbors dog not too long ago.

I was heartbroken and devastated, it got my very first EE hen I ever had, and we had a special bond between us. Also a little silkie hen that was sitting on eggs, it just went into the coop and grabbed her right off her nest, she wasnt even out in the yard tempting it.

The neighbors have been great and kept their dog confined 100% and did offer compensation, but I just really wanted my babies back and alive again.
The proper compensation for me would have been for them to take about 30 eggs, agonize over them in the bator, hatch at least half of them,help one or two special ones out of the shell, raise them in the house with all the mess, love over them, clean them firfty times or more a day until they are old enuff to go outside, which will be several months considering our weather, clean house constantly cuz of their dust, etc, etc, until they could give them back to me in the spring. THEN they would really see how much time, effort, love, attention, cleaning, and money/food they really take to raise up to even get to the point of lay. And they might get how there are always one or two that pull your heartstrings and are just special.

Oh and horsejody, since I have had mine penned, they are going thru THREE times the amount of food.

 

[dragonlair]

I'm so sorry for your loss. Hugs to you and your son.

I lost my show quality RIR roo the same day. I had let him and his girls out to hunt and peck while I cleaned up the yard and waited for the woman who was buying my ewe to show up. Stupid roo kept trying to get in the goat barn/dog kennel and I kept shooing him away. He and the girls finally went out back into the horse pasture to peck at pre-eaten oats.

I heard a scream form the dogs and looked out, They were watching the birds thru the pallet fence that keeps the horses and chickens away from the dog fence. yeah, right.

I was leading the ewe out to the truck when the woman showed up when I saw a majr commotion......stupid roo had flown (with a clipped wing no less) up and over the line of pallets AND the dog fence! Right into the waiting mouth of the two female Malamutes, while the 2 male Mals watched. Not even a feather was left. Stupid roo!

Why was he so enthralled with the dogs?

Now the dogs have tasted fresh killed chickens, so I guess I am back to making a prison for the girls. I don't want to lose any more chickens.

A few years ago a mangy fox killed off my 4 Khaki Campbell ducks, most of my bantams and my 4 Guineas. He would show up in broad daylight. I can't shoot because I am surrounded by houses. I would yell and chase the fox, I even got into a tug o war with him once when I grabbed the hen he had in his mouth. I got her and she lived, but that poor girl was in shock for several days. I had the same thing happen with one of my ducks.