Neighbor Dogs....again....UPDATE AT END OF THREAD!

[Ema]

Quote:
well I can thoroughly understand your situation and what you are going through. Last year in the spring the neighbours German Shepperd broke his leash and got loose. He started coming around my yard and I was forced to put up 8 foot steel fencing to keep my dogs in and his dog out. His dog comes over and defecates all over my yard and in front of the mail box and pees on my van tires non stop. Scopes the coop and run and taunts my dogs. The fault is not on the dog but the owner, he is well aware that his dog is running rampant, not only on my property but through the other neighbours gardens and vegetable patch too. Now this dog chases cars and will jump out in front of vehicles as they try to pass by their house, he has almost ran me off the road several times, as well as the school bus. Last summer we went for a walk and before going we looked to see if the dog was out, he wasn't so we took the kids and headed down to the creek to look for frogs, as we passed the house the neighbour opened his door and let his beast of a dog out, Beautiful dog but not well raised at all. He charged at us I had the 2 kids hiding behind me and I was yelling at the neighbour to call his dog and he just smirked at me and closed the door. Well my Saint Bernard king Shepperd mix must of heard the commotion because somehow he found it in him to scale the fence and come to our rescue, if he had not shown up the dog would have harmed one of us. I ended having to lay on top of my dog after the other one retreated, he was just not having any of it, and just wanted to take that dog apart.
I complaint to AC and called town council so many times and yet nothing has been done, the rules here are different, I cannot shoot this dog, I cannot trap it, or catch it, I have to get someone else to do it like AC but they won't do nothing so I am sooo out of luck. I am at a loss here, and I am sorry to say this because I love animals, and I got 6 dogs of my own, but if we had the ability to shoot a dog who was posing a threat to us, I would have done it already.

All i can do is wait and keep complaining and writing letters until something happens which will be the only time AC will come out and actually do their job!!!

Hopefully it doesn't come to you having to take the last option and I hope your neighbour smartens up.

Ema

 

[bobbi-j]

Ema - Unfortunately for the dog, if it's a car chaser it probably won't live long anyway. Is there really no way you can just make the dog disappear? No way to catch it and take it to the pound? Quietly, of course, without telling anyone that you did it. I think that's the biggie in all dog cases. If the dog goes away, you don't say anything to anyone, and definitely don't post it on a public forum!

 

[MyHappyHen]

Sit in your yard with the hose on and hose it every time it even thinks of coming near the border.

 

[ralleia]

The humane society in the bigger city to the north of us has an after-hours pen that can be used to drop off stray dogs. They do ask that a donation be left.

Back when I had strays coming into the yard (I knew whose dogs they were--the owner is irresponsible), I planned on catching the dogs and driving them 40 miles to the humane society, leaving an anonymous donation.

I didn't get to do that because the dogs didn't come back (I think another neighbor shot them when they chased a prized filly into barbed wire).

Catch the dog, drive him VERY FAR AWAY to an animal shelter and drop 'im off. He's unlikely to find his way back. Then keep your mouth shut.

 

[Noymira]

Quote:
Sounds to me like that dog may not be so lucky next time someone drives by, at least he wouldn't be in my neighborhood....

While I always make the best attempt I can to avoid animals in the road, I would never drive off the road and injure myself or total my car to avoid a stray dog.

 

[Saltcreek]

I am a retired Police Officer so here is some free advice from experience. First, forget advice on SSS. Just S. To hide the fact you shot just makes you look like you're trying to cover up something you did wrong. Take pictures immediately after the shooting. The AC has already told you to shoot and the law is on your side here. However you need some pre-planning just in case.

YOU know you have made complaints to the AC, but do you have proof? Many ACs have poor or lazy record keeping. Make sure they filed a WRITTEN report on the times you complained, and formally request copies of the report for your records so they don't magically disappear. Get written documentation in a report by the AC of what he warned the nieghbor about. Submit copies of the photos of the dog in your yard that are time stamped. It helps if your camera shows the time on the photo. Insist these pictures are filed with the report, and do it in writing. The UNIVERSAL saying in Law Enforcement and Courts as to documentation is "If it's not in writing, it never happened". I have seen ACs who tried to cover up their lack of action after the poop hits the fan. Get a hard copy of the Michigan laws that let you shoot the dog under several conditions, protection of person, livestock etc. READ the law yourself before shooting, never take someone else's word, including the AC. He is not the one who suffers legal consequences if any. Good luck.

 

[speckledhen]

Quote:
Saltcreek, thank you for weighing in as a retired officer. I sure appreciate the sound advice for our members.

 

[airmechreed]

You could trap the dog and take it to the pound yourself and if your dumb neighbor wants their dog back they will have to pay a fine. Maybe bailing out the dog a few times it will sink in. If that doesn't get their attention contact a lawyer and go that route. Shooting the dog only hurts the dog and what you want to do is get to them, if you kill the dog they might just get another one and still not put up a fence.

 

[amynbrent]

The dog is gone. At least I think it isstill and no we didnt shoot it. I knew of one other person also complaining...the sheep owners. Well I guess someoneone on our street but across a main road...pointing this out because it's quite a distance. Well he was getting into their pond and killing their fish. They were able to catch him and took him to the pound. He said it did not have tags on him (I think he removed the collar, this dog always has his collar) so when they find out he's missing they will be doing alot of work to find him because he took him to a pound in the city (over an hour away) and said he was driving and found him wandering on the road. Pretty smart thinking!

 

[Saltcreek]

Quote:
You should still get those reports as I advised, you may need them. The reason is that THIS dog is gone, but the owners may be inclined to get a replacement. You need to have the reports to show the owners "have a pattern of behavior" in not restraining thier dogs so they cannot say it was an isolated accident. This can be used against them in court for damages, or the judge even restraining them from owning dogs as a probation condition. Prepare for the future incidents.