Neighbors Dog Massacred My flock

[U_Stormcrow]

I looked at your county statutes - there's a potential $55 charge for an at large dog, but they have not codified any special damages for the destruction of livestock. That means small claims court and a claim at equity - seeking to restore you to the condition you were in prior to the attack. Not to improve your condition by virtue of the assault.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Do you have any recommendations for particular brand?

I don't, sorry. I'm using one from TSC which is adequate to protect about 5 acres - has stopped the neighbors boar (fl feral hog) hunting dogs several times. When my ground is dry it conducts very poorly - I had to add numerous ground rods to make it more effective. When my ground is wet? (we have had 4.3"+ in the last five days)

I bumped it today by accident, twitched involuntarily, and am missing about 1 second of time. Which is more intense than accidentally hitting 110v household current on a 15a line. Its not actually dangerous - amperage is way too low (unlike the household current), but the voltage will get your attention. I'm confident I got most all of the 2.2j its rated at.
If you can get power to the coop, you won't need anything big or extra groundrods, since you will be protecting a MUCH smaller area than I do.

 

[Brooks_]

I bumped it today by accident, twitched involuntarily, and am missing about 1 second of time. Which is more intense than accidentally hitting 110v household current on a 15a line. Its not actually dangerous - amperage is way too low (unlike the household current), but the voltage will get your attention. I'm confident I got most all of the 2.2j its rated at.

That does not sound like fun.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

That does not sound like fun.

Let's say it took me a moment to figure out why I was standing there, and what the moment of blackness was as my neck stopped tingling. 0/10, would NOT repeat.

 

[Buckingham Palace]

I’m soo sorry about your chickens.

 

[BesideStillWaters]

I bumped it today by accident, twitched involuntarily, and am missing about 1 second of time. Which is more intense than accidentally hitting 110v household current on a 15a line. Its not actually dangerous - amperage is way too low (unlike the household current), but the voltage will get your attention. I'm confident I got most all of the 2.2j its rated at.
If you can get power to the coop, you won't need anything big or extra groundrods, since you will be protecting a MUCH smaller area than I do.

My dad bought one intended for horses and somehow turned it into one for dogs. (He worked on equipment and such so he knew what he was doing.) I forgot to turn it off before feeding the dogs once, and when I leaned over the fence to give a treat, it got me and bit my dog (who was taking a treat out of my hand) at the same time. (I had my other hand on the metal fence pole, so it wasn't just a shock on one body part for me, it went in one arm and through the other hand. Don't recommend. ) That poor dog refused to take treats from me for over a year after that. Can't blame her. But I can say the electric fence worked well to keep dogs in. I don't remember my dad having ground rods, so I find this interesting... maybe it was a small enough area that it didn't need them too.

 

[BesideStillWaters]

I lost 14 adult Chickens today.
I'm so devastated I don't even know where to begin.
We have a security camera and at 5:30 this morning a Neighbor's Dog, a Hunting Pointer, Rammed the fenced Run over and over until he got a small opening (still no clue how it fit through) and got into the run and Killed 13 hens and my 1yr old Cuckoo Maran Rooster.

We made a police report. When he saw the cops at our house he came over and admitted it plus we showed the video. He said let him know how much and he will pay.

But where do I even begin!? This was so shocking and traumatic.
Do I charge for the repair to the fence also?
How much per chicken? I also had Marans.
Ages from 1yr old to 3yrs old

I guess I'm looking for advice on how to proceed.

So sorry about your chickens.

 

[aliris]

(((so sad and condolences. My birds are pets and I'm not sure if you feel emotional about yours but it seems so. This is a lot of tragedy to bear. Hang in there.)))

I thought this was wise, from nuthatcher in the comments: "Don't pad the cost with emotion, he's trying to do the right thing, you should too. be fair."

Your sadness doesn't really have a pricetag, and time will heal it back a little. Better relations with this neighbor going forward will probably be valuable too, so, no need to pull a number from thin air right now. Just set about your replacement, keep notes of costs, and confer with them later on how to proceed monetarily.

good luck - so sad for you.

 

[MandaRae]

(((so sad and condolences. My birds are pets and I'm not sure if you feel emotional about yours but it seems so. This is a lot of tragedy to bear. Hang in there.)))

I thought this was wise, from nuthatcher in the comments: "Don't pad the cost with emotion, he's trying to do the right thing, you should too. be fair."

Your sadness doesn't really have a pricetag, and time will heal it back a little. Better relations with this neighbor going forward will probably be valuable too, so, no need to pull a number from thin air right now. Just set about your replacement, keep notes of costs, and confer with them later on how to proceed monetarily.

good luck - so sad for you.

Some of them were our first hens and very friendly and I truly loved my girls. The others were ones we hatched and raised ourselves.
I agree I can't put emotions into it otherwise I would request thousands of dollars.
But I've been searching for my breed replacements and there are not even chicks available right now.
I also had Marans too.
This is going to be had are frustrating to replace.

 

[NatJ]

He said let him know how much and he will pay.

But where do I even begin!? This was so shocking and traumatic.
Do I charge for the repair to the fence also?
How much per chicken? I also had Marans.
Ages from 1yr old to 3yrs old

Yes, I would charge for the repair to the fence, to get it back the way it was.
I would charge for materials, and probably a bit for the labor as well (since that is work you would otherwise not have to do.)

For the chickens, here is one way to estimate the cost:
--cost of new chicks from a hatchery or breeder (match what you had before), plus one or two extras in case they die in shipping or while growing up
--shipping cost for new chicks
--cost of feed to raise new chicks to laying age (about 20 pounds per chicken, although the number varies by breed, by what age they start laying eggs, and by what source you consult.)

Extras you could include but I probably would not:
--optional, your time to raise the chickens (I would not include this, unless you have to spend extra time caring for baby chicks as compared with the chicken care you would do if the former chickens were still alive.)
--optional, cost of the eggs you have to buy while the chickens are growing up (I would not include this, because you may actually save money by buying eggs rather than buying feed for adult hens. Laying hens eat more than baby chicks, so your feed bill will probably go down while the chicks are growing.)

Another way to estimate the cost of the chickens:
Find a hatchery or breeder that will sell point-of-lay pullets or mature hens, and charge that much money. Remember to include the cost of shipping. Then use the money to buy the chickens from that source.

If you buy new chickens on craigslist, of course that is the price to charge for replacement. But if you cannot find the right kind of chickens on craigslist, then I would not use that to estimate cost.