should I follow thru with animal control complaint

[marktoo]

Sorry for your losses. I find it hard to believe there are no regulations about dogs running at large, dogs fouling other people's property, harassing livestock, killing livestock, etc, etc. I think animal control...ok the sheriff just doesn't want to enforce the law cause it was only a chicken & duck but your pets are just as important to you as that **** dog is to it's owner. Seems to me a dog that would kill livestock may be a threat to a small child given the right circumstances. You can probably find the local ordinances online, look em up. Sounds like the other neighbors have had enough of this dog to band together, pay the owner a visit, tell him if he doesn't control his animal you're flood the sheriff with complaints, then follow through. You're having to go above & beyond to protect your birds, it's costing you time & money to do so, the burden needs to be placed on the owner of the dog. Stay on that guy till he takes care of his mutt.

 

[Ciqala]

I'm so sorry for your losses. Aside from the shoot, shovel and shut up - may I suggest a high powered, multiple ground rod electric fence. That dog catches a few zaps that make it scream and it'll learn. It worked with my neighbor's dog who once in a while gets loose.

 

[Bullitt]

Shoot the dog.

Shove a hole and buried it.

Shut up by don't tell anyone you shot it.

This is called the SSS method.


You refuse to shot the dog? Then press charges or continue to raise chickens to provide chew toys for the dog.

There is no reason to hide the dog when a dog is shot attacking the chickens. The owner of the chickens has the legal right to shoot the dog.

Now if you see the dog coming another day and shoot it as soon as you see it, that is a different situation. I can see the SSS method being used then.

 

[Bullitt]

It sounds like you may live in an area where any gunfire is illegal.

Even within city limits you can shoot a gun to protect people and animals. I suggest people familiarize themselves with their local laws so they know what can be done in these situations.

.22 shorts or .22 LR subsonic rounds are still good to avoid scaring the neighbors.

 

[dfreas]

I had a similar problem with deer hunters in my neighborhood this year. Their dogs kept terrorizing my chickens and their response was "We can't control where a dog runs, not our problem." So I looked up the law and found that in Virginia it is legal to kill a dog that is on your property and has harassed your livestock (the definition of livestock included chickens). I called the Sheriff and animal control to verify the law and let them know I planned to use it.

Then I calmly and as politely as possible went to the hunters and informed them that if I found their dog on my property before they got to it and put it in their dog box then I would kill it. I went inside, got my shotgun and came back out and started looking for the dog. They FREAKED out, called all their buddies and went over every edge of my woods scrambling to get their dogs before I found them (which they did).

They didn't come back.

Sometimes staying quiet about the problem doesn't work. Your neighbor is abusing you, and isn't being reasonable. Find out what your rights are and exercise them. Otherwise you will constantly be living in fear for your animals lives, which is just as bad as being concerned about a retaliatory neighbor. At least if he retaliates the law will be on your side.

 

[Spanishchick]

Grab the dog, tie it up and let it spend a week with you! And the chickens.
I don't know what kind of dog it is, so it's hard to answer that question. But personally I'd leash the dog and let it spend a while with me (and my dog).

 

[Bullitt]

So I looked up the law and found that in Virginia it is legal to kill a dog that is on your property and has harassed your livestock (the definition of livestock included chickens).

Some states have different requirements. I read that in Indiana a person can shoot any dog that comes on a person's land. I think that is going a little too far. A dog might just be passing by.

But in every state it is legal to shoot a dog attacking livestock.

I was just reading about this subject, and it seems dogs and cats are not protected. It seems you cannot shoot a dog that attacks your dog or cat on your property. But, I think I would not just stand by and watch a dog kill my dog or cat. I suppose a club might be a good alternative to stop the attack and not kill the attacking dog.

Or the SSS method could be used in this situation.

 

[Spanishchick]

I wouldn't stand by and watch any animal dog, cat or lion attack my animals which includes my dog.
Whether or not I would shoot it depends on the cituation and the animal.
It's hard to answer a question like this without being in the cituation. Especially when it has to do with neighbors.
Hunters on my property would be in my territory and I would have run them off long ago. Youi need permission to hunt on someones property and that includes allowing a hunting dog on private property.

If the dog disappears for a few weeks that might show the owner a big lesson.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I wouldn't stand by and watch any animal dog, cat or lion attack my animals which includes my dog.
Whether or not I would shoot it depends on the cituation and the animal.
It's hard to answer a question like this without being in the cituation. Especially when it has to do with neighbors.
Hunters on my property would be in my territory and I would have run them off long ago. Youi need permission to hunt on someones property and that includes allowing a hunting dog on private property.

If the dog disappears for a few weeks that might show the owner a big lesson.

Not everywhere. That's part of the problem discussing this. Dogs can't read "No Trespassing" signs. In some jurisdictions, like Arkansas and Oklahoma, dogs can go onto your property. That's legal unless they are threatening of damaging and you better have a good story. I don't believe the hunters can go onto your property to retrieve the dog without the owner's permission, not sure about that, but there have been enough stories making the news in Arkansas and across the border in Oklahoma about dogs being shot by an owner when they were on his land and him going to jail or paying huge fines that it is clearly not illegal for a dog to be on someone else's property. I spoke to a customer at the local Tractor Supply who said he'd received $12,000 from a someone who shot his dog on their property. Blanket statements like yours and Bullitt's on it being legal everywhere to shoot an animal on your property are just not accurate, even if they are attacking your chickens. Each state and often different jurisdictions have their own laws.

You're right. You have to be I the situation to know what to do.

I'm not anti-gun at all. I own one and I use it when I deem it appropriate. I have shot dogs that were killing my chickens, dogs dumped in the country not neighbor's dogs, and drug them off to feed the coyotes, vultures, and maggots. I believe in matching the weapon with the prey, the owner's experience and skill level, and the circumstances. They are all important. I've used a shovel and an ax to dispatch certain animals too. A gun is not necessarily my first choice but sometimes it is the best choice, and yes, even when it might be against the law.

I've seen the damage a ricochet can do to a 12 year old boy's kneecap. I spent over 30 years in the New Orleans area. One of the New Year's Eve traditions is to go out on the levee and shoot your gun in the air. About 10 years ago one of those bullets fired in fun hit a woman in the shoulder. It missed the baby she was holding but messed her shoulder up pretty badly. I can't even envision shooting a rifle, even a .22 short, in an urban or suburban area even if I knew I wouldn't get caught. But that's just me and my sense of ethics and responsibility. Obviously not everyone feels that way.

 

[dfreas]

Not everywhere. That's part of the problem discussing this. Dogs can't read "No Trespassing" signs. In some jurisdictions, like Arkansas and Oklahoma, dogs can go onto your property. That's legal unless they are threatening of damaging and you better have a good story. I don't believe the hunters can go onto your property to retrieve the dog without the owner's permission, not sure about that, but there have been enough stories making the news in Arkansas and across the border in Oklahoma about dogs being shot by an owner when they were on his land and him going to jail or paying huge fines that it is clearly not illegal for a dog to be on someone else's property. I spoke to a customer at the local Tractor Supply who said he'd received $12,000 from a someone who shot his dog on their property. Blanket statements like yours and Bullitt's on it being legal everywhere to shoot an animal on your property are just not accurate, even if they are attacking your chickens. Each state and often different jurisdictions have their own laws.

Exactly. You have to be careful. For instance in Virginia, dog owner's rights are much more protected than property owner's rights. A deer hunter can stand on the edge of my property, release their dogs, and wait for the dogs to run a deer off of my property so they can shoot it. At any point they can also choose to leave their gun at the edge of my property and walk anywhere they want on my property in search of their dogs. As long as they aren't carying a weapon it is completely legal for them to be on my property all they want in those circumstances as they have the "right to retrieve."

The ONLY right I have as a property owner is to protect my livestock, and even that is limited. As written, the law requires me to see their dog attacking or otherwise harassing my animal. Even if I know they are responsible, I can only shoot if I see it happen.

It is frustrating and every year it makes me really angry, but that's the law. That's why I say learn your rights and excercise them. Every location is different, but there will always be at least some recourse. Maybe you can shoot the dog, maybe you can only trap it, but whatever you CAN do you SHOULD do. Doing nothing makes things worse.