Texas

[enola]

In SC if you want compensation for poultry killed by dogs, animal control officers take the case to court. You appear in court with the officer, the judge questions everyone, determines whether you can prove the dog did it, fines the owner and orders restitution. I took ads from the local paper to prove the price of laying hens and the judge awarded me $20 each. He also fined the owner for no rabies tag and the pound fined them $50 to get the dog out of the pound.

 

[galanie]

Being dog proof is important. Note that "chicken wire" only keeps chickens in, it doesn't keep predators out. In Houston, I had a good chain link fence but the ones killed had gotten out of it. Still, the dogs were on my property and killed them on my property.

Here, I have some coon and dog proof runs with welded wire laid on the ground on the outside around to keep diggers out too. Those are covered on the top with chicken wire to keep hawks out. These runs are mainly for the babies and young ones. And a large run for the adults that is surrounded by electric netting. But I do let them out of that in the evening and watch them a couple hours till it's time for them to roost.

It's not just dogs that I watch for though. We have our share of coons, possums, even coyotes here. And the hawks are almost always in the sky somewhere.

 

[TexasLisa]

Our pen is pretty dog proof- the big dog weighs 160 lbs and the little dashchunds are diggers.

The little ones are meaner than the big ones on that front. She is very protective of us if we are outside, but that goes mostly toward other dogs and humans.

Ahh yes--the little ones bites the toes and the big dogs attack the kneecaps!!!

Lisa

 

[mandaleigh1981]

My husband was working at our airport when the planes hit. He did not get home til very late that night. I was home, worried sick that someone would hit San Antonio's airport, pregnant with my first son. I remember hearing it on the radio right when it happened and thinking it was some kind of hoax.
Thinking about it makes me cry. Now I know there is argument over what exactly went down, and who all was involved, so I don't want to debate that. I just wanted to remember all those people who died. All the firefighters like my DH who ran in without a thought for themselves and never came out. If you see a firefighter or a cop today, just say thanks. They really are the people running to save others lives when everyone else runs for the door.

 

[LewisFamily]

Hey guys/gals,

Quick question. What is the benefit to having Roos? Currently we just have the 14 girls. Was wondering what a Roo would be good for, if I am not breeding currently? Or have no plans to breed in the near future? Thanks!

 

[galanie]

Depends on the roo. A good one will protect them and keep the peace. But really, if you're not breeding, I'd not worry about having one.

 

[RachaelS]

Hello everyone. I lost 23 chickens to a dog attack this past Saturday. It was horrible. My neighbor's dog got out of their yard, pushed my gate enough to get in and attacked my chickens. My bestfriend came home while the dog was attacking them. He killed 15 meat birds 3 bantam Cochin and 5 blue laced red wyandottes. He killed my two favorite foley blue laced red wyandottes. The police came and made a report and animal control came and took the dog. I was at work when it happened. I talked to the officer who was at my house and o course he told me to talk to my neighbor and work things out. I spoke with the owner and I was trying to tell her all I've lost. And she said she had some fines she had to pay because of her dog being taken to the pound.I was rrying to resolve the problem but she told me to talk to her husband but as far no one has made the attempt to contact me. One of my chickens was inthe alleyway when I got home and I saw them taking pictures. Ao I went to my backyard to call her. All I got from my neighbors was dirty looks. I don't want to take them to court, but what else can I do?

I am so sorry

How needlessly tragic.

 

[jajeanpierre]

Hello everyone. I lost 23 chickens to a dog attack this past Saturday. It was horrible. My neighbor's dog got out of their yard, pushed my gate enough to get in and attacked my chickens. My bestfriend came home while the dog was attacking them. He killed 15 meat birds 3 bantam Cochin and 5 blue laced red wyandottes. He killed my two favorite foley blue laced red wyandottes. The police came and made a report and animal control came and took the dog. I was at work when it happened. I talked to the officer who was at my house and o course he told me to talk to my neighbor and work things out. I spoke with the owner and I was trying to tell her all I've lost. And she said she had some fines she had to pay because of her dog being taken to the pound.I was rrying to resolve the problem but she told me to talk to her husband but as far no one has made the attempt to contact me. One of my chickens was inthe alleyway when I got home and I saw them taking pictures. Ao I went to my backyard to call her. All I got from my neighbors was dirty looks. I don't want to take them to court, but what else can I do?

Vladsko, I'm really sorry about your chickens. I am not a lawyer, but have had to use the legal system to get what was rightfully mine. I think I read recently that someone on this forum went to law school, perhaps they will comment as well.

You have a few options on how to handle this. Basically, you can demand compensation and if you are not satisfied take it to small claims court or you can just let it go.

Yes, you are entitled to financial compensation for the value of the dead chickens and probably nothing more. The courts are only interested in your financial loss. How much were your 23 chickens worth? I suspect their market value is less than $500, probably less than $300. Once you put the value on your loss, you can decide how much effort and resources, both financial emotional, you wish to expend to recover your loss. You balance financial loss versus aggravation and stress. Don't underestimate the amount of stress involved regardless of your being the wronged party. Legal proceedings and disputes like this take a tremendous toll on people.

Bottom line, only you can decide if it is worth it. It is hard to walk away from something when the law is clearly on your side and you have been financially damaged, but sometimes the costs are just not worth it.

I have some thoughts of what might be going on in your neighbors' mind.

1. The neighbor might have been in absolute shock at what happened. It can be pretty upsetting for people to find that their beloved pet just slaughtered their neighbor's animals. They will go through all the stages of grief--because I am sure there is a lot of grief involved in this for them--shock, denial and anger. Expect that they won't necessarily do the right thing. They, too, are traumatized by this.

2. The neighbor might be afraid of what will happen. Your neighbor might not be in a financial position to come up with the money to replace the chickens plus the fines. That may be a very real survival issue for them. They might be afraid that there will be a horrible feud started. They might be afraid that they can't control their dog and you'll respond as most farmers do and shoot their beloved pet. They might be afraid that they will be forced to relinquish their dog. There are all kinds of reason why your neighbor is afraid.

3. Of course, there is the possibility that they are just plain jerks, but try to give them the benefit of the doubt and take the moral high ground. You will be more at peace with yourself throughout this process and after, whatever the final resolution, if you take your emotions out of this. I know how challenging taking emotion out of it will be, believe me, but try. Their being jerks doesn't affect how you deal with this.

I would recommend you draft a letter up outlining exactly what happened. Something like, On (date) your dog came on my property and killed 23 of my chickens. The replacement value of those chickens is $----. And then ask to be compensated. Write the letter once, let it sit for some time, go back to it and take out all the emotion. Think of it as a bill you are sending them. Make copies, deliver the letter and wait. If nothing happens (and that wouldn't be unusual since they are probably as upset about this as you are, you might write another simple letter, again asking for compensation and mentioning writing the first letter. You could pay a lawyer to draft the letter, but is it worth the $100 or so? I don't think so.

It gets tricky if they don't now approach you to work something out after receiving the second letter. Yes, you can go to small claims court and will get a judgement in your favor, but you might never receive a penny. The law doesn't work the way you see it on TV--judgments often go unpaid. My own lawyer told me he had thousands and thousands of dollars of judgments in his favor that he'll never recover. If a lawyer can't get his own money, expect it to be difficult for you to get what is due you if the neighbor digs in. It's an eye opener to be involved in a civil case when you are clearly in the right.

There are tremendous emotional costs in being involved in a legal dispute--and whether or not this goes to court, it is a legal dispute. Think long and hard about what it would be like to live next door to a neighbor you are taking to court or are continuing to demand compensation for your loss.

Good luck.

 

[RachaelS]

My husband was working at our airport when the planes hit. He did not get home til very late that night. I was home, worried sick that someone would hit San Antonio's airport, pregnant with my first son. I remember hearing it on the radio right when it happened and thinking it was some kind of hoax.
Thinking about it makes me cry. Now I know there is argument over what exactly went down, and who all was involved, so I don't want to debate that. I just wanted to remember all those people who died. All the firefighters like my DH who ran in without a thought for themselves and never came out. If you see a firefighter or a cop today, just say thanks. They really are the people running to save others lives when everyone else runs for the door.

Thank you

I still remember that day, like it was yesterday. My heart is heavy and sad today. Please tell your husband "Thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything he does", also thank you for supporting him.

 

[jajeanpierre]

Hey guys/gals,

Quick question. What is the benefit to having Roos? Currently we just have the 14 girls. Was wondering what a Roo would be good for, if I am not breeding currently? Or have no plans to breed in the near future? Thanks!

A rooster rounds out the social life of chickens. Their job in life is to protect the flock. They are very watchful. There is nothing sweeter than seeing a rooster tidbitting to his flock.