the neighbors dog killed one of my hens!

[Habibs Hens]

Few folks in the United States can afford an 8 ft fence, silverfox. And we do need to keep it to the United States on this thread, considering the difference in laws and customs. You didn't mention the size of your yard. If it's postage stamp size, then maybe that is doable. We certainly cannot that type of fencing, not to mention, wire fencing cannot even be bought in that height around here without special order and extremely high cost. Fencing comes in 4', 5' and if you're lucky enough to find it, 6' in wire of any gauge. Wood privacy fencing is prohibitively expensive if you are doing acreage and a fox or coyote can scale it. And just because my fence is 5' high doesn't mean that it's MY fault if a dog gets in and kills my birds.

i agree many cant afford the fencing with that said it dont matter if i have postage size backyard or acres i was just making a point which was more leant towards your ideas.

which is to determin who is at fault and then from there decide what to do. and if the chicken owner had a secure 4 or 5 foot fence then that is classed as taking that action that i was talking about to protect livestock

if there was a gap or a break or damage where the dog got through then it could be seen as neglegence and deliberatly putting the animals in danger

yes a dog can scale 5 foot but it has to be a large dog

as for USA and UK i tend to refer to here (UK) as sometimes and only sometimes can across the pond ideas be of benifit, i know alot of things i read on BYC being done in USA has benifited me here in UK and i can bet it will be in some occasions the same vice versa

but again i will go with you on that one and if we are keeping it to USA only then lets keep it to DOGS as per thead and leave out Foxes and Cayotes

Dogs cant jump higher than 4 feet at best. but stength can help them tear ill made or flimsy boundries which again is somethign to be looked into by the owner of the poulty if they are really concerened about the welfair of their animals

 

[MuckyPuppy]

Brahmakid,
Very few people can afford to fence in a large area unless it is done a little at a time like SpeckledHen has done. I am still very sorry for your loss.

Off Topic,
Usually, there is very little I can contribute to a thread but dogs, fences and climbing is my forte. I have had a few dogs over my lifetime and several of those have been climbing dogs. One of the worst was a tiny white mutt that could scale a fence in a heartbeat. We had her when I was a kid and we lived in Arizona ( Dad was military). This was a really nice 6' chain-link/hurricane fence that went around the perimeter of the entire property. She was like greased lightning - one minute she was there the next gone. The next worst we're our hounds, it took them longer but they could climb almost everything - chicken wire, chain-link and ladders. If we leaned a ladder against a shed and went in to get a drink, the hounds would be on the roof laughing at us. It was not size or strength that helped those dogs get over the fences. It was sheer determination.

 

[just me]

We had a dog hang himself once....it kept getting out of it's pen. I didn't realize the kids had tied it to a rope in there before school one morning (to try to keep it in until they got home, the boys were still in elementary school). They tiel him in there because they couldn't figure out how he was getting out. I guess he had been climbing the fence ( I don't know how tall the fence was exactly, but I'm 5'7" and had to reach up to reach the top). Anyway, when we got home that afternoon, the dog had climbed the fence and hung himself. I felt so bad for the boys, and the poor dog!!

 

[NickyPick]

Quote:
Actually, since this IS in the USA, fault is easily determined, whether there is a fence on the property or not. The law says roaming dogs that worry livestock on YOUR property can be shot. I would expect there are VERY few places in the US that don't have that law. So, since the dogs were on the OP's property and didn't belong there, that means that the dog owners are at fault. Pretty simple.

 

[speckledhen]

Actually, since this IS in the USA, fault is easily determined, whether there is a fence on the property or not. The law says roaming dogs that worry livestock on YOUR property can be shot. I would expect there are VERY few places in the US that don't have that law. So, since the dogs were on the OP's property and didn't belong there, that means that the dog owners are at fault. Pretty simple.

Exactly. It's always the one at fault who is breaking the law at the time. That would be the owner of the roaming dog EVERY TIME.

Simple as pie:

Chickens on their owner's land, where they belong.
Dog off owner's land where it does NOT belong and dog owner in violation of the law .
Possible dead dog and justifiably so.


Just ask Cetawin, whose free ranging chickens were attacked by a roaming Rottweiler right in front of a sheriff's deputy she was talking to on her lawn. He shot it dead on the spot and took it to its owner and warned him he'd better not think of retaliating against her.

 

[aoxa]

The fact that some folks' dogs get along with their own chickens is not even relevant to this thread, to be honest. This is about a neighbor's dog trespassing, therefore being a predator, on someone else's property and killing livestock. Not acceptable, period.

kay's chicks, if your dog, who does not bother your chickens, came onto my property with my birds, and was nosing around the pens or came bounding toward my free ranging flock, I would have no idea about how it behaves at your house. I would most likely end its life, then and there.

I'm sorry to say that, but if the dog belongs to you, it belongs at your house, not mine. I have had my own dogs for 30 years of my adult life (my childhood was with AKC Dobermans who were fenced as well) and managed to keep them at home where they belonged. It's not brain surgery-it's just simple dog owner responsibility.

Cynthia. I recently quoted you while yelling at my neighbour. "A dog on its owner's property is a pet; A dog on someone else's property is a predator"

I told her flat out, that if the dog gets killed on my property I won't feel bad. I may have even said I would shoot it in the head. I don't own a gun. I don't know the laws on firing one on your property, but I'll be darned if I don't do something. I called animal control and he cited her and wrote a $50 ticket.

My corgi tackled the stupid thing while it was chasing my birds. Next time I will let my 8 month old Great Pyr take it on.

This dog was on my property 3 times in the last month. No losses. My corgi tackled it twice and the other time everyone was already locked up for the night.

She had the gal to say to me "The dogs were play fighting and got loose - it's not my fault". She didn't go after the dog. She stayed on her property READING A BOOK. A BOOK!!!! Oh my heart is racing with anger as I think about it.

She didn't apologize and ended the conversation by saying "I can't be here any more" and walked inside.

I too love dogs, but only my dogs are allowed on my property. I wish I could shoot it if it returned. What are my options? Animal control said they can not do anything if the dog kills one of my birds - imagine it being my very valuable Buff Dewlap Toulouse geese - $50 fine is so insulting. My girls are worth over $200 a piece minimum!


I also told her my flock was worth over $1000 (which is way less than I've spent to tell you the truth) - and I wouldn't hesitate to kill the dog. She said "Well my dog is worth over $1000".

 

[kays chicks]

Cynthia. I recently quoted you while yelling at my neighbour. "A dog on its owner's property is a pet; A dog on someone else's property is a predator"
I told her flat out, that if the dog gets killed on my property I won't feel bad. I may have even said I would shoot it in the head. I don't own a gun. I don't know the laws on firing one on your property, but I'll be darned if I don't do something. I called animal control and he cited her and wrote a $50 ticket.
My corgi tackled the stupid thing while it was chasing my birds. Next time I will let my 8 month old Great Pyr take it on.
This dog was on my property 3 times in the last month. No losses. My corgi tackled it twice and the other time everyone was already locked up for the night.
She had the gal to say to me "The dogs were play fighting and got loose - it's not my fault". She didn't go after the dog. She stayed on her property READING A BOOK. A BOOK!!!! Oh my heart is racing with anger as I think about it.
She didn't apologize and ended the conversation by saying "I can't be here any more" and walked inside.
I too love dogs, but only my dogs are allowed on my property. I wish I could shoot it if it returned. What are my options? Animal control said they can not do anything if the dog kills one of my birds - imagine it being my very valuable Buff Dewlap Toulouse geese - $50 fine is so insulting. My girls are worth over $200 a piece minimum!

I also told her my flock was worth over $1000 (which is way less than I've spent to tell you the truth) - and I wouldn't hesitate to kill the dog. She said "Well my dog is worth over $1000".

thank you aoxa for this reply to Cynthia i was not saying at any point i agreed with that dog killing the chicken as i have agreed and liked comments others have made , as you know your dogs are good with your chickens as mine are , Cynthia has got the wrong end of my stick and slated me by the looks of it . i was just trying to lighten the mood and show some NOT ALL dogs are good with chickens and i am a good dog and chicken owner and i can give you my word that if my dog came in contact with your chickens she would treat them as if they where hers because thats the way i have looked after my dog . ITS THE DOG OWNERS FAULT Cynthia FOR NOT KEEPING HER DOG UNDER CONTROL !!!!!!!!!

 

[aoxa]

thank you aoxa for this reply to Cynthia i was not saying at any point i agreed with that dog killing the chicken as i have agreed and liked comments others have made , as you know your dogs are good with your chickens as mine are , Cynthia has got the wrong end of my stick and slated me by the looks of it . i was just trying to lighten the mood and show some NOT ALL dogs are good with chickens and i am a good dog and chicken owner and i can give you my word that if my dog came in contact with your chickens she would treat them as if they where hers because thats the way i have looked after my dog . ITS THE DOG OWNERS FAULT Cynthia FOR NOT KEEPING HER DOG UNDER CONTROL !!!!!!!!!

Best not yell at Cynthia. She didn't do anything wrong.

She knows dogs can be good with poultry, but if you are not the owner of the dog and it is on your property, you are in the right to take the dog down. I have read far too many stories of losses because of stray dogs.

My corgi is FABULOUS with my chickens. Right from the get-go. He protects them to the best of his ability, but he is my dog. He is around my chickens. The dog that came onto my property is around a bunch of red hens all day, but he is vicious towards OUR birds. I can't imagine Koda being that way, but I would take responsibility of my dog if it was in the opposite situation.

I would definitely not lay blame on the dog and say it wasn't my fault. I would apologize profusely and offer compensation and assurance that it would never happen again. I would RUN after my dog who got lose. We have done so. They run onto the road (stupid dogs) and Susan (finace) has even done so in her underwear. We do our very best to keep our dogs in our property. Thankfully the only other place they have ventured was the road. They have a death wish.

 

[speckledhen]

We have firearms, but not being proficient with them myself as my husband is, I keep my son's little league slugger bat propped by the back door, just in case. I can surely swing that pretty hard and won't hesitate to do so.

The simple fact is that there are people in this world that believe just because a dog is a dog, it should get a free pass to kill and maim at will, on or off the property of its owner. Some humans are just too clueless to breed, I swear. Aoxa, I guess your neighbor may be one of those. Sometimes we have to make up for the negligence and stupidity of others by depriving them of something they say they value, but obviously do not-their dog. And, not out of spite, but from a legally sanctioned method for protecting our flocks.

The dog next door to me will not be going home if me makes into my perimeter one more time. You can read about that here on this thread detailing the last incident: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/385404/trapped-a-neighbors-dog-on-my-deck-got-an-earful

 

[aoxa]

We have firearms, but not being proficient with them myself as my husband is, I keep my son's little league slugger bat propped by the back door, just in case. I can surely swing that pretty hard and won't hesitate to do so.

The simple fact is that there are people in this world that believe just because a dog is a dog, it should get a free pass to kill and maim at will, on or off the property of its owner. Some humans are just too clueless to breed, I swear. Aoxa, I guess your neighbor may be one of those. Sometimes we have to make up for the negligence and stupidity of others by depriving them of something they say they value, but obviously do not-their dog. And, not out of spite, but from a legally sanctioned method for protecting our flocks.

The dog next door to me will not be going home if me makes into my perimeter one more time. You can read about that here on this thread detailing the last incident: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/385404/trapped-a-neighbors-dog-on-my-deck-got-an-earful

People like this don't deserve to own dogs

Even if the dog continues and continues to leave her property, the most Animal control can do is fine and charge them. They can not take the dog away.

I'll have to look into the gun laws in my area.