The Neighbors Dog

[Doormantnt]

yet...he will attempt it again...

 

[FaithAnn]

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I think that it matters greatly if the dog was supposed to be gone and it wasn't, that changes things since it was not what you agreed to. I would just tell the occupant of the neighbor's house to take the dog immediately and secure it, or it will go to the pound. The problem now is if the she tries to keep the dog at the neighbor's house, it knows where the chickens are and will be back for more.

 

[NChickenwing]

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She has been warned to keep the dog away from my yard, and that if the dog gets in my yard out comes the gun and down goes the dog.

TC

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Not trying to be a PIA but it sounds like you created your own problem with the dog. You allowed the dog to be on your property so it's not the owners fault

The birds with broken legs should taken to a vet or put down. Think of the pain they are suffering. The broken wing can be put in position and taped until it heals - it will be very unlikely it will heal properly though.

Steve in NC

 

[EweSheep]

I agree with most of them here about caring for the dog to be kenneled under your care. Once the dog got out, that would be your "oops" and no, you should not have the dog owner take the responsibilty of the loss of your chickens simply because you and your wife did not see if the kennel was shut and lock tight. Pit bulls are notorious for escaping when they are very determined to get out and have fun with the chickens.

If you have no desire to keep the dog, give it to the pound and let them know that the dog is capable of killing chickens.

Good luck in getting more chickens and hopefully no more killings going on.

 

[CMV]

Splint all the broken legs with popsicle sticks/tongue depressors/strips of bamboo wrapped in cloth medical tape/vet wrap. Secure the wing to the body with a vet wrap type dressing for at least a week. Hopefully there are no displaced breaks that need to be set. Keep the injured birds inside in a dim, small, confined area to keep them still and quiet. Give them some electrolytes or sugar/honey/molasses water for a couple days. Add some vitamins to their regimen until they heal- Poly-Vi-Sol without iron. Increase their protein and calcium intake until they heal- plain yogurt, cooked eggs ground up shells and all, limited amounts of catfood. Hopefully everyone will heal up fine. Chickens are amazingly resilient.

You will unlikely be able to collect any damages from the owner as the dog was present with your consent and supposedly under your control, but I would ask anyway. Be aware that the dog will likely attack your birds again if given a chance.

Good luck and I am sorry about your losses.

 

[horsejody]

Most states have "care and custody" laws that determine the legal definition of owner for liability purposes. You should check your local laws to see what applies. For example, in Nebraska (and many places) if you agree to house a dog, by law, while the dog is in your care you are the owner for liability purposes. If a person takes a dog to a kennel and the dog bites someone while in their care, the kennel is liable. If a vet has a dog in their office without the owner present (like overnight for surgery, etc.) and the dog bites someone, the vet is liable for damages. It goes on and on. If a kennel employee, vet, groomer, dog walker, etc. suffer harm from an animal in their care, they cannot sue anybody because they are the "defacto" owner at the time of the incident. Legally, the neighbor is probably not obligated to pay you. Morally, she should and may if she is a good person. I would suggest that you revoke the permission to keep the dog kenneled at your house. If the dog gets out again and harms somebody else's pet or a person or causes a traffic accident, you will most likely be the one held liable. You will be the one charged with harboring a dangerous animal. The dog is her problem. Let her handle it. Maybe she can go board it someplace more secure.

 

[rebecca100]

Okay, I have been in this situation before, kinda. Did you speak to the dog owner? What did he/she say? Take some time to cool off, too and don't do anything you might regret later. Just remember that accidents do happen and hopefully if you explain nicely what happened then they'll offer to pay. If you rant and rage at them then you will only end up with an enemy and dead chickens. A lot of people don't agree with me, I know. But most people do have some sense of right and wrong and will offer. If not then pursue other means. Notify animal control of the problem and get them to tell you to kill the dog if it comes back(the one out here gave me permission to kill any that even came on my property) that way you can't be prosecuted if it comes back and you kill it and you have a report on file. Also try to remember that all dogs can be killers and it should not relly be a reflection on that dog itself or the owners since from what I understood, they asked if it could come on your property, even if they weren't there immediately to get it, they did not allow it to run loose and amuck. Sounds like a bad accident to me. I feel bad for you and I know exactly how it feels to have something like that done. Fortunately, I didn't have to kill my neighbors dogs. She got rid of them.

 

[EweSheep]

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I agree!

 

[cmjust0]

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If you'll describe the nature of the injuries, I'm sure someone can help.

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Frankly, I'd say no. You accepted responsibility for controlling the dog when you agreed to kennel it on your own porch. Lots of states use language like "owner or keeper" when determining who's responsible in the case that a dog causes damage.

For instance...you take your dog to the groomer, groomer forgets to latch the kennel door, dog gets out and bites someone.. In most cases, the groomer is responsible, because they willingly took responsibility for the dog -- not you.

With that in mind, think about this...what if your wife had called and said the dog had gotten out of its kennel and there was a CHILD in your backyard, bleeding and mangled..

Care to guess who would lose that lawsuit and everything they own? (Hint -- it wouldn't be the dog's owner)

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For what, exactly? You were in control of the dog at the time it got loose, so I really don't think they could cite anyone but you..

If it were me, I'd turn this dog back over to its owners, chalk this whole situation up to a bad decision, and move on.