Missing Chicken

[dewdropsinwv]

So glad she turned up with no signs of trauma or injury.

 

[bobm]

Yea... I am almost in tears when one of my mousetraps kills a vole. Can't even kill a fish anymore.

... and you claim to be a Neanderthal.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Glad she made it back. You have a good one there. She beat the odds. Find that girl a grasshopper, or maybe get one of Rebbetzins grubs for her.

 

[lesa]

A Happy Ending! So glad she returned!

 

[MontyJ]

Glad your girl turned up safe and sound!

I hate people that don't tend their dogs. We never leave Sadie Jane unattended. We have a neighbor that has several dogs. They keep them all in the house, but let them out unsupervised. One day, earlier this year, the two largest came to our yard...again. I tried to run them off but the largest one turned aggressive...head down, hackles up growling and snarling. I got away from him and got in the car to drive to the neighbors. As I got there, I could see that the dog had Dew cornered in the back of our yard. I beat on the neighbors door and in none to polite terms to him to get his dog RIGHT NOW, or I would be happy to dump it's dead body on his porch.

He called the dog off and I went home, furious as could be. Later that day the neighbor came up to try to smooth things over. He actually said to me "I understand you were upset, but the dog won't bite. You didn't have to act that way." I said, "Let me make this clear. This is my yard. If your dogs ever come into my yard again, and show even the slightest aggression I will kill them on site."

So, what does my neighbor do? A few days later a buddy of mine and I are playing horseshoes in the field. The neighbor brings his dog over to show me "See? He's not aggressive." Meanwhile his dog goes and takes a crap in my yard, and pees on everything he sees. I told the neighbor to get his dog out of my yard, or face the consequences. He then blamed MY dog for all the problems! His reasoning is that I own a female dog, so that's why his dogs are always coming around. I told him the real problem is that he doesn't control his own dogs.

We have been neighbors for years, so he knows I'm serious. I told him that first day, that the only reason his dogs were still alive was because we were neighbors and that he wouldn't get that courtesy again. When we first moved here, one of his dogs attacked my daughter, knocked her down, bit her ankle and tried to drag her into it's doghouse. Elizabeth was only 8 years old. Fortunately, another guy that was present saw it happen and got the dog off of her. I was furious, but couldn't kill the dog because it was chained. I was more ticked at the neighbor for not telling us the dog would bite. He had invited us to his house for a birthday party. A little warning would have been nice. I also had to blame myself for not watching my daughter more closely, but I had no reason to believe there was a vicious dog in the yard with so many people around.

I don't relish the thought of shooting a dog, but when it comes to protecting my family or even my property/chickens, it's a no brainer.

 

[so lucky]

It is really amazing, some of the stuff I have read on here and other forums about how scary and destructive dogs can be when their owners don't care or don't pay attention. I have been lucky so far with the neighborhood dogs. This is a rural area and there are no leash laws of any kind. I find dog poop in the yard pretty often, so I know one comes around occasionally at night.
The white dog hasn't been back since I called its owner. I don't know what she did with it; maybe tied it up or did away with it. I can't let my guard down, tho, because she may decide a week or two of being tied up may teach it a lesson, then let it off again. Like I said, there are around 8 dogs there at any one time. Huge dogs. I hope the rest of them stay home, too.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Im not talking about an urban or suburban area. Im talking about a truly rural area where it may be a mile or much more to the next house and there sure arent many that close. People have livestock and crops. Im also not talking about a house dog but a dog that live outside 24/7/365 even if you have thunderstorm or a blizzard. They can find shelter if they need it, usually in an outbuilding but sometimes in a doghouse. Often they are fed table scraps, not processed dog food. They probably drink from stock tanks or farm ponds, not water from the tap in a sanitized water bowl. These are working dogs, not pets.

Outside dogs in the country have a job to do. They keep vermin and dangerous animals away from the house and kids. They protect livestock from predators. They help keep destructive animals out of gardens and crops. They cant do that job locked up or chained. Properly trained livestock guard dogs often patrol an area that may take them a mile from home. People have been using dogs for thousands of years for this purpose, sometimes purebreds but more often mutts. Some are better at this than others.

These dogs require training. They have to know their place in the pack, and that is below any human. They need to learn what animals they are supposed to protect and what animals they need to keep away. They need to know where home is.

Some people put more effort into training their dogs than others. Some dogs are just not trainable. In the true country, the traditional way you handle a dog that is threatening you, your family, your livestock, or your property is that you shoot it. You dont shoot a dog that happens to wander onto your property, it may be protecting you too. But if it threatens you or yours, its history. Some people get really upset when you shoot their dog. Not all people are reasonable. These are usually people that dont train their dog or take much responsibility anyway, at least in my observations. But I find a majority in this type of country living understand how the system works and most will tell you to shoot it if you need to.

In urban, suburban, or close country or hobby farm living, its different. Those dogs dont have the same job. You need to keep your dog under control and on your property. Each state has different laws. Many of those reflect the tradition of country living though very few people actually live like that. There is a debate that will go nowhere in my county government right now about how to handle this situation where people live in the county but right next to the city limits. The city people want leash laws, the county people dont. County wins this one easily here.

So Lucky, what concerns me more than anything else in your situation is where you mention there are 8 big dogs down there. That is a pack and pack mentality can be dangerous. After I left home my younger brother shot the leader of a pack that had some cows and calves penned against a fence. The rest left after the leader was killed. He didnt know any of those dogs and figured it was a wild pack, but it could have easily been someones dogs that formed a pack. You might want to see if there are any laws on the books where you live that limit how many dogs someone can have without a special license or permit. A lot of places have those laws on the books to protect against puppy mills.

Ive gotten depressed writing this. Whether suburban or true country, whichever system that applies works pretty well when people take their responsibilities seriously. I think most people do, but those that dont make it hard on everyone else. While I have done it and will again if I need to, I really dont like shooting a dog. I still remember the clear blue eyes of one of them. It was a beautiful but dangerous animal, not its fault but it had an irresponsible owner.

 

[catjac1975]

I still cannot believe that she told you to do what you have to do. By that I guess she means go ahead and shoot it. I would certainly protect my pets and family, though we do not have guns. But I would feel terrible if I had to shoot a dog. Even if she doesn't seem to care about it. I hope the dogs continue to stay away. Good luck.

It is really amazing, some of the stuff I have read on here and other forums about how scary and destructive dogs can be when their owners don't care or don't pay attention. I have been lucky so far with the neighborhood dogs. This is a rural area and there are no leash laws of any kind. I find dog poop in the yard pretty often, so I know one comes around occasionally at night.
The white dog hasn't been back since I called its owner. I don't know what she did with it; maybe tied it up or did away with it. I can't let my guard down, tho, because she may decide a week or two of being tied up may teach it a lesson, then let it off again. Like I said, there are around 8 dogs there at any one time. Huge dogs. I hope the rest of them stay home, too.