Opinion on defending your chickens

[THneo]

A few days ago, 3 stray dogs without collars attack our chickens. I live in city limits. Our backyard is fenced in but 2 of the dogs were small and jumped easily over our 4 foot fence. The 3rd dog never got in. The 2 dogs killed 1 of our chickens. Fortunately my wife was headed out to work in backyard and scared them out otherwise they might have killed the other 4. If I had been there and had a firearm available I would have shot them. What do you think is legality? Would I end up facing charges?

[Lowpower]

Call the paw-paw and ask em.

Lp

[Hozzie]

Probably wouldn't have faced charges since they jumped your fence, but it may not have been worth the hassle.  I would try to find out who's dogs they were and put them on notice.  It should be said that I like dogs more than people so I wouldn't shoot one unless it was attacking my dog or me.  I personally don't put chickens up there that high, but hey, I understand you might.  They shouldn't do it and you shouldn't have to put up with it.

 

I think any decent neighbor would try to resolve the situation before shooting the dog unless they absolutely had to.  I would probably start with animal control.

Edited November 27, 2013 by Hozzie

[RED333]

Farmers have a code, dogs kill livestock, ya get one talk.

2nd time ya shoot the dog, tell the owner, bury the dog.

Now I live in the country, inside the city limits I would go to the owner.

If no help there, LEO is next.

[RobertNashville]

I doubt there is a legal issue for shooting a dog that is on your property; especially a dog that has jumped a fence to get there and even more especially given that the dog was attacking your livestock.As was suggested, however, it sure wouldn't hurt to talk with the local law enforcement agency to see if there would be any legal trouble.

 

Personally, I don't know that I could shoot a dog unless my own life or another person's life is in danger but that's just me.

 

One final thought; just because there may be no legal issues with shooting a don in the situation you had, that of course doesn't mean that the dog's owner might not sue you and even if he loses or only wins a few dollars from you it could be a big hassle.

[Guest RebelCowboySnB]

In Ga we can shoot to protect livestock. The state restricts counties an cities from making gun restrictions though.

 

The normal rule for farmers is to shoot shovel an shut up.

 

Dogs has cost me hundreds of chickens over the year. It took me shooting 7 of my neighbors "champion" hunting dogs before he figured out he did not have a right to let them run at large.

 

Once I have done everything in my power to keep my birds safe an a dog still gets in, it is dead.

[Guest hifiguy]

Not a lawyer, but I suspect you could face charges for discharging a firearm within the city limits.  I doubt shooting the strays would be an issue other than that.  If they are known to be owned by someone, a non confrontational face to face is in order.  A lot of it would depend on how nosy your neighbors are and how big a tattle tell they are.

 

You may consider beefing up the fencing or coop they are in.  A 4' high fence isn't much security.  There are plenty of foxes and coyotes in Nashville that would be a bigger problem.  I imagine those are prevalent there too.

 

If it's a 1 time occurrence I wouldn't sweat it too much.  If it continues and the other options don't work, then a subsonic .22 probably wouldn't draw much attention.  Then again a small dog isn't much of a match for a blunt instrument either...

[Caster]

Three "S's"  

 

Shoot 

Shovel

Shut up

 

Put them down fast and humane, bury them and don't talk (or post) about it.  

[DaveS]

Three "S's"  

 

Shoot 

Shovel

Shut up

 

Put them down fast and humane, bury them and don't talk (or post) about it.  

Two elements here. First you are allowed to protect your live stock. Second; you are not allowed to discharge a firearm within the city limits. Three; you would be told that there is other ways to handle the problem, and you will be sited for discharging a firearm. See where this is going? Castor said it right. If your neighbors hear or see you, could cause you major issues!

 

DaveS

[rugerla1]

Two elements here. First you are allowed to protect your live stock. Second; you are not allowed to discharge a firearm within the city limits. Three; you would be told that there is other ways to handle the problem, and you will be sited for discharging a firearm. See where this is going? Castor said it right. If your neighbors hear or see you, could cause you major issues!

 

DaveS

I agree, borrow someone's crossbow...shhhhhh! Quiet!

[Fourtyfive]

You need my Benjamin Marauder PC .22 pellet rifle , no crack sound and can easily penetrate the skull so there is no loud death yelps. 

[Guest TNSovereignty]

Get a couple of geese ... they'll kick dog butt! 

 

Seriously - I'd opt for a more hurky chicken pen & run.  I've raised chickens in suburbia - there are challenges, but most easily overcome with robust housing.  Use hardware cloth.  

 

Be thankful that your solution is simple though ... if you join me in the country we've got raccoon, possum, hawks, eagles, fox, owls, along with marauding stray dogs ... I had to build Cluckingham Palace to keep all those predators at bay.

[Dane]

Just put a hot wire up and be done. Stray dogs this time, cats or coons next, it will always be something. Better to reinforce your pen/yard than to seek revenge.


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[Guest TNSovereignty]

Just put a hot wire up and be done. 

I was just thinking of adding this to my earlier post.  Check out 'electronet' ... I use Premier1 & Kencove products, both online vendors of hi-quality electric fencing - much better than farm store stuff.  For your situation it sounds like electronet will be superior to a hot line (or 2, or 3, or 4).  

 

Get a little solar energizer, circle your chickens w/ electronet, and let 10,000 volts do the rest.  

[KKing]

The only thing holding me back would be the fact that you live in the city limits, depending on your closest neighbor and such. I'm a fan of the 2 strike rule in this case. 1) Talk to the owner 2) Use judicious marksmanship.
Where I was raised deep in the country, you put a collar on your dogs just for the purpose of the first strike, so that whomever has a problem can talk to you about it first. Dogs without collars, well those guys only got one strike.

[Dane]

I was just thinking of adding this to my earlier post. Check out 'electronet' ... I use Premier1 & Kencove products, both online vendors of hi-quality electric fencing - much better than farm store stuff. For your situation it sounds like electronet will be superior to a hot line (or 2, or 3, or 4).

Get a little solar energizer, circle your chickens w/ electronet, and let 10,000 volts do the rest.

A word of caution. The electro net type products do not work well with solar chargers.
Being a poly tape type product they have too much resistance for many solar chargers.

Since the OP already has a physical fence up, a simple one wire on the top will be most productive. Considering this is in a residential lot you could get away with a small charger as well.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/zarebareg%3B-5-mile-ac-low-impedance-fence-charger
http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/zarebareg%3B-chain-link-insulator-pack-of-10




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[Luke E.]

 I had goats when I was growing up (10 +/- at any time) and the farmer next door have many times that as well as chickens cows and hogs. I learned from him (like others have mentioned) If a dog kills livestock you figure out who the owner is and give them a chance to pay for damages and to get about the task of securing their dog but there will be no more warnings after this point. What I did learn is that the warning was merely to cover your A$$ because once a dog gets that taste for blood, it WILL be back for more. After I put down 3-4 dogs on my place I decided to sell the goats because they weren't worth the trouble. I never got an ounce of joy out of killing a dog no matter that it had killed something of mine but I understood that it was what was necessary. It was this understanding that got really hard when my own dog joined the dark side and killed one of the neighbors goats. I put my own dog down because it was the right thing to do and also is what would have been done had it been someone elses. I love my dogs more than one should probably  extend to an animal so it was tough. I guess what I'm getting at is, you have the right to protect your property but if this is going to be an ongoing thing then getting shed of the chickens may be what keeps you from being the blacksheep. It shouldn't be this way but it is. Lots of things to weigh out. Good luck.

[THneo]

Thanks for all opinions. Seriously would not enjoy shooting a dog. We have two dogs ourselves. I don't really care about losing chickens. I am just concerned that a dog that jumps a fence and attacks, would turn on my family. I will never take a chance on my family's safety.

Sad that most of the responses are worrying about litigation or fortifying my property more. Understand that there are predators out there, but my main concern is my family's safety. Thanks again for all opinions.

[peejman]

The only legal problem you may have is discharge within city limits. I agree with the hot wire idea, and the 3 S's.

[DaveS]

Just put a hot wire up and be done. Stray dogs this time, cats or coons next, it will always be something. Better to reinforce your pen/yard than to seek revenge.


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Very good answer.

 

DaveS

[DaveS]

 I don't really care about losing chickens.

You should care. You have a responsibility to care for, and protect the livestock you choose to keep. I have chickens and ducks and have never lost a one to a stray dog or coyote, coon or mink (lost one to an eagle once). Build a dog proof pen to keep them in, and run a strand of electric fence on the outside of the enclosure. As far as your family goes, most likely not much of threat. Calling animal control might be a good option for you.

 

Please don't say "it's sad" that we are worrying about litigation on your behalf, after all you asked for the "legalities" in your original post. All we are doing is advising you, and much of it is based on first hand experiences. What would be really sad, is if we all told you to shoot the dogs inside the city limits and got you put in jail. These guys on here have years and years of knowledge and experience, and you did well to seek advice here. Now you know what you are up against as far as legalities go, the ball is in your hands now.

 

Dave

Edited November 28, 2013 by DaveS

[THneo]

Thanks Dave, I did not mean to be flippant about not caring for my livestock. I have a sturdy pen and coop. We let them out periodically to free range and eat bugs in yard.

My "sad" comment was a commentary on our society. No disrespect on the advice given. I did appreciate everyone's comments. Tom

[DaveS]

Thanks Dave, I did not mean to be flippant about not caring for my livestock. I have a sturdy pen and coop. We let them out periodically to free range and eat bugs in yard.

My "sad" comment was a commentary on our society. No disrespect on the advice given. I did appreciate everyone's comments. Tom

Tom; I see your point, and will agree to that. So yes, it's "sad" that we have to worry about litigation at everything we do. As far as the dog issue, call animal control and complain. Log a few complaints with CPD if you have too. If you know who the dogs belong to, file a complaint with them as well. Do everything you can to "CYA" then deal with it. Discharging a weapon in the city limits won't cut it. How much property do you have and what part of the city do you live in? Some sections of the city got "annexed" in, and hunting is still permitted on some depending on acreage, especially in the ST B area.

 

DaveS

Edited November 29, 2013 by DaveS

[Q-tip]

Does Clarksville prohibit pellet rifle or rimfire discharge?

 

In MS, we can legally shoot dogs that are even chasing chickens or other livestock. 

[DaveS]

Does Clarksville prohibit pellet rifle or rimfire discharge?

 

In MS, we can legally shoot dogs that are even chasing chickens or other livestock. 

Yes, rimfires are firearms and I also believe they put pellet guns into that same category.

 

Dave

Edited December 1, 2013 by DaveS