I was out in my yard the other day with my kids. My dog was on a harness chained, my cat was in the yard with the girls. All of a sudden this dog (had a collar so it belonged to someone) came in my yard and chased my cat off, almost biting him. I was so mad! What would you do in this situation?
Well lets see. While it is irritating.
You don't where the dog came from. You don't know who it belongs to. You don't know where it went.
So Whats to do? Stand arond in the front yard with a shotgun. probably not.
Or do what i did and just move someplace where there ain't any neighbors and the only dogs are mine. Radical but it works.
I live in the middle of nowhere, but I have neighbors down the road a bit who let their dogs roam and they show up on my property from time to time and upset my animals. The last time it happened I went down there and told them I'm not opposed to taking a shot at them with the bb gun. If you can ever track down the owners of the mutt I would go talk to them.
Around here it happens at the end of hunting season. Seems the owners take care of their dogs and keep them contained until they're no longer needed for the chase. Then the rest of us have to secure our livestock and pets against these roving gangs. Maybe if Animal Control was called?
You've had your warning, the dog sent you a message if you will. Next time, you may not be so lucky and be faced with a large vet bill or or a dead pet. This dog,depending on it's size may pose a threat to you or your familiy members as well.
I think you should find out exactly what the laws in your area state regarding stray dogs. I'm sure it is addressed in the local stautes as this is one of the oldest problems civilized man has faced. Once you determine that, you will know what your options are.
Rest assured, this will happen again.
I have dealt with this before and what works for me may not work for you as I would find and easy, discrete, humane, legal and quick method to make the dog dissapear with no one the wiser.
I've little patience for irresponsible pet owners. I have three dogs and I know where each one is every minute of the day as I would not want them harmed. If this person lets these dogs run, there is probably a small investment there. We all know how expensive proper pet care can be so you may assume that this dog has not been vaccinated and is carrying it's share of parasites and perhaps diseases, which it it will be happy to transmit.
Take apropriate action before you regret your apathy
Good luck
I would find out whose the dog is and contact the owners of the dog. Tell them that their dog was in your yard and chased your cats. They should do something so that the dog doesn't come in again. I would yell at the dog next time.
If you have animal control in your area, call them. Unfortunately, where I live I am the only animal control there is. The population here is so sparse that we know each other's animals and we all keep ours up. If one shows up that we don't own, it's usually a stray. If it's friendly and I can catch it I do. Sometimes they are hunting dogs that have gotten loose and I call the owner on the tag to let them know. If the dog is unfriendly, well I put it out of it's misery and mine. It's harsh but sometimes prevention is part of farm life.
I am a lover of animals and have a very bad habit of taking in strays. I live in a very remote area and if an animal shows up here it is usually because it has been dumped. If he wants to join my famiy and is willing to live by the rules, I have no problem with him staying. If he threatens my family or the animals that were here before him, he has to go - one way or the other.
Even in the country we still have leash laws and I would guess at least 90% of the time we know the animal that wanders over, its a neighbors of course, but every now and then we might not know. For us its not that hard since we have yet to run into a hostile animal.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote