Real problem be on the lookout

[GoodOlBoy]

This makes me so mad I could scream, but everybody needs to be aware to protect themselves and their huntin pups.

Approx three weeks ago while I was sick in bed with bronchitus (sp?) somebody dumped a dog off at my house. This is not all that unusual an occurance and my wife just told me that the dog was "scared" and wouldn't come close to anybody. I didn't think much of it. So Thursday night my grandmother tells me this dog has been stalking her when she goes outside. She will be walking around and when she turns around the dog is 20-30 feet behind her watching her intently. Then she points out that Tanner (my mutt) has not been around for a couple of days. Now Tanner has a strange streak in him. He spends a week on my porch, then a week on her porch so when I didn't see him for a few days I didn't think anything about it. I had to work Friday, so Saturday morning I picked up the old 30-30 (we have alot of coyotes in the area) and had the intention of going to see if I could find my dog. At this point I had still never seen the dog that had been dropped off at my place since I leave when its dark and come home when its dark this time of year. I walk outside Saturday morning and am greeted by a growling pit bull that stands about crotch high to me. I lever a shell into the 30-30 and she (yep thats right a female) runs behind my brothers jeep. I step around the end of the house to get a look at her as she runs off to see if she has a collar etc. Instead of running off she bristles up, growls and steps towards me. She shouldn't have done that. I caught her right between the eyes at around 30 yards with a 170gr bullet.

Now understand this I hate having to put down a dog, particularly one in good health. So being HIGHLY ticked off at this point that I had to do this I call the Sheriff's dept. Apparently there is a rash of this in the area. People are breeding pit bulls for fighting, and when the females have been breed to the point that they are worn out, or if the dog starts losing fights they just dump them. They also warned us that these things have been attacking people, killing cattle, killing other dogs, etc. I call my neighbors (who I get to see once in a blue moon because of my work schedual) and sure enough they have had a rash of dead cats, this dog has been threatening them, and attacking their dogs.

I couldn't find Tanner at all. I searched our property, the neighbors, etc. No sign of him. The happy ending is that Sunday morning we were sitting on my grandmothers front porch talking and he came running into the yard from down in the bottoms (bottom land down below the house) soaking wet, and hungry as all get out, and sans his collar. So I got my pup back. Some of my neighbors weren't so lucky.

Keep a hard eye out in your area.

GoodOlBoy

[fabsroman]

And that is why I will not allow my dog to run lose.

Don't know if I would have shot the dog for bristling its fur at me because Nitro does that all the time when he is scared. He first tries to put up a strong front (e.g., barking and raised fur), but if it comes down to it he runs. Obviously, I wasn't in your shoes, so I cannot say exactly what I would have done. At the end of the day, you did the right thing if this dog had been killing other animals.

I know a guy that shoots dogs for running deer on his property. Me, I couldn't do that either, especially knowing that they are the neighbor's pets.

[Aim to maim]

Originally posted by fabsroman
And that is why I will not allow my dog to run lose.

Too bad more people don't feel the same way.

[jmarriott]

Neighbor's pets on my property are not allowed. I had one dog that kept getting in my trash on wedsnesday night and on thursday morning i would be out there picking up the mess. I asked the nieghbor to keep the dog put up on at least wedsnesday night or at least come clean up the yard. I showed him pictures of the dog in the can off my camera. He still was running the next wednesday night.

I went to the gun show and bought a five pack of 12 guage sandbag rounds. The less than leathal ones you might have seen on the cop shows. Now the dogs still roams the nieghborhood. When he gets close to my yard he runs full blast to the fenceline and jumps over. I think he is a smart dog as I still have 4 rounds left.

[fabsroman]

jmarriott,

If I had your problem I would just call animal control and have them cite the owner. In the county I live in, we have a leash law unless there is a specific reason for the dog to be off a leash (e.g., hunting).

We have foxes and possibly coyotes where I am, which is actually surprising. When we moved here 4 years ago, I never would have thought that was the case. Anyway, I don't let Nitro off the leash unless we are out hunting and I have my gun on me. Even though he is 100 pounds, I don't need him getting bit by a rabid fox or coyote.

[GoodOlBoy]

A leash law? Hell where I live it would be a little hard to implement since most of the ranches around me run in the hundreds of acres. The Sheriff and the Game Warden don't even cross property lines where we are without permission. None of us put our dogs in a kenel or on a leash, but they are taught from a pup to stay on their own property. It isn't that hard to do. And while Tanner has wandered off to visit the neighbors for a couple of hours probably three or four times in the last five years he sticks to his own yard the rest of the time. The neighbors dogs do the same. If I see my neighbors dog (and likewise if they see mine) running around on our property you usually throw them an old biscuit and tell them to get home and they obey. We haven't had a problem with each others dogs since one idiot bought that chicken killin blue tick back in '84. That one was a registered hound and WAS on a run which he broke and went on a spree killing not only the owners chickens but around 300 of the neighbors yard hens as well. My great grandfather never did live that one down. And its heck having to replace 300+ laying yard hens.

By the way I also have yard hens that wander whereever they want (and rarely leave the yard) and so do the neighbors. The neighbors have cats, I don't.

The last dog I had to put down was one of the neighbors two years ago. He was out of town and some kids (that were SUPPOSED to be feeding it while he was gone) got to taunting the dog. He chased them out of the yard and was promptly hit by a log truck. It was a Sunday and I could either put him down quick or call the local vet to come to the office from his home 32 miles away, while I brought the dog to the office (we are 16 miles from it the opposite direction of the vet). After all that we would have had to pay for a callout from the vet and another $80+ to have him put down. Seemed kinder to make it quick. It ain't never taken me but one shot to get the job done or I wouldn't do it. I would like to have beaten those kids within an inch of their life, but their grandmother saved me the trouble.

Don't get me wrong. I love dogs and I hate killin a dog. I would rather shoot some people I know that even a rabid mongrel, but sometimes the job has to be done.

GoodOlBoy

[jmarriott]

No leash laws here in Pendleton Indiana in the country. In town yes, out here no.

[Valigator]

Good ol boy I am glad you got your Tanner back, in Alabama with all that land, we had no choice unless someone wants to come over and fund you a fence.My animals were pretty good like yours week at grandma's, week home...my mom's dog Midnight was taught not to go onto the county road but after a while he slipped thru the woods going onto the neighbors but never onto the road....Rural dogs do that, city dogs and their owners cant fathom it...PS every now and then, wild dogs would pack up and try and tear a landowners and their dogs world apart...its best you did what you did, the dog would continue to kill cause no one would be able to handle him...it was a blessing, sorry it had to fall on your shoulders...

[GoodOlBoy]

Its not the first and deffinantly won't be the last. You are right about the wild dogs. I got word from two of the ranchers close to me today. They put a private bounty on a pack of wild dogs that are mostly chows that are killing calves. They thought it was coyotes, but one of the trail cams one of the ranchers sons had left up finally caught a pic of them the other day. The game warden in the area said he had seen part of the pack last year, and he estimates their numbers around 30+ and roaming in packs of around 12-15. The one thing he told them was to be absolutely sure they don't try to call them in or catch them. Just put them down. Looks like me and the 30-30 will get some paying buisness if I ever get a break from work. One of the ranchers sons is going out to some bait they hung this morning to see if he can thin them out some from a deer stand.

GoodOlBoy