Farmers shooting dogs

[hodgepig66]

Well said. Now is it case closed ?

Why would it be closed?

God forbid you have a dog let alone one that might escape out of your garden.Or might that never happen because you walk it around the garden, on a lead so it can have a pee...

Not all dog owners are irrisponsible but accidents happen and dogs get out,sorry to disappoint you but not everything is so black and white as you would have us believe......

[hard2miss]

Why would it be closed?

God forbid you have a dog let alone one that might escape out of your garden.Or might that never happen because you walk it around the garden, on a lead so it can have a pee...

Not all dog owners are irrisponsible but accidents happen and dogs get out,sorry to disappoint you but not everything is so black and white as you would have us believe......

It is in the eyes of the law.

 

Your dog worries sheep = Farmer is allowed to shoot dog.

 

How black and white can you get ?

[Dee01]

My question is - did the dog previous to this jump over your fence and into the field.

[hard2miss]

My question is - did the dog previous to this jump over your fence and into the field.

 

More to the point had the sheep been previously worried ?

 

But I get what your saying, maybe they got away with it on previous occasions...

[Vague_Boy]

my dogs never get out by themselves

You do realize that you contradict yourself a few lines later?

[Rupert_Baehr]

It is in the eyes of the law.

 

Your dog worries sheep = Farmer is allowed to shoot dog.

 

How black and white can you get ?

 

Is life really black and white? I used to think so. I'm a slow learner at times.

 

What if your dog goes into the field and doesn't 'worry' the sheep?

 

What if your dog happens to be collie (and there are more than one or two of those around) and 'herds' the sheep?

 

Does that constitute 'worrying'? Does the farmer shoot his dog each time it herds the sheep together?

 

What constitutes 'worrying'? (serious question.)

 

I'm not trying to justify uncontrolled dogs ravaging sheep, but the laws do apply both ways. Farmers are indeed allowed to shoot dogs which are worrying their beasts But it is not unreasonable to require the farmer to justify his actions. Or do you think farmers should be above the law and be allowed to do what they like?

 

There are other laws which prohibit cruelty to animals. I f I went hunting and shot a pheasant with a 12-bore loaded with birdshot, then few (reasonable) people would accuse me of cruelty. The gun goes 'bang' and a second or so later, the target is dead. A far quicker and far more humane death than is meted out to a chicken in an abattoir.

 

If I went deer hunting with a shotgun loaded with birdshot would that be appropriate? Or would I be guilty of 'unneccesary cruelty'?

 

These farmers who go around shooting dogs ... What cartridges do they use?´

Buckshot (appropriate) or Birdshot (Unnecessary cruelty)?

 

 

If - as you seem to suggest is appropriate - we're going to live in a black and white world, then surely that must apply to everything?

 

If a farmer can shoot my dogs when they trespass on his land, then could I shoot said farmer should he trespass on mine? (where I live at the moment, I could! My dogs wouldn't have to be armed for the farmer to be entitled to shoot them - but he would have to have 'reasonable grounds' to believe that they intended to harm his sheep. It seems that such 'reasonable grounds' are easy to argue.

 

Under Florida law, if a person entered my property and I had 'reasonable grounds' to believe he intended GBH, (Interpretation under English law) then I am entitled to kill him.

 

If a farmer (and particularly a farmer who had shot one of my dogs) entered my land bearing a firearm (or a shotgun) I would be quite entitled to shoot him.

 

I have considerable (more than 55 years) experience of using firearms. Most of my shooting has been aimed at targets, but I've shot a few things with wings, a few things with four legs and one or two who only had two.

 

I do know farmers who have shot dogs who worried sheep, but the people I knew were really upset about having to shoot the dogs. Farmers are people too and most of them have dogs. I've never met a livestock farmer who hated dogs.

 

If there are farmers in South Yorkshire who shoot dogs without provocation, you (the people) need to sort them out.

[Chris_Sleeps]

What if your dog happens to be collie (and there are more than one or two of those around) and 'herds' the sheep?

Sheep herding is an acquired skill, not inherent. Collies are intelligent, which is why they are used. They don't naturally want to work for us. It is a job in which they massively repress their natural desire to kill and eat. We're just taking advantage of that skill to move sheep into a pen.

Edited January 15, 2012 by Chris_Sleeps

[Winnie1]

Hi sorry for your loss stevvieboi, we have just last Monday had our dog shot by a farmer, a friend of ours took our Siberian huskies out for a walk, she had them on the lead and unfortunately our 2 year old got off the lead and went into into the farmers field where there were sheep, at this our 17 year old friend panicked and dropped the other lead off our 6 yr old she went chasing the 2 yr old into the field. Our friend was screaming for them to come back but she couldn't get past the fence S it was barb wire, the dogs had gone in a hole. Our friend could see the dogs and the baby was playing or chasing one sheep, this is wrong I know and we never let the dogs off the lead except on the beach where there are no livestock for miles! the farmer came on to the field because someone had called him, he saw our friend and looked at her, he walked over to the dogs, older one stating wagging her tail she was just sniffing around, he walked up to the younger one got hold of him and shot him, unfortunately there was a dead sheep and we would of paid him for this! Our older dog went straight back to our friend when the gun went off, The farmer then went over to our friend threatened her and said get that dog away now or I'll shoot it, she asked was there another dog and he said there was I've fxxxxxxx shot it! She proceeded to come home distraught. Our friend went to get the dog that had been shot and he said there was no blood on the sheep! The police have formerly warned my husband and our friend they could be prosecuted. My husband just wants the firearms licence taken off the farmer so he can't do this again. My husband is a serving soldier and has to adhere to guidelines, why hasn't this farmer adhered to the law, he gave no warning shot and he knew our friend was the owner/ guardian, the police are completely on the side of the farmer and won't even take our friends statement as this would be more paperwork as he saids, there are photographs apparently off a witness but we haven't seen them, will the vet not have to have a vet to have a look at this sheep for insurance purposes, and our dog had been poorly the week before, his vet and nurses said he was one of the best huskies they'd seen he was so good, and we have lots of witnesses to say he was a very friendly dog, we are upset about our baby and in the way he was shot, the farmer had hold of him, he was no longer a threat to his livestock and we are so sorry if the sheep did die as a result of the chase, we would just like the laws changed, please can any one advise or email me thanks, we also think this is not nice and leaves a bitter taste in our mouth, the insurance will pay the amount we payed for the dog and it wasn't a lot as we rescued him, we will have to pay this back to the insurance for the excess for the sheep, where's the justice, he gets money back for the sheep and walks away happy, we walk away with grief unhappiness a dog that is grieving for her mate and no little boy :-( thanks for your advise.

[cgksheff]

If you want to change the law, contact your MP, start a petition, write to the papers etc. etc. etc.

 

Meanwhile, tell everyone that you know that it is foolish to take dogs outside when you cannot keep them under control.

[dafodil]

... and what if a stationary dog who hasn't yet disturbed any sheep is shot?

I walk my very obediant dog on a public footpath through farmland with no animals on it and the farmerhas threatened to shoot or poisen my dog who never strays from my side.

I reported this to the county council and they sent some one to test my story which was confirmed but they were powerless to do any thing but warn him .