Did anyone see on the evening news the other day about the Golden >Retriever and another dog who were on Death Row out west for chasing >and "traumatizing" a sheep? The sheep survived minus some wool but >the dogs are to be put to death!! People with dogs were picketing >and one of the dogs in the forefront was a red smoothie!! I don't >think this is a done deal but to me, a dogs life is worth more than a >traumatized sheep!
I once had two loose dogs come on my property, blow a hole through the chicken wire, and savagely massacre my flock of chickens. These same dogs had done this at other farms, but weren't caught. My neighbor caught them in the act, chased them off, and let me know later. Poor Kate was only 3 yrs. old and was the one to discover the "sleeping chickens" when we got home. These dogs were put to sleep by their owners, which was the first responsible thing they did. Another time I watched helplessly as a pack of dogs ran down a deer on the beach and ripped it to shreds. I can still hear those death screams. And the last horror story I will share was when a pack of dogs got into the goat pasture right next to my house, and maimed 5 goats, which had to be put down afterwards. A donkey died trying to run through the fence. Residents of the nursing home had this horrible scene right outside their windows. These are the goats and donkeys they feed scraps to daily. Really heartbreaking. Loose dogs are a major problem in rural areas. Fenced in livestock are trapped. It is true that once a dog gets the taste for blood, they don't forget. And when nice family pets get into a maurauding pack, the damage they can do is horrendous! So I can certainly understand why there are some pretty strict laws on the books. I don't know the circumstances of these 2 dogs, but I have seen first hand what loose dogs are capable of with farm animals. Bottom line, why were these dogs loose? Pat
Right on, Pat, but instead of killing the dogs, why don't they give their owners one HELL of a big fine? I would like to see the owners punished instead of the dogs. Also they said a gate came open so the dogs WERE in a fenced yard. Now, granted, I would never leave one of my dogs in the yard if I were not home but some people do that and it is possible for someone else to let them out. Punish the owner, tell them if it happens AGAIN, the dogs will be destroyed and, since the dogs, didn't kill anything, give them another chance. After all, a Golden isn't exactly an attack dog. Andi and the Fur Family