MCP030405
Well-Known Member
I'm in a bit of a pickle both with my horses and with my family relationships.
My Sisters dog escaped the other night and apparently killed 2 sheep on their farm.
The farm is owned by my parents, I keep my 3 horses there and my sister lives there in a seperate house with my BIL with their 2 dogs.
We found on 2 weeks ago that one of the dogs can escape her courtyard and will chase sheep - the dog has been under lock and key for 2 weeks since she did this.
I was already arranging for a fence to be put up that will keep them enclosed because I dislike dog poo being on the stable block and the dogs going up to the stables because my mare is bitey. They would bark at the horses when we're riding, and have caused a few spooks which luckily haven't caused a fall yet. So the fence is going up literally tomorrow (booked in for weeks), with a nice 4m gate so we can still move vehicles through if needed. I've paid thousands.
I say apparently killed because we have no "proof", but my sister stupidly didn't keep an eye on her and we found her outside the courtyard in the fields and 2 hours later found 2 dying sheep and about 5 mauled ones - it was an obvious dog attack. I spoke to the sheep owner and have been trying to help as much as I can. It was traumatic, I was holding these poor dying sheep, I've barely slept since this happened and for some reason i've taken the brunt of trying to sort this, whilst also being screamed at by my other half.
They want to move the horses ASAP, I disagree because A) we can't really afford livery for 3 bloody horses right now and b) I've paid for this fence which will mean they can not get into the stable block. I also spent £4k last month putting up manege lights, I don't want this all to be wasted. Its just us and at our last yards nothing was ever good enough for him anyway, I think he'll find fault anywhere we go.
My sister is sending her dogs for training, has offered to pay the farmer for all their financial losses and has to walk the culprit through the farm/fields on a lead. I feel like she's showing enough remorse, a police report has been made and as a family we're taking steps to make sure this is never going to happen again. Sister is even considering moving out if these measures don't work, or if she feels she can't be at the farm anymore.
The issue my other half has brought up is that the dogs (to access the fields) will need to walk across the stable block, but again, on a lead, and then walked in the fields (ON A LEAD) the other side of the farm to the horses (with a 65 metre long brick building between also). I don't see a risk here if my sister follows the rules, and she's so scared by it all that I can't see her breaking them, she's lost so much trust in her dog.
I hate that this has happened, i've been a mess for days, but my horses are so settled, my mare has never been such a nice horse as she is here, it's just the 3 of them. The farm is stunning and irreplaceable and I feel like although the dogs can't be trusted around the sheep/cattle ever again, they have never made a play for the horses, they sit in front of the stables wagging their tails but now nobody trusts them at all.
I'm shattered, i'm gutted and I'm apparently condoning "sheep murder" because I don't want to leave my family's farm and go low contact with my sister for being a bloody idiot. I don't agree with what she's done but it is done and now we move on and fix things.
I wanted to see what other horse and dog people think about it all.
Would you move from the farm in my situation?
I think we wait and see how the situation changes with the fence i've paid for and the changes Sister will make with her training and leashing of the dogs.
The only issues my other half had before this attack was the barking / running up and down the manege fence during riding, and the dog poo they'd leave (which the fence was being built to stop). Now he hates my sister for letting her dog out and me by extension for not wanting to cause a huge rift in my family and pulling the horses out with nowhere to go in 48 hours.
He's saying he's going to lock up the gates i've paid for so sister can't walk her dogs through the fields at all and me not seeing it as an issue is me being an enabler of "sheep murder". I don't want to kick my sister whilst she's down.
I don't see this as a reason to move, but as a reason to be wary and careful with the dogs, but we'd already planned seperating the stable block anyway.
My Sisters dog escaped the other night and apparently killed 2 sheep on their farm.
The farm is owned by my parents, I keep my 3 horses there and my sister lives there in a seperate house with my BIL with their 2 dogs.
We found on 2 weeks ago that one of the dogs can escape her courtyard and will chase sheep - the dog has been under lock and key for 2 weeks since she did this.
I was already arranging for a fence to be put up that will keep them enclosed because I dislike dog poo being on the stable block and the dogs going up to the stables because my mare is bitey. They would bark at the horses when we're riding, and have caused a few spooks which luckily haven't caused a fall yet. So the fence is going up literally tomorrow (booked in for weeks), with a nice 4m gate so we can still move vehicles through if needed. I've paid thousands.
I say apparently killed because we have no "proof", but my sister stupidly didn't keep an eye on her and we found her outside the courtyard in the fields and 2 hours later found 2 dying sheep and about 5 mauled ones - it was an obvious dog attack. I spoke to the sheep owner and have been trying to help as much as I can. It was traumatic, I was holding these poor dying sheep, I've barely slept since this happened and for some reason i've taken the brunt of trying to sort this, whilst also being screamed at by my other half.
They want to move the horses ASAP, I disagree because A) we can't really afford livery for 3 bloody horses right now and b) I've paid for this fence which will mean they can not get into the stable block. I also spent £4k last month putting up manege lights, I don't want this all to be wasted. Its just us and at our last yards nothing was ever good enough for him anyway, I think he'll find fault anywhere we go.
My sister is sending her dogs for training, has offered to pay the farmer for all their financial losses and has to walk the culprit through the farm/fields on a lead. I feel like she's showing enough remorse, a police report has been made and as a family we're taking steps to make sure this is never going to happen again. Sister is even considering moving out if these measures don't work, or if she feels she can't be at the farm anymore.
The issue my other half has brought up is that the dogs (to access the fields) will need to walk across the stable block, but again, on a lead, and then walked in the fields (ON A LEAD) the other side of the farm to the horses (with a 65 metre long brick building between also). I don't see a risk here if my sister follows the rules, and she's so scared by it all that I can't see her breaking them, she's lost so much trust in her dog.
I hate that this has happened, i've been a mess for days, but my horses are so settled, my mare has never been such a nice horse as she is here, it's just the 3 of them. The farm is stunning and irreplaceable and I feel like although the dogs can't be trusted around the sheep/cattle ever again, they have never made a play for the horses, they sit in front of the stables wagging their tails but now nobody trusts them at all.
I'm shattered, i'm gutted and I'm apparently condoning "sheep murder" because I don't want to leave my family's farm and go low contact with my sister for being a bloody idiot. I don't agree with what she's done but it is done and now we move on and fix things.
I wanted to see what other horse and dog people think about it all.
Would you move from the farm in my situation?
I think we wait and see how the situation changes with the fence i've paid for and the changes Sister will make with her training and leashing of the dogs.
The only issues my other half had before this attack was the barking / running up and down the manege fence during riding, and the dog poo they'd leave (which the fence was being built to stop). Now he hates my sister for letting her dog out and me by extension for not wanting to cause a huge rift in my family and pulling the horses out with nowhere to go in 48 hours.
He's saying he's going to lock up the gates i've paid for so sister can't walk her dogs through the fields at all and me not seeing it as an issue is me being an enabler of "sheep murder". I don't want to kick my sister whilst she's down.
I don't see this as a reason to move, but as a reason to be wary and careful with the dogs, but we'd already planned seperating the stable block anyway.