Dog keeps getting in my field and chasing my ponies

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SpruceRI

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3 times now this bleeding dog who lives on the housing estate opposite has got into my field to 'play' with my horses, according to its pathetic owner.

The first time it apparently ran out of the front door when the owners opened it. I arrived at the field just as 2 teenagers were climbing back out of the field. They told me their dog had got in the field but it was OK it had now gone home, and my horses were fine.

They obviously weren't fine because they'd run through the electric fence.

By the time I had checked them all over the teenagers had gone.

Twice last week apparently the dog was back. The owners of my field were at home. They said it ran straight into the drive through the yard and down into the paddock.

My youngster was apparently running at it and kicking out. The other 2 weren't bothered which is unusual as one is frightened of loose dogs and the other normally tries to kick them if they come close.

The dog owner came and collected the dog and apologised. Field owner told her my horses could easily injure or kill the dog and vice versa. The dog owner said the dog 'only wants to play' urggghhhh
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I don't know where this woman lives and I've only ever seen the dog being walked once so can't say I'd recognise the owners if I saw them out as I'd like to have a word with her

Where do I stand if my horses kick and therefore injure or kill the dog?

And if said dog injures my horses?

Thanks
 
I bieleve you may be within your rights to shoot it but on a less harsh note you could catch it and take it to the council- three countys away. You can bet it won' be chipped. This happened to me and my mare now attacks dogs first and asks questions later
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Argh I know the feeling! Even if the owners can't see why its a problem from the horses' point of view, I couldn't get why the people who were watching their terrier chase our 3 year old didn't get it when I told them their dog could very easily get killed. Argh!

On a more practical note - Dog proof fencing? Signs up saying horses are dangerous do not let your dog trespass? (check the legal situ though in case that's admitting liability of something daft)
 
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you could catch it and take it to the council- three countys away

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Oh, I like the way you think...that is brilliant
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Check with the Local Council, they will probably have a dog warden. Tell the warden what has happened, then if the mutt gets stamped on, you have at least got yourself partially covered.

OR, you could catch it.........
 
According to my field owner, the dog owner can't catch the dog, so I don't hold out much hope of being able to should I happen upon it.

Does it matter to the dog warden that I don't know the name of the person or where they live?

God, my life is one big dog-problem!! What with this and the one down the road that chases me, I feel I'm going to be on first name terms with the dog warden soon!!!

(Actually in regards to the dog down the road that chases me, I saw the owner the other day and had a little chat, he said he would retrain the dog. I didn't hold out much hope for this working, but so far so good!!!!)
 
My point of view would be, if the dog gets injured by a horse, what was it doing on private property in the first place? Secondly, if one of your horses gets injured by the dog, we come to the same question, what was the dog doing there? I doubt that you would be in the wrong, especially if you put a sign up or warned the owners of the risks, I think legally you would be covering your back. Its a bit stupid of the dog owners really.. You can't say they werne't warned!
 
Thanks Cuffey

I've had a look at the BHS form but can't really complete it for either dog incident I don't think as the dog that chases us has never actually made contact, and the dog that keeps getting into my field has so far just caused a bit of stress - not any real damage - which is probably why the owner feels the problem is paltry.
 
Ive had this problem and i got in touch with the police to see where i stood legally.
Yes if a dog is worrying your horses you have the legal right to shoot it ( a bit drastic me thinks i`d rather shoot the owner
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The police will go and warn the owner she / he can/will face prosecution if it happens again.

If the dog was to injure your horse you could prosecute but first you need to find the owner asap
If the dog gets injured its still owners fault as it is out of control.
 
I would put up some electric fencing very low down (i.e dog height when walking/running and another at dog jumping height around the field, a few shocks should do the trick in dettering the dogs. A trick my grandfather used to do with a trespassing dog was to shake a bucket of stones in a metal bucket at the dog, for some reason the dog really hated it and wouldn't come anywhere near the house after that. It might work, however I would get your horses used to it first as otherwise they might get scared too.
 
Dog owners must keep their dogs under control at all times.

Eact time there is an incident report it to the Police (and get an incident number from them to ensure it has been logged into their system) and also report it to the local District Council Dog Warden.

If you want to protect your horses put up Equi-Fencing all around your field and gates (a tight form of sheep netting so that horses can not put their hooves through it).

Once you identify the owner the local authority can use the environment act as ammended to take action against the owner and force them to control their dog.

Ensure that your horses insurance policy will pay up if your horse is injured by a dog, if your horse kicks a dog and pays any legal fees you incur.
 
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According to my field owner, the dog owner can't catch the dog, so I don't hold out much hope of being able to should I happen upon it.

Does it matter to the dog warden that I don't know the name of the person or where they live?

God, my life is one big dog-problem!! What with this and the one down the road that chases me, I feel I'm going to be on first name terms with the dog warden soon!!!

(Actually in regards to the dog down the road that chases me, I saw the owner the other day and had a little chat, he said he would retrain the dog. I didn't hold out much hope for this working, but so far so good!!!!)

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Do what I do, take a BIG hammer out with you, when it comes running at you stand your ground, square up to it and shout COME ON THEN YOU B*****D, I'LL F*****G BRAIN YOU, works every time for me, frightened off two german shephards together at a pub, also a collie and a lurcher together in the street and german shephard in it's own house, go for it, if it keeps comeing twat the thing with the hammer, if the owner cuts up tell em they'll get the same and get "their" dog under control.
 
Ihave the same problem the thing is i called the council dog warden ,rspca ,all sorts and the dog gets reunited with the owner which he lets off again to do it again
Again my last resort is to shoot it but i dont want to but its getting to the point that my horses are get scared of dogs.
 
when you say about paying out for any injurys to dog
That dog should not be there anyway so i would not pay out ive mayed it quite clear to the owner of the dog that pester my horses that i will not be hold fully resposeble if that dogs gets kicked
 
The trouble is although you want to shoot the bloody thing you don't want to have any reprisals when your horses may be at risk. I would go for the electric fence at low level, never fails to put my dogs off going to yard for months if they get a shock.
 
Sorry, but i would shoot it as well. I love dogs and I feel sick at the thought, but I have more responsibility to MY horses than to someone else's dog. Just because it hasn't bitten any of them yet, doesn't mean it won't. What if you had a mare in foal - she could lose her foal due to stress.

Sorry, but i think this is a shotgun case.
 
I had exactly this problem a few years ago, when a local pair of dogs was allowed to roam loose on common land. They chased horses through the woods towards a busy road and the same dogs were allowed to roam in my fields, chasing the ponies to the extent that Henry went down and rolled with stress - I've never seen such an extreme stress reaction before. I absolutely lost it with the owner at that point - he too had no recall (is this the trendy thing to NOT have with dog owners???). I later phoned the police and the dog warden and was told that horses ARE classed as livestock under the Dangerous Dogs Act and you are indeed within your rights to shoot them if they worry your horses.

I was also told that it was £50 release fee per dog, from the Dog Warden. That was 5 years ago, so hopefully it's gone up. The Dog Warden should make visits in your area to dogs that are a nuisance. Mine did, although they were still roaming loose after that, so how effective they are, is debatable. Perhaps yours is willing to make a visit, if your yard owner knows the address? Or maybe a simple sign outlining the shooting part of the DDA on the fence will make the stupid cow think?

I've got a local dog that snaps at Henry's heels whilst the owner squeaks 'Milo, here!' repeatedly. The dog clearly hasn't been trained and I've decided that she's going to get a few choice expletives the next time I see her. Silly wench told me last time that what her dog needed was a kick from a horse! Errrr....
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The only gun I'd have access to is a pellet gun, which might shoot a sparrow and knock it over!!

I've yet to actually see the dog in action as I'm usually at work when it arrives.

I've asked the yard owner to try and get the name and address of the dog owner so that I can go and have a chat with her. If she's feeble and says she can't stop her dog running off I'm going to ask her for the £300 to pay for an electric fence energiser, battery and all the kit....and then report her to the dog warden!

If I can't find out who she is....well who knows
 
I'd go for the electric fence idea first, remembering to put warnings up that the fence is electrified. I had a problem with a dog that kept straying off the public footpath and running round my horses. I spoke to the owner and explained that I really didn't want anything to happen to his dog as my mare hates them and has twice tried to kill some very large dogs!!!!!!! (Not strictly true) but it did put him off and now he keeps control of his dog.
Also, horse are livestock (big notice on the footpath saying ALL dogs must be kept on a lead as livestock in the area). So you could shoot it, but, me thinks that's not very neighbourly and a bit messy!!!
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