This really RIPS my cord!

Randy Privett

In Memorium
Messages
171
Location
Mooreland, Indiana
:soapbox:We live outside of a small town of about 350 people. It seems like lately, people have been dumping their unwanted animals out in our area of the county. It is not uncommon to have 4 or 5 different dogs running through the area each week. The local area dog shelter has quit taking in dogs that are no longer wanted, they have taken the policy of attending some sort of classes and giving advice on taking care of your animal, before they'll take your dog in for adoption. It has become a mess. Yesterday, I seen a couple in a truck stop behind the shop and dump off a couple of dogs; the guy made them set and stay, got in the truck a sped away down the road. Of course the dogs started running after them. I jumped into the shop truck and after them I went. Them, not being familiar with the area didn't realize that there wasn't that many ways out of the area they were in, I just went to the main road and waited. As they went by I pulled in behind them and followed at a distance. I followed them to a town south of us right up to there door. I than turned around and came home. I went looking for the two dogs and they were down the road from the shop about 2 miles, stranded and lost. After what seemed like a forever, I convinced them to get into the back of the truck. I called my neighbor, who happens to be a Deputy Sheriff, and explained to him what I had seen and I had the dogs with me. Long story shorter, we took the dogs back to the people that had dumped them. The dogs belonged to their kids and they were going to tell them they ran away. They just didn't want to take the responsibility for caring for them.:confused: What is wrong with people...
 
Some folks think they are doing the dogs a favor by dumping them. Others are simply ignorant and uncaring. IMHO, it is much better to take an unwanted animal to the woods and kill it quickly and humanely. Did you get the license number of the truck and give to Sheriff?
 
It doesn't sound like this is the case here, but a big part of the problem is the foreclosure situation. People lose their house and have to move somewhere they can't take the pet.
 
Growing up on a farm we always ended up with a stray dog or two, but the school bus driver had a knack for killing them on a regular basis so I never got too attached to them. It was pure luck we ever made it to school. Some people do not deserve to be a pet owner, especially the ones who think cats in town are free range animals.

Randy, good idea with the suspenders on your racal setup. I'll have to do that with mine so it quits pulling my pants off.
 
Randy I am sure it isn't just an Indiana thing. But about two months ago I had two large dogs (shepherd mixes) come towards me as I was out back feeding horses. By the way, in an aggressive mode. Well, they won't do that again. A couple of weeks later, my youngest daughter had a pup die from being kicked by one of her 4H heifers so she was going to bury it back at our pond. Four dogs jumped up and came towards her growling. That day one of them died. A couple of weeks later two of the others (golden retriever types) quite being mean towards people also. Have the spotted one to see since the first day although we had another black dog in the back last Sunday. Since then read in the county paper that many people are complaining of packs of dogs creating havoc in their neighborhoods. Terrible and costly. My dad always preached to us kids not to dump an animal, if we couldn't sell it, give it away, if we couldn't give it away, take it out back and shoot it mercifully. Don't make them someone else's problem.
 
Frank,

We took the dogs back to them, I guess there's some kind of ordinance about dumping animals. Anyway its out of my hands now, they have the dogs and I'll have to get with my neighbor to find out what happened.

Dale,

I got tired of the belt pulling me down, so I added the helpers. I have a 12 volt DC adapter that converts down to 5V they put out for use with a vehicle and sometimes I use that. I have a 110 AC to 12V DC adapter to get away from the heavy battery, but with that, I'm always tethered to the 110 outlet. But it's a lot lighter.
 
Randy - I understand your 'controlled' anger at the situation and want to congrat you on taking action. You saved the dogs from a life of misery and also prevented someone from being harmed once these animals became aggressive.

Jonathan - been in your situation and took the same action you did! Years ago I lived on the coast of Alabama and for some reason folks would drive down our dirt road, drop off their dogs and then leave. After a while the dogs started running in packs and became very aggressive towards people. The year before I moved there (1977) a pack attacked and killed a 3 year old boy and then disappeared into the woods/swamp. Oh - there were multiple packs. I was always concerned as my son was 3 at the time and he would play outside with his young cousins. I remember being out squirrel hunting one day and was walking back towards the house on our dirt road and had the pack come running out of the woods - between me and the house - and the leader decided to charge me. Looked like a rott/mix, about 80 to 90 lb male and he definately wanted a piece of me! That was his last memory! I figured that if the pack had gotten to the point they were willing to take on an adult male - our kids had no chance! I declared war! Within 2 weeks we no longer had a pack problem. Don't get me wrong - I love dogs but when left to fend for themselves they become unpredictable and dangerous. I am glad that neither you or your daughter were harmed!
 
Randy:

You were a much better man than I fear I would have been tempted to be in the situation. Those people should be behind bars.

Now you done got the anger sharks swimming around in my head! :eek:
 
Randy - I understand your 'controlled' anger at the situation and want to congrat you on taking action. You saved the dogs from a life of misery and also prevented someone from being harmed once these animals became aggressive.

Jonathan - been in your situation and took the same action you did! Years ago I lived on the coast of Alabama and for some reason folks would drive down our dirt road, drop off their dogs and then leave. After a while the dogs started running in packs and became very aggressive towards people. The year before I moved there (1977) a pack attacked and killed a 3 year old boy and then disappeared into the woods/swamp. Oh - there were multiple packs. I was always concerned as my son was 3 at the time and he would play outside with his young cousins. I remember being out squirrel hunting one day and was walking back towards the house on our dirt road and had the pack come running out of the woods - between me and the house - and the leader decided to charge me. Looked like a rott/mix, about 80 to 90 lb male and he definately wanted a piece of me! That was his last memory! I figured that if the pack had gotten to the point they were willing to take on an adult male - our kids had no chance! I declared war! Within 2 weeks we no longer had a pack problem. Don't get me wrong - I love dogs but when left to fend for themselves they become unpredictable and dangerous. I am glad that neither you or your daughter were harmed!


my grandparents back in the 50s, owned one if not the last listed(deeded ?)farm property in New York City.(the city purchased the land from the next owners, and in the 70s built a place called Starrett City on part of the land)
I remember the reason why they didnt keep the property, or actually were forced to leave it.
People living in Brooklyn would abandon their unwanted dogs on the farmland property, and the pack of dogs grew in numbers and eventually attacked two children on seperate occasions. The children survived, but the insurance company refused to insure the property anymore because there was no way to control the growing pack of dogs.
What is wrong with people?
There are enough shelters for unwanted animals, these people who abandon animals have problems.
 
You guys all know how I feel. Last week my wife was mad at me because I put my dog down. She wanted to take it to the Vet, get meds, and go that route. I will tell you right up front, there was no need to. Kenworth was MY dog and I just knew it was time. No need to get an expensive diagnosis, I just knew it was time.

As we get away from farm life, we get away from the cycle of life. People like Robert Mickley, and Jon and I just grew up around that cycle of life. The fit survive, the unfit don't and the animals that don't contribute to farm life, don't last long either. What you are seeing now is people who are unaccustomed to this cycle of life. They have not seen death, don't know how to deal with it, and thus take the easy way out by running and hiding from it. Really the only thing a dog does wrong is outlive us. Its too bad, but we do outlive our pets, and as hard as it is, being a pet owner does mean seeing the end of its life, whether its by your own hand, or by taking it to a vet.

I will say this, some people can take an animals life and some can't. A few years ago I had the reputation of being able too and people dropped their dogs and cats off to me. One year alone I put down something like 245 animals. It was too much. I finally told people that I "retired" from it, and no longer do that. It was just too much. I came out of retirement for my own dog, but I really don't like doing it. It just had to be done.
 
Go to a barn around here and the one surprising animal you will NOT find is a cat. They used to be kept to keep the rats down, but since rabbies shot up around here, the open barns invited rabbied skunks, who infected cats.

I do not know of one farm that someone has NOT had to obtain rabies vaccines. They cost 3500 bucks for the set of shots, so its not inexpensive. (The USDA does pay for un-insured farmers though) Since then cats have been thinned from the barns.

One farm near me did not have it in them to shoot cats, so they paid a diesel mechanic to do it. He was getting 46 bucks an hour to hunt cats in a barn. It was downright crazy, but that is how bad the rabbies problem is here.
 
I learned quickly what dogs should and should not do. I was 5 years old when we kept having lambs come up among the missing. One day we watched in shock as Daisy, my Dalmatian, ran across the field with a lamb in her mouth.

My Grandfather yelled to my Grandmother to "get the rifle". On a farm, when someone yells for a rifle, you don't wait or ask why. She brought it out and I watched as my dog never made it to the other side of the field.

It was kind of sad at that age, but it tought me the cycle of life, and the need for a dog to contribute to the farm and not harm livestock.

By the way Jon, I have a lot of respect for what you have done around your place. You needed to do what was done.
 
Some folks think they are doing the dogs a favor by dumping them. Others are simply ignorant and uncaring. IMHO, it is much better to take an unwanted animal to the woods and kill it quickly and humanely. Did you get the license number of the truck and give to Sheriff?

I agree 100%. My wife thought the way I did Kenworth in was wrong, but good golly, dead is dead. I see no reason to lug a dog into a Vet's office, have the needle inserted, then walk out with it, when other methods cut out the middle-man. The result is the same.

I also do not blame other owners who take this route. For some it just can't be done, especially for their own dogs. I understand that, so I know a Vet has its place.

For what it is worth, what I did however was illegal in the State of Maine. A Vet is required to put down an animal, yes even one on a farm. Crazy huh?
 
Being an old farm boy, I've helped butcher hogs, cattle. My earliest memories of squirrel hunting with my father date back to when I was age 5 or 6 when I was allowed to attend but not carry a gun or shoot. I've hunted everything from rabbits to elk and moose. I've had to put pets down. Dogs are a pack animal and if allowed to run wild will become a menace. I had an aunt and uncle in southern Indiana whose sheep were attacked and killed by a pack of feral dogs. Some folks just don't want to accept the full responsibility that comes with having animals.
 
I believe theres a huge difference between dogs that are raised on farms, and dogs that are raised, uh, in places like my mothers home.
I would tend to believe as Ive read, that a dog on a farm has value alot of times far more worth something other than him being just the family pet.
My mother had 2 dogs, each lived a better life than me.
Im sure if someone put her dogs in the wild, the animal instinct would kick in, but those dogs got treated like royalty.
I always used to say, when I die, I hope I come back as a dog in my mothers home.
 
I grew up on a farm and we had all kinds of experiences with "wild" animals. Wild dogs were a continuous problem with the chickens and turkeys. Cats and snakes would kill baby chicks if they got into the chicken house. Wild hogs used to come and tear up the crops. Snakes would crawl into the egg nests and swallow the eggs. We had a hired hand working for us picking up eggs in nests with a sack across the front. He would just reach in and feel for the eggs. One day he pulled out a snake and it scared the whatever out of him. The snakes were not poisonous.

Every farm had a rifle (usually a 22) that was used on the wild animals. There was no joy in killing an animal but it was necessary sometimes. And when we slaughtered a pig or cow, we'd use the 22 to put them down.

Mike
 
Good on ya, Randy. :thumb: IMHO, people like that don't deserve pets...or kids, for that matter.

I grew up enough of my life in the country to have learned about good and bad killings of animals. We butchered a few hogs and game animals, and I also watched my dad put our neighbors' dog down (at their request) when he started showing signs of rabies. I've also held a couple dogs as they breathed their last breaths...one at home and the other in a vet's office after the shot. I've also pulled the truck over and gone back and used a handgun to finish off a porcupine I'd hit on the road and broken its back. I've always felt some amount of remorse in each case, but I accept it as the whole cycle of life thing. People, pets, or critters...we all have to go some time.
 
Excellent job Randy! You handled that one perfectly.

We've noticed a few dumped animals since we moved here as well. That is one of the many things I miss about Alaska......a dumped animal outside the cities is quickly part of the food chain. Heck, pets in towns are regularly eaten by wolves in winter.
 
I believe theres a huge difference between dogs that are raised on farms, and dogs that are raised, uh, in places like my mothers home.
I would tend to believe as Ive read, that a dog on a farm has value alot of times far more worth something other than him being just the family pet.
My mother had 2 dogs, each lived a better life than me.
Im sure if someone put her dogs in the wild, the animal instinct would kick in, but those dogs got treated like royalty.
I always used to say, when I die, I hope I come back as a dog in my mothers home.

I wasn't going to interject my personal experiences. But this subject is becoming very important all over the country. Feelings and knowledge about animals vary greatly. About 15 years ago, a neighbors dog had been harassing my cattle. In fact, it was responsible for the death of two mature cows and a calf. One day, it even attacked by daughter, then seven years old, when I took her out feeding with me. I beat the dog off with a stick. For a long time it eluded me and I wasn't able to shoot it. One day I had a chance and shot. Unfortunately for me, the owner was nearby behind a bush. Long story short: He called the Sheriff, I was arrested, hauled in in handcuffs, interrogated and pushed around a lot. Then they released me. Almost a year later an arrest warrant was issued and I was hauled away from the house in handcuffs in front of my wife and daughter. Hired a lawyer, went to court. I had an expert witness, a 90 year old woman who had hunted with dogs almost daily all her life. She published books and magazines and was widely recognized as an expert on dog behavior. Her big point was that, even the friendly family dog, when let to run loose, often will pack with other pet dogs and revert to feral behavior. They will chase and kill all kinds of animals, including sometimes children. Then, when the fun is over, they go back home and become family pets again. Sometimes this happens every night and the owners haven't a clue. Most people don't understand this. A running dog is nearly feral. BTW, after a half day of trial, the judge threw out the case and dismissed completely. He said I had a perfectly legal right to shoot that dog. Only cost me a year of stress, harassment, embarrassment in front of my family and almost a $1,000.00 legal fees. Thoughtful people don't let their dogs run loose. For me, a loose running dog is a target and I follow the old "Three S" adage: Shoot, Shovel, Shut up.
 
Growing up on a farm with my Grand Parents, I was taught that you always respected all the animals. Once there had been some dogs get into the sheep and had killed one of the new lambs and had torn one of the ewes up pretty bad. My Grand Dad told me to let the lamb lay where it was, because the dogs would be back to eat on it. He had me set in a tree fairly close with a 22 rifle and wait till the dogs came back and shoot them. I sat there for what seemed like forever, but pretty soon a large collie dog came through the fence and started messing around with the lamb. My Grand Dad heard the shot and came back to the orchard. Once he saw the dog he knew who it belonged to and we loaded it up in the truck; took it over to the farmers house. I can remember hearing him tell the guy, your dog was in my sheep, there he is. He threw the dog on the ground. The guy thanked my Grand Dad, said he was sorry, asked if he owed him any money. My Grand Dad said no, that was ok. Thats how it was handled. Course that was 50 years ago. Looking back on that, it was one of the hardest things I ever done.
 
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