Neighbor's dobermans on my land, protecting "their" property ...??

[MarkV]

Does anyone on this forum ever think of being "neighborly" and sharing rather than paranoid and selfish?

You country folk like to rag on city/suburban dwellers but frankly the urban envirnoment sounds like heaven compared to the mean spirited attitudes expressed by some of our country bred members here.

Where I live we don't shoot neighborhood dogs, we don't have that many fences and the ones we have are to keep kids from getting into the street. We share community tasks and generally aim to bend over backwards to help each other. I though that was the sort of life people in the country were proud of but what I see posted here is nothing more than paranoid isolationist mumblings accompanied by gun toting trash talk.

Frankly, I'm surprised as my bias (and experience) has always been that people in the country were more conscious of and involved with their neighbors at least partially because you depend on each other more. I guess not.

+ one here IslandTractor. :thumbsup: I am so glad that some of you responding to this thread are not my neighbors.

I moved from the city to the country and was a foreigner in my area. I understood that most of the neighboring families had been in the area for generations. It is not an affluent area in general and everyone is suspicious of new comers. People from the city are the rich people and always want to change the way things have been.

My wife and I took the approach of introducing ourselves, our dogs and offering to help if any of the adjoining property owners ever needed it. We gave them contact info and said how grateful we would be if they would give us a call if they ever saw any problems on our place or with our dogs. I don't let people fish or hunt but if they want to ride their horses down the power line on my property, rather than the road, why not. We have met their critters and if they show up we send them home or call then. I have 2 acres of finish lawn and more wooded. A couple of hoof prints are not going to affect the overall look of my place. Revenge is vicious in my area. You have to be careful if you are the new guy. It's unlikely we will ever be looked at as locals, you have to have been born here for that, we are now excepted as good neighbors though.

I read a mention of goats in the OP's future. I hope he understands that goats are notorious for getting out. Sure helps to have good relations with the neighbors when you are looking for missing goats. Just saying.

MarkV

 

[Travelover]

Statistics don't mean squat when two dobermans are circling you. Take this from a former paper boy. Even when I was a kid I carried a squirt gun filled with ammonia for those dogs that the owners swore "would never hurt a flea", but would nail you as soon as the owner was out of sight.

 

[IslandTractor]

Absolutely I agree, fatal attacks are the tip of the iceberg but the tiny number of fatal attacks should put this whole discussion into perspective. An American has a 1 in 50 chance of being bitten by a dog each year. Over 300,000 dog bites per year requiring medical attention. The vast majority are from family dogs and involve friends or family victems.

The point is that tractor operators are not a particularly high risk group. How many bicyclists are "packing" to deal with dogs...that group is at way higher risk.

 

[RoyJackson]

Yes, the number of fatal attacks if fairly low.

Just one is enough...if you or a loved one (including a pet) the victim.

This thread is turning somewhat nasty, I'm afraid. Most of us suggesting pepper spray and a firearm are looking to be prepared for the worst, not to be bloodthirsty about it. Some posters are apparently vehemently anti-firearm rather then pro-dog.
The OP was just looking for advice, and by this time, I'm sure he got his fill (of advice). We're not walking in his shoes and he (the OP) has probably made his decision about the dogs (he's going to carry pepper spray, at least).

Good time to let this thread go, I reckon...

 

[IslandTractor]

This thread is turning somewhat nasty, I'm afraid...

Depends on your perspective. I'd say it is just starting to become rationale.

You are correct that discussing pepper spray, ammonia etc is perfectly reasonable. Read back a few pages though and you'll see plenty of references to SSSS and other over reactions.

 

[Car Doc]

I had a guy digging a pond for me and he had his 75# pit on a 10' chain and tied onto his back bumper.

He seemed like a friendly dog me and his owner walked by and were stopped by another helper so I was in proximity of this big pit and he walks out and leans against my leg so I reach down and pat him on the side and he bites me twice hard on the fore arm so fast I couldn't move quick enough.

I didn't kill it because I was stupid and believed the dog reacted to me patting him by surprise the owner was in tears over it and I after that I had the worst infection in my arm I ever imagined my skin smelled like dead meat. Glad it was me that got bit and not my 105# wife.

My doctor wanted me admitted for iv antibiotics at 7 days. I declined they gave me massive amounts of pills that eventually got rid of it. It took me 7 days of the 10 I had to find the dogs rabies status and luckily he was up to date.

The next dog wont get away with it just put it like that.

 

[Travelover]

...........My doctor wanted me admitted for iv antibiotics at 7 days. I declined they gave me massive amounts of pills that eventually got rid of it. ...........

Maybe you didn't need antibiotics, you just needed some more statistics. Seriously, glad it turned out OK for you. My mom got nailed and had an ugly infection in her leg that took forever to heal and left an actual depression.

 

[Mousefield]

+ one here IslandTractor. :thumbsup: I am so glad that some of you responding to this thread are not my neighbors.

I read a mention of goats in the OP's future. I hope he understands that goats are notorious for getting out. Sure helps to have good relations with the neighbors when you are looking for missing goats. Just saying.

MarkV

This is part of what was posted earlier by LD1,
And believe me, we get together and shoot guns and ride ATV's EVER chance we get. Because flat out, we are in the country and their is absolutly nothing they can do about it

My response, similar to yours was.
Glad I don't live in your neighborhood.

As far as goats go we put in good fencing before we got our goats, in 10 years we haven't had one get out yet. We worry more about dogs, cougars and black bears than the goats getting out.

We are friendly and neighborly :thumbsup: to one another in our immediate area. Last summer we had a neighborhood BBQ :drink: at our home as there are 3 fairly new people in the area. Smallest acreage is 8 with the largest being 66 acres . We try to be polite to one another and we do our own things on our property. I feel, unlike some of the posters on this thread, that you can do what you want on your property but it should not negatively impact your neighbor's or neighborhood.

 

[Car Doc]

Maybe you didn't need antibiotics, you just needed some more statistics. Seriously, glad it turned out OK for you. My mom got nailed and had an ugly infection in her leg that took forever to heal and left an actual depression.

LOL yeah those statistics they tell a tale don't they yes siree!

Thanks yes it took quite awhile and the smell of my arm was disgusting nasty mouth on that dog just glad I found his vet because they took the dog out of town he was gone.

 

[riptides]

Does anyone on this forum ever think of being "neighborly" and sharing rather than paranoid and selfish?

You country folk like to rag on city/suburban dwellers but frankly the urban envirnoment sounds like heaven compared to the mean spirited attitudes expressed by some of our country bred members here.

Where I live we don't shoot neighborhood dogs, we don't have that many fences and the ones we have are to keep kids from getting into the street. We share community tasks and generally aim to bend over backwards to help each other. I though that was the sort of life people in the country were proud of but what I see posted here is nothing more than paranoid isolationist mumblings accompanied by gun toting trash talk.

Frankly, I'm surprised as my bias (and experience) has always been that people in the country were more conscious of and involved with their neighbors at least partially because you depend on each other more. I guess not.

+2

So when I moved in I went about introducing ourselves. I even make a habit to invite the "locals" to our festivals. Unfortunate things got ugly between one "local" and myself one day. They basically said my questions were unwarrented, and that quote "this is the country, git use to it."

The questions were not unwarrented and I think I'll start a separate posting on my topic.

So, IslandTractor, I like your thoughts, but in some cases it is the "local", "country" folk who are backwards, selfish, arrogant and paranoid. It really goes both ways.

To the OP, I repeat drawn the line in the sand. Hard and fast.