Legal or not

[David.evans 5,323]

Farmer phoned me about 1/2 hour ago 

travelers Have moved on to a adjacent field , not his land ,  two dead sheep this morning ripped to bits . His wife has seen the dogs on his land , he’s saying phoned the police , and are not interested 

where do you stand legally  , if the dogs returned, but never got back home 
 

 

[Gooner 143]

https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/farmer-shot-two-beautiful-huskies-12465875

 

“Section 9 of the Animals Act 1971 provides that the owner of livestock, the landowneror anyone acting on their behalf, is entitled to shoot any dog if they believe it is the only reasonable way of stopping it worrying livestock. “Such action must be reported to police within 48 hours.

[philpot 5,020]

I believe if dogs worry sheep on private land, the land owner is within his rights to shoot them. This was an issue we had many many years ago in Derbyshire when walkers and climbers let their dogs run free. I was part of a group the farmers called in to take care of such problems but I am happy to say that on the occassions I was involved, the dogs were not in the area I was patrolling however the dogs were alway found and shot.

Phil

[walshie 2,804]

It's a can of worms I wouldn't want to open. Unless the dogs are actually attacking the sheep at the time, anyone shooting them leaves themselves open to all sorts of laws. Just because you think the dogs are going to, or just have, attacked the sheep, that isn't good enough reason. Even if you caught them in the act, anyone shooting the dog could fall foul of cruelty laws if the dog wasn't killed outright.

[David.evans 5,323]

Yep 

its a bit of a dilemma , the last thing I want is to fall fowl of the law , and deffo not worth the aggravation, I’m out tomorrow night, and if I see them in the thermal 

I’ll just have to close my eyes , and let them pass , if the land owner wants them gone , on this occasion he’ll have to get his own gun out 

atb 

 

[bob.243 9,021]

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=11&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwi4_r3ujcTmAhUZM8AKHXbSATQQFjAKegQIARAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nationalsheep.org.uk%2Fdog-owners%2Fadvice-for-farmers%2F2486%2Fdestroying-dogs-that-attack%2F&usg=AOvVaw2WCvLlL7ymQM86-s6HYle2

[David.evans 5,323]

Thanks Bob 

wont be doing sod all in regards to this thread 

let sleeping dogs lie ( sorry I’ll get my coat ) 

atb 

[Stavross 16,053]

I’d definitely leave that one be, 10 or 12 years ago someone who I sometimes work for court someone dragging sheep down on one of his field, now the dog was a long way from its owner so he went across the field in his landy and shot it from the window, the owner disappeared off the land, a week or so later a barn mysteriously went up in flames, costing him thousands, now you couldn’t prove it was the dog owner because nobody knew who it was, but it’s a pretty safe bet

[David.evans 5,323]

Yep 

as Walshie has said , can of worms or worse 

atb stav 

[Sausagedog 7,381]

Shoot the dogs, they will visit the farm anyway and rob it.

Up security. Flatten the vans and torch the vehicles.  The police will certainly be interested then!

You can not appease these people, gone feral.

[Alsone 789]

From memory I believe it's only legal to use a shotgun. A rifle is illegal.

Even then, as Walshie says, you're opening a can of worms as to whether the shooting was justified. I believe the dog has to be actively attacking the sheep. Best talk to an expert about the legalities.

You also don't know what actions travellers will take afterwards. Sometimes even the police are afraid to go to traveller sites as they're not past shooting at people. Incident here where it's reported someone was lured to a site to sell his van and then was shot at when he backed off realising something was wrong:
 

 

Edited December 20, 2019 by Alsone

[Sausagedog 7,381]

Yes let's just run through it again....

I pay tax.

I can not carry a concealed weapon for self defence.

They don't pay tax and carry weapons for offence and assault.

I own a home and FAC and my home can be raided at any time.

They don't have a home and the police are not interested.

So let's get it summed up.

If you pay council tax that some goes to the police you are the one they hold to account for law breaking.

If you don't pay council tax, lie, thieve, threaten and use violence the police leave you alone!

Isn't modern Britain great.

[BenBhoy 4,706]

Very dodgy ground for couple of issues as been pointed out. Shooting has to be last resort but other options can land you in bother too. Friend of mine caught an alsatian chasing in lamb ewes. He tried to call it, tried to catch it tried to chase it out, in the end he threw a lump of firewood at it from back of truck, can't remember if it broke dogs leg or not but it enabled him to catch it & phone owner's. Long story short, he had RSPCA on at him with lots of ridiculous counts. Went to court & he was found guilty of animal cruelty, causing unnecessary suffering etc. I've shot a dog myself who was in the act of chasing sheep. I filmed it first to show my attempt to try non lethal methods (catch it etc).  I didn't want to shoot it & I was gutted afterwards. 

As stav says too, could lead to load of grief. Who owns the land they're camped on??

[Qbgrey 4,138]

Could,nt shoot a dog myself,not good practise.i believe it will happen more as townies are moving to the countryside more n more.

[Alsone 789]

I find it ridiculous you can't use a rifle given the relative humanness at range.

The law would probably be better if it conferred greater powers on farmers to take action. No-one wants to see a dog shot. However, equally if it's killing your lively hood (quite literally), then action needs to be available without fear of prosecution. An increase in the number of (justified) dog shootings, might also have a deterrent effect on owners letting dogs off leashes in or adjacent to fields with small livestock such as sheep.