This is awful. The whole thing is just so terrible :( It seems like there were a lot of questions but I guess the man felt justified in killing the dog because the law says he can kill the animal simply chasing their livestock even. I don't live in an area where we depend on animals for our food - but I'm so sad that the dog killed all these chickens (I'm sure a 75 year old man was probably very attached to those animals!) Chickens are not just for food - but pets too! I know many people that keep them as lovely pets.
I'm sad that the poor dog was killed so brutally - instead of taken away in a humane way. (After he did break the skin of the man - he would most likely have had to be put down - but it would have been peacefully!)
The whole thing is one tragic thing after another, and I really regret that they didn't even respect the death of the animal enough by keeping the picture out of the paper like that. It's awful to see - but I suppose some people need to see the horror in order to take it seriously.
It sounds like the law needs to be changed - but to what? I don't even know. How can you protect your animals from a predator? A chicken's life is not more valuable than a dog's life - and vice versa. They're life. But the animals of the man should also be able to be protected because they belong to him. This was not just predator/prey in the wild. The chickens belonged to the man and were due the protection of the man.
The dog definitely went back the second night to finish off what he started the night before since the screen was ripped and the last chicken did die also. But did the man trap the dog? I don't know - it doesn't look like the dog's leg was mangled from a trap, but if the man tried to keep the dog inside of the chicken coop - that was very foolish for himself and a more dangerous situation to put the cornered animal in.
My heart is just sick over the whole thing. Too much death and pain. Sadness.
At the very least, this situation will hopefully help people to be more alert and prepared for situations like this. Thank you for how passionate you are for the lives of all animals, Rhonda. Chickens, Dogs... you're the Animal Guardian
Sadly, the laws are actually adequate. The law pertaining to this incident is quite clear. Dog in the act of killing/chasing livestock or poultry: legal to kill. Dog not in the act of killing/chasing livestock or poultry: not legal to kill. I have never seen or heard any proof of any time that the dog was actively killing/chasing chickens when the man killed him. I also believe the dog bit him in self defense because the man was trying to kill him. Like I said, no animal is going to just stand there and let someone beat its brains out with a maul axe. He restrained that dog somehow, which tells me there was clear intent to kill.
oh sorry - I thought that the dead chicken in the story was from this incident - not the night before... my apologies! When he went into the coop again and ripped the screen though? I don't know. I mean - we weren't there. But the man was 75 and wanting to protect his animals and probably scared too. The dog is just doing what a dog does. He's a predator and he sees prey. There really is no expectation that a dog is going to leave a chicken alone - it's their nature and its completely understandable. Especially if he was wild. But if he had killed three the night before... I don't know Rhonda.. this one is making me think!!! Maybe there is more to this than meets the eye. All i know is I just feel bad for everyone involved. No one wins. Like I said before - death, sadness, pain. I know that you're hurting too. I heard it in your voice on the show today.
Just sad overall.
The only thing that matters to me is that the law clearly states that killing an animal not in the act of killing/chasing livestock or poultry is a Class Six Felony. There is a LOT more here than meets the eye, including past history of behavior toward animals. I could only address the specific details addressed by this article. However, that's enough. According to 3.2-6552, the actions taken by Clifton were illegal. And had he attempted to abide by the law, he would never have been bitten at all.
If he had only called Animal Control the morning after this happened. Or even that night. Their phones are answered 24/7. Our ACOs would have dealt with this humanely and legally. Him taking matters into his own hands...well, I don't think there's any need to explain how that worked out for him.
And as a footnote: you thinking the last chicken was being killed by the dog when Clifton hit him with the maul axe--I'm pretty sure that's exactly what the author of that news article wanted everyone to think. It's never stated in the article, not once. So it's either hopelessly sloppy journalism or propaganda. People infer the dog was killing the chicken from the way she injected that into the story, and it was done very much on purpose to obfuscate the facts.
Thanks for giving more of the fact Rhonda! Sad to see that there's so much being twisted!