VENT! Stupid people trespassing on horse property!

[JSwan]

feel free to copy and paste…

Not really about people trespassing - but dogs trespassing. I found this among my bookmarks and the author said to feel free to forward or copy and paste this as much as you want. Might be nice to have handy. Evidently this farmer had some pretty bad dog attacks on his place and wrote this.

A Message To Dog Owners

The most common predatory killers of livestock are domestic dogs. Even your sweet family pet can wander off to play, start chasing, then biting, and then instincts kick in that you might be too naive to believe your dog has. Unfortunately, your naivety and denial won’t save the livestock your dog harms. Livestock owners know this and many will shoot your dog and you’ll never even know what happened to it. But don’t blame the owners of the livestock, they are merely protecting their beloved animals from a killer you chose to leave on the loose.

Not only do dogs tear up livestock and cause incredible pain and suffering to them, they can “stress” certain types to death just by “running” them. They can chase them into, through, or over fences where they can become tangled in fencing, or hit by cars. “Running” stock can also cause abortion or early births which result in heartache over the loss of babies and dams due to complications. Some livestock is prone to heat stress, and “running” them can cause death from that too. You can be held financially responsible for the monetary losses your dog inflicts.

The reason people buy property and fence it to to keep their livestock in. It is your responsibility to keep your dogs out of their pastures, off their property, and on your own property. Many areas have leash laws and you can be fined. Many insurance companies will cancel your homeowners insurance if complaints are made about your dogs. (And it’s a piece of cake for livestock owners to find out who your insurer is.) Once your homeowner’s insurance is cancelled for that reason, you’ll find great difficulty finding another that will be willing to insure you. If you have a mortgage on your home you have to be insured, so you’ll have further problems to deal with. And if your dogs are caught doing damage, you can (and probably will) be sued for damages.

If you love your dogs you need to be a responsible dog owner. No one cares what your opinion is about what your dogs will or won’t do. Too many livestock owners have FACTS about what dogs will do and are tired of the horror and heartache of dog massacres inflicted on their beloved livestock.

You need to be aware that they care about their livestock as much as you care about your dog. In fact they obviously care more, since they aren’t leaving their stock running loose to be hit by cars or harm others property, as you are doing if your dog is running off your property.

Why any dog owner feels they have the right to put others livestock at risk is beyond me. It is the height of disrespectful animal ownership, and shows a total disregard for the rights of others, or any concern at all for their livestock. If you act that way, why be surprised if your dog gets shot? The sad part is both the dog and the livestock would be safe and happy if dog owner would act responsibly.

So if you are a dog owner, the problem or solution starts with you. Contain your dogs on your own property, unless you have them on a leash or in public areas created specifically for letting dogs run. ESPECIALLY if you live anywhere near other people with livestock. It’s 2002, not 1500, and other people have rights too. If you can’t be compassionate or mature enough to care about the welfare of others animals, at least show enough care for your own dog not to let it be at risk.

If a neighbor has ever had to speak to you about your dogs being on their farm, or running their stock, you are causing major upset in their lives and creating trouble. You may be mindlessly unconcerned, but they obviously aren’t. You are risking their stock that they care about and have money invested in. That is not within your rights to do - neither legally nor morally. Apologize immediately, and make certain your dog does not leave your property “unrestained” again.

[gdolapp]

I have had a friends two horses running with mine for over two years before they
were turned out together he had them in a pasture adjoining mine we just decided
to make everything easier and run the four together and go in halfs on cost of everything
wich is working out great. back when he still had his two in the separate pasture he was letting a friend come out and work with and ride his one gelding she would bring her kids
her kids would come up the road to my house and just wreck havoc. I had to politely tell her
if she was bringing her kids they had to stay with her that we are not at home all the time
and would NOT be responsible at any time if her kids got hurt.
well shortly after that she quit comming out. that was till last fall my friend had just treated
his gelding for a hoof abcess he was still off but not bad when I come home from town to find someone riding my friends gelding in my pasture and another person leading the horse
and drinking beer at the same time. I totally lost it as it was the above girl and she was
specificlly told she could not be here unless someone was here. She got an attitude with
me when I told her friend to get the hell off that horse now and lead it to the barn
I headed for barn and met them grabbed the horse and told them to not let their car
door hit them in the ass as they left. They have not been back since nor has
my friend spoken with them since.

[Lillian.Equine]

Since our barn is right next to a busy road, and a school, and is in front of a neighborhood, we have plenty of people who stop by to “say hi to the horsies” and feed treats. We have a 2 year old mini who will take fingers off, hasn’t yet, but could. We’ve had people come into the barn too. He best suggestion is post signs about how it’s private property, or no feeding or petting the horses. It may help to add chicken wire across the inside of the fences to cover the gaps so nobody can slide through, and replace all the gates leading into the property with the gates that have mesh on the bottom half to prevent people sliding through those either. Add some electric wire to the top of the fences and hopefully that will keep those pesky people out.

[csaper58]

@ESG

Why in God’s name are people so dumb?

Because it’s no longer the ‘fittest’ that survive.

[Christa_P]

Wow, a real zombie thread

[danacat]

@ESG

Why in God’s name are people so dumb?

…and sometimes these same dumb people get run over by a buffalo or a moose.

[2DogsFarm]

@Christa P

Wow, a real zombie thread

:yes: Indeed!
But with warmer weather, all farm owners anywhere near Civilization can look forward to the Petting Zoo Syndrome :rolleyes:
The only solution I have found is to (biting my tongue) “educate” the idjits as to how horse lips & teeth may not recognize a finger is not edible.
And tell them how important it is that I know everything my horses eat.

I keep a box of spaghetti in the barn so invited kids can feed the horses while keeping fingers at a safe distance.
Most kids get scared enough to drop the pasta before anywhere near grabbing/sucked-in distance.

[ChocoMare]

Granted this is a Resurrected thread (good timing!) but it’s been helpful for me in that I know own my own farmette.

I had dad put PRIVATE in big, bold, black letters under my mail box & farm sign but … the tip to post NO TRESPASSING and DO NOT FEED THE HORSES signs was a good idea. Ordered a set of 4 each for my gates and property entrance.

P.S. Was also nice to see some of the “golden oldie” posters come back to life.

[mmeqcenter]

All these stories reinforce my decision to buy a farm at the dead-end of a dirt road.

Back when I was boarding, one place I kept my mare was a friend’s in a little neighborhood. The neighbor kids frequently rode their bikes around and stopped to pet the horses and feed them treats - never once did they ask permission. My mare bites, and kicks, and lunges at children (she’s really special), so whenever I saw them I politely informed them of this.

[Sandy_M]

Somewhat off-topic. My horse has a stall guard over the TOP of his stall - i.e., no poking head out. We’ve had visitors see that and ask, “Oh, is he vicious??dangerous??” (showing some sense, thank dog). But…no…he’s sweet as can be, if a little mouthy (but polite about it- lots of lip/tongue not teeth). The problem is the arena light switch is within his reach, and he was turning the arena lights on and off at odd intervals during the night and waking up the barn owners! (not to mention upping the electric bill. LOL)

[candyappy]

This is the issue when you have what is now considered a " farmette" A few acres surrounded by neighbors / public lands or roads so your horses are accessible on all sides to those who pass by. I wouldn’t call people who stop to pet an animal stupid. You see a horse/ cow/ goat etc… standing at the fence and your natural inclination ( if you are an animal lover and city dweller) is to stop and pet it if you can.

If you have pastures that border a road/ trail/ neighbor then fence them so the people can’t get in – your horse can’t get too close and for the most part your problems are solved.

[Sandy_M]

Re: Dogs. I’m at a boarding barn, and it is a quiet, adult one, and the only dogs that every show up belong to the BO’s son, and while just their appearance can set off one particular horse that, unfortunately, has his paddock right next to our arena (and thereby set off my rehabbing horse if I am riding at the time), he has one always leashed, and the other is obedient and does not run wild. However, my horse has a large scar on his left hind leg and smaller one on his left fore fetlock from being chased through a fence when a weanling/yearling. This was in a predominately rural area in California’s Central Valley. The scars are cosmetic and no leg structures were damaged, but it could have been much worse. My horse does not care for dogs…

[sdlbredfan]

This reminds me of a boarding stable I was at, in which the barn owner/ manager did not have the same horsemanship standards as I did. She thought it was ‘perfectly fine’ that this older gentleman would show up to feed apples to all of the horses. Some of the horses were on special diets, should not have had apples.

My mare had suffered a really bad choke episode, and thus was at risk for/was prone to another. When I objected to his feeding whole apples to my mare, the BO/BM’s solution was not to prevent him from giving treats to my horse, but to ensure they were cut up in small pieces…WTF?

That had me already thinking about moving her, but the last straw was when one of the barn workers brought his large, unrestrained dog to work with him, and allowed the dog to play on and damage the hay bales. When I objected to that, the BO/BM treats me as if I am the problem, rather than her poor barn management.
ETA, I do not believe a dog should be allowed to spread ‘dog smell’ and/or pee on my horse’s hay. That the BO/BM saw no problem with that boggled my mind.

[demidq]

On another thread, there was a suggestion that putting a sign up to say “WARNING! ALL HORSES BITE” is a nice, general statement that doesn’t suggest that you have a particularly vicious beast but acts as a deterrent.

[16_Hands]

A little off topic regarding dogs. When I was looking for a barn, I toured one with the manager and as it was a rainy day, the barn help were turning out horses one at a time in the indoor while their stall was being cleaned. However, there was a dog also chasing the horse around the arena which had a jump course set up. I asked the manager if this was a normal occurrence and was he worried about the horse being injured? He laughed and said yeah that usually happens and so far no injuries. I just said thanks and left. what kind of idiot thinks that is remotely okay? Not his horse, dog is allowed to chase not his horse around an arena full of jumps where not his horse could be injured. Morons!

[shiloh]

As a kid, I LOVED to pet any horse that came close enough to the fence for me to reach. But I would never, ever in a million years have dreamed of going into the pasture or stall or anywhere else I did not belong.

I just love the folks that think they are entitled to pet your horse and argue with you when you tell them to stop. At one barn we had a horse that was really bad to bite and had numerous signs posted around his stall warning people of this. It still didn’t stop people and their small children from sticking their hands in his face. And then they were surprised when he snapped at them? Dude, srsly…go home.

I always want to ask them how they would like it if I showed up at their house and came in and ate their food and made myself at home.

[S1969]

@mmeqcenter

All these stories reinforce my decision to buy a farm at the dead-end of a dirt road.

Then you just get different kinds of trespassers - hunters, trail riders, ATVs.

I ripped into a neighbor recently when I ran into him on my property walking his dogs off leash while I had my dogs off leash. Somehow he felt that my “being a good neighbor” meant that everyone could treat my property like the town park. He said his huge black GSD was “friendly” but I had to leash my young dog and my elderly dog just in case she wasn’t.

I’ll be curious to see who else I see on my trail cam that I am putting up today. I see cars, trucks, ATVs, go through, and often see horse tracks but haven’t seen who it is. I suppose I might find them in my arena soon…I mean, why not? What’s the difference?

People trying to pet my horses over the fence at the road no longer bothers me. It doesn’t happen often, and usually my horses ignore them anyway.

[mmeqcenter]

@S1969

Then you just get different kinds of trespassers - hunters, trail riders, ATVs.

I ripped into a neighbor recently when I ran into him on my property walking his dogs off leash while I had my dogs off leash. Somehow he felt that my “being a good neighbor” meant that everyone could treat my property like the town park. He said his huge black GSD was “friendly” but I had to leash my young dog and my elderly dog just in case she wasn’t.

I’ll be curious to see who else I see on my trail cam that I am putting up today. I see cars, trucks, ATVs, go through, and often see horse tracks but haven’t seen who it is. I suppose I might find them in my arena soon…I mean, why not? What’s the difference?

People trying to pet my horses over the fence at the road no longer bothers me. It doesn’t happen often, and usually my horses ignore them anyway.

Wow bummer! Trail cams are a great idea! I’d be so furious if people were just walking on my property like that. Lots and lots of privacy signs, I guess?
My property is fully perimeter fenced with no-climb wire. So, I’m probably pretty set. Also, my northern neighbor is a 500+ acre thoroughbred breeding farm and their barns are on the furthest part of the property from me, and my eastern neighbor is like a multi-thousand acre cattle farm or something and a huge forest borders my property. Five months in and no trespasser yet! Our two actual neighbors on the dead-end are quiet and keep to themselves. We all each have 20 acres and horses.

[TheJenners]

My paddock closest to the road isn’t fenced TO the road for this reason. All I need is people feeding my burritos through the fence, like Odie isn’t fat enough…

[S1969]

@mmeqcenter

Our two actual neighbors on the dead-end are quiet and keep to themselves. We all each have 20 acres and horses.

I think my problem is that my 20 acre property is adjacent to 3 properties where no one lives - a factory with a couple hundred acres of woods around it, a 40 acre tree farm, and about 40 acres of open field owned by people who live about a mile away. The factory has some excellent hunting areas that are all posted, but people trespass like crazy in there. The tree farm workers have apparently told everyone within a 30 mile radius that they can walk dogs/ride ATVs/snowmobile, etc. The actual owner probably has no idea; he never comes out. That property also backs up to a railroad track where people ride ATVs/snowmobiles to other trails.

Even though my property has posted signs, I’m not sure people know who owns it because they probably think it’s part of the factory or the tree farm…or just don’t care. I am thinking of putting up a gate on the road that goes through; that will stop the drive-through traffic, at any rate.

Maybe the trail cam will scare the others away. I am always afraid that I’ll run into the person riding their horse - me and my four dogs off leash. That ought to be super fun. :no: Even though I don’t want them on my property I would feel bad if my dogs chased their horse and the rider fell off.