Absolutely Mortified.....

[JulieSherris]

Yesterday morning, the basset boys went out for their morning ablutions... the big lad came in after a few minutes, but the 9 mth old pup was out for about 20 mins - nothing unusual in that, I thought, he likes a good mooch in the mornings....

We had a good day, hubby was home in the morning & thoroughly approved of me buying a new saw, a Smart Holder & Smart Splitter for my logging work..... he says our hayshed looks like a well organised mini-sawmill going on!!

So nothing untoward happened - we spent a few mins looking at the next door field - they had moved the 2 lambs (huge!!) and the 2 calves in with the geese & the turkeys - all was well with the world & the Welsomer Cockerel spent all day telling us too!!

Then last night, the eldest lad (35 ) came & told us he had caught the pup chasing at the sheep yesterday morning, early on He said that the pup wasn't attacking, but looked like he was trying to play 'chase'. Of course, the lambs didn't want to play & were racing around the top field panicking. Pup ran back thru the woods & came straight home when he was yelled at.
He decided to bring the lambs down to the bottom field, just to keep an eye & made a mental note to let us know later......

During the afternoon, one of the lambs laid out on the grass & died. Probably a heart attack.

To say that I was mortified is an understatement.

We offered to compensate him last night, or to buy another lamb, but he won't hear of it. Although the 2 lambs were originally bought as pets for the 4yr old, there were tentative plans to move them to the freezer just after xmas.

So, today I have been to buy a huge amount of wire mesh, fence posts, staples, you name it.... It's certainly a cost we could have done without at this time of year, but the security of their farm must come first as it's their livelihood.

Hubby told the farmer that if either of the boys are spotted chasing anything on their property again, to use his gun - obviously, I don't want that to happen, but I understand that it's the country way.

So for the next few days, I think I am going to be VERY busy enclosing the garden - all 2.5 acres of it
An early night for me tonight, I think.... but I'm still absolutely mortified -

Julie.

[Clara]

The country way round here is to put the dog in a stable with a ram or a billie for 15 minutes - they soon get the idea.

My OH is a tree surgeon so when our eldest (and at the time only) dog went to work with him we had to be sure that he would behave whilst OH is up in the trees. The first time he so much as walked towards a sheep (he was a fairly young pup) OH wrestled him to the ground and gave him and good hiding and quite a fright. We quite often get sheep just wandering on to our land and George won't even make eye contact with them, and if you have to go through a flock he shakes.

I know a lot of people will find both these suggestions unpalatable, however it is far better than getting shot. I have 4 dogs, our land is not fenced and they roam the valley freely I trust every single one of them not to do any harm to anything.

[JulieSherris]

The country way round here is to put the dog in a stable with a ram or a billie for 15 minutes - they soon get the idea. ...........................

Hubby did this in his former life... (aka life before he met me!) when he had lurchers for rabbiting.

We're hoping to find the local sheep farmer who keeps rams to ask him about this.
Hubby thinks that at 9 or 10 months, the puppy might be too old to learn from this - plus the fact that he's a Basset pup - I can stand & tell him off for stealing a log from the woodpile... as he looks balefully at me while taking yet another log from the pile!!

Mind, that said, the gardens DO need securing - I'd hate to think that the dogs wandered a little TOO far thru the woods one day & end up on the road - it's a long way, but a basset nose knows no bounds

Julie.

[red]

Julie

how awful - good on you for fessing up and offering to pay comps - best you can do is fences and supervision at this stage.

Personally, I think some dogs are chasers and you can't knock it out of them. you can only impress on them that you dont like it.

[invisiblepiper]

Much sympathy Julie - my cairn pup goes for anything! We are not near sheep , but he attacks cyclists! We live on one of the busiest sections of the national cycle network.......

[boyleygod]

Dear Julie,
I so relate to your problem. I had the same when my dog was about six months old. (Now 18 months). We farm and have 70acres alive with sheep. She (pup) suddenly decided it would be fun to chase a lamb which had got out onto our drive. She lit off and chased it up the road and into a far field, she had no intention of harming it, just thought it was fun to chase something that ran. My husband was beside himself with rage (which didn't help!!) and said that if I didn't get it sorted she would have to be put down. I had been attending training classes with her and called in the trainer on a one to one basis. All to no avail. The trainer said the only thing to do was to keep her on a lead forever. As far as I was concerned this was not an option. A friend suggested that she lend me an electric training collar. I was extremely reluctant. However I was at my wits end. Eventually I used it. Firstly, I tried it on myself and found that on my arm it just gave a tickling sensation. Next I put it on the pup and we went for a walk in a field of sheep. Within seconds she was off after the nearest ewe. I called her back, she looked at me, and then continued with her fun. I zapped her once. She stopped, looked at me and tried again. I zapped her again and she stopped and came running back. I am very relieved to say that she has never again looked to chase sheep and that was a year ago. I know that most people think that these collars are inhumane, but having used one I am convinced that they are a superb training aid in this situation, far better than putting a dog in a confined space with a ram or ewe. I now know of many dogs, including mine, that would have had to be put down if they hadn't had access to these collars. At the end of the day a farmer has the right to shoot a dog seen to be worrying his livestock, and having seen the results of the damage that a dog can cause a ewe or lamb I totally agree that this should be so.

[trinder]

I am so with boyleygod on this one. it is a bit like the smack no smack children argument. I once read an article that said something like... if you don't respect me you wont learn from me. and also too much fear and you cannot learn. seems gibberish the way i have written it. but it made sense to me. the thing is boyleygod s dog knew s/he was being called and decided to ignore there was a choice. S/he just chose the wrong one and learned that boyleygod is a superhero and can throw a bolt of lightening if not obeyed. Also boyleygod s dog was ? is a sheepdog and i hate to be breedist but your breed is not really reknowned for quick and keen to learn . ( if you know what i mean)
you could try a cheaper alternative which would be electric fencing but that would only keep them in your own property it would not solve the problem when you are out and about. A good training club locally isl likely to lend you an electric collar or even the borough council or dog warden are possibilities. good luck

[JulieSherris]

Wow... thanks you guys, for being understanding about this issue....

To be quite honest, I was expecting at least one person to start ranting about irresponsible dog owners... townies in the country... you get what I mean!

Piper.... at our last house, we used to drive past a house with a jack russell who liked to chase & attack red cars....... guess what colour my car is... How he's still alive is beyond me, but he used to put the fear of jesus in me every time I saw him racing towards my tires!!

Boyleygod & Trinder - yep, I am sort of in agreement - we had a basset bitch a few years ago who was a barker. We lived in Blackpool with 2 pubs backing onto our yard & she ended up going to Basset welfare to be rehomed, she just got so neurotic & the noise wasn't fair on her at all.
I tried those scent collars - supposed to spray a citrus scent every time she barked.... hmmm... she didn't care!!
I tried the bark control unit that emits a high pitched noise..... still no joy, so she had to go for her own sanity!

With the pup, he's no escape artist & as you rightly say, Bassets are NOT renowned for their obedience either, so I'm hoping that the fencing solutions will work & keep the boys within the garden confines.
It's a shame, because the big fella likes to mooch thru the woods, although we do have mink & badgers around, so this will be safer for all, I think.
IF we find that it's not working, then yes, I may well try a correction collar - I just have to butter up the lads next door to let me experiment in their fields.

The long term plan is to picket fence the whole property, but that involves the demise of the MIL....... So for now, wire mesh & hard work fighting with hawthorn hedging will have to do!
Julie.