#dogattack #neighborhoodsafety #legalquestions #petresponsibility #animalcontrol
πΆπ«π My mom’s dog has now killed two of my neighbors’ dogs in Indiana – what should I do legally? ππΆ
The Problem:
About a month ago, my mom’s dog tore a hole in my chain link fence and attacked a small dog in our yard. Yesterday, another neighbor’s dog snuck into our yard through the gate and was killed by my mom’s dog. Neither incident was reported to animal control, and I’m concerned about the safety of my own dogs, especially my pit bull. My mom refuses to get rid of her dog, and I don’t know what steps I should take legally.
Solutions:
1. Contact Animal Control:
- It’s never too late to report an incident to animal control. They can investigate the attacks, ensure the safety of other pets in the neighborhood, and provide guidance on next steps.
2. Seek Legal Advice:
- Consult with a legal professional to understand your rights and options in this situation. They can advise you on how to protect yourself and your pets, as well as how to approach the owners of the attacking dog.
3. Document Everything:
- Keep detailed records of the attacks, any injuries sustained, and conversations with neighbors or authorities. This information may be crucial if legal action is needed in the future.
4. Secure Your Property:
- Take steps to reinforce your fence or gate to prevent further incidents. Consider additional security measures to keep your pets safe and prevent other animals from entering your yard.
Remember, your priority is the safety of your pets and ensuring that all animals in the neighborhood are protected. Don’t hesitate to take action to address this serious issue. For more advice and support, you can also check out this Reddit post for additional insights from the community.
If you are worried you should report this to animal control. This dog is a danger to you and every dog in your neighborhood and should be put down.
Report it. The dog needs to be euthanized. Do the neighbors know that their dog was killed or do they think it ran away? they probably havenβt reported because they donβt know.
Report it to Animal Control. This is happening on your property, youβre aware itβs happening, the dog owner (your mother) has no intention of doing anything about it, and itβs not ok to allow her dog to continue attacking other animals (or perhaps eventually people).
As someone who just lost their Chihuahua due to someone not having their dog fenced in, I applaud you for taking accountability. Thank you for that. My neighbors are not and they were pretty much waiting outside our fence every day. We tried everything to get him away because I didn’t think we could legally do anything. And now one of ours has passed because of the vicious attack. Please take accountability and call Animal control because those dogs do need to be put down. If they can get violent like that just once, they’ll do it over and over. I don’t care if anybody believes that these dogs are the best and they’re just great. Yeah they can be. But they can also hurt other animals and at that point they need to be put down. Animal control said that they were going to issue a citation for mine. I’m in Tennessee and it’s a felony I believe if they kill. But I’m not sure. I posted my question here and I haven’t heard a response back. But it’ll bother me if nothing can be done about it.
I am going to give some advice. I am not an attorney by any means but I am a licensed insurance rep in the state of Michigan. You should call animal control. Tell them exactly what happened. If your mom is living in your house then itβs time to sit down and have a conversation. You need to check with your insurance rep because if for any reason the other dog owners can come to you and file a claim. You need to find out the rules on vicious dogs in your state. Some companies may require you to get rid of the dog or they will non-renew you.
I mean dogs are very territorial. It’s a shame the other dogs wandered into an area they weren’t ment to be. I’m surprised the owners of the dead dogs didn’t report it. Perhaps because they knew there dog was on there property? π€
Pitbull
Holy cow this is some of the worst advice I have ever seen on this sub.
No, the dog doesn’t inherently “need to be euthanized.” Not unless it is a danger to you or your mom. Dogs are territorial, there are plenty of people in this world who own dogs as a means of protecting themselves or their family. This dog was in its territory(your yard) and other animals entered said territory. Should you feel bad it happened? Yes, as a human you should. Are you legally liable? Doubtful, if it all occurred on your own property.
Now, if the dog continues on the path its on, its going to leave your property and hurt another dog or a child. That WILL be on you, especially since you know he is dangerous to others.
Your options are to beef up your fence or get rid of the dog, or do nothing. If you do nothing and he leaves your property, you are effed. If you beef up your fence and another little dog sneaks in, that is on the owner of the dog and not you.
First of all, fix the hole in your fence!
If your dog is that territorial, I would be very worried what might happen to a small child if they entered that area as well.
The dog has now become a huge liability, and even more so now that you know he can be aggressive. So if he was to attack a person the repercussions could be even worse.
I see no good way around having to get rid of the dog, unfortunately.
what breed is it
I know I see a lot of people on here talking about reporting the mom’s dog as vicious, but wouldn’t the neighbors be liable for letting their dog roam free enough to intrude? It’s not like OP’s mom is leaving her dog off leash, it’s in a fenced in backyard.
FIX….YOUR….FENCE.
Fix the fence and call animal control and report it. Get proof if you can/
NAL but I volunteer in animal rescue.
First, you need to sit down with your mother and have a serious conversation about the dog behavior. Some dogs are perfectly fine with people while being dog reactive and vise versa. It happens.
However, how long until the dog finds a way out of the fence? Jump, dig, etc, and goes after a dog being walked by a kid, and the kid gets between them? Or a parent with a baby that’s walking their dog?
I would look into reactive dog rescues and see what they suggest. Typically they have a licensed training/dog behavioralist that can do an assignment on the dog and decide of the behavior can be worked out or not.
This is your home and your mom lives with you? Tell her either she moves out or surrenders the dog. Dogs with extreme reactivity need an experienced owner. Hell, even if it means muzzling the dog when its outside alone.
Also where is the other dogs owner in all this? Have they made mention of pressing charges? This is your home meaning your home owners insurance would be held responsible.
The dog needs to be euthanised asap. Report this!!!
You have to report it. There’s no other choice. I know that laws vary between states, but that dog is an absolute danger to other animals and possibly children.
It needs to be euthanized asap. Contact Animal Control if your county or city has one.
Dude itβs killed 2 dogs please get that thing under control
NAL so I’m not sure how this works given your mom isn’t a permanent resident but in your other post you you stated there’s 6 dogs residing in your home. While there’s no statewide limitations on the amount of dogs you can house, your local zoning laws may have limitations. Regardless, the amount of dogs and size of property could be contributing to the aggression. You can’t force your mom to euthanize her dog however, you can tell her to leave or at least muzzle the dog when outside. Moreover, some areas have ordinances on how aggressive dogs are managed. Here’s what I found from Hamilton county IN: “..the owner of a dog deemed vicious who maintains said dog out-of-doors shall fence a portion of the property with a second perimeter or area fence. Within this perimeter or area fence, said animal must be humanely confined inside a pen or kennel of adequate size…” Check your local laws and consult a lawyer.
Put your dog down before insurance finds out and drops you faster than a policy in Florida.
How have the neighbors not killed your Mom’s dog by now? That thing would’ve already dined on a few steaks marinated in antifreeze had my dog been hurt.
God I hate dog owners
At the very least, invest in a muzzle. And make sure the dog wears it outside at ALL times. For my two cents, I would call animal control before it eats something besides another pet.
Iβm sorry, but I read this a couple of times to make sure, but it sounds like your momβs aggressive dog is living in your backyard. Thatβs a huge liability risk for you.
What if a kid is walking a dog and her dog decides to attack it and the kid tries to break it up? Or an elderly person? Or really any person?
If your insurance helps at all if you were to be sued, (and they may have a dangerous dog exclusion in your policy that will give them an out where they donβt have to help) the injured party can come after you for treble damages and literally ruin your life. And heaven forbid if someone were to be killed, good luck getting anyone to stand up for you in any court.
You need to contact animal control and have him humanely euthanized.
Itβs a huge liability risk for you and your family. Is it really worth it to keep it around?
Please donβt rehome him either, there are plenty of horror stories about aggressive dogs being rehomed.
Heβs already aggressive, now youβre going to place him in a new environment with innocent people. If he has anxiety from the new environment, his aggression could become worse.
I’m not going to weigh in on options because you’ve gotten plenty of good advice. HOWEVER, please get a muzzle on that dog ASAP. That dog is dangerous, and a fence may not stop it. It just takes a scent, color, or even movement to cause a dog to attack (especially one that has a history of aggression). It will be your fault.
I take my dogs out on leashes every day. Neighbors around me have small chihuahuas that lose their minds and aggressively lunge at my big dogs. Theyβre lucky mine arenβt aggressive. I would feel zero guilt if they were attacked or ran over bc they are a nuisance, chase kids down the street, and run in the street. Why should I care if their owners donβt.
If the dogs ran up on your Moms dogs acting like some ankle biters do (aggressively) does that make her dog aggressive or reacting to a perceived threat in their territory?
How about start with fixing the hole? Because your dog is the one who made the hole which allowed the other dogs to get in. Call animal control. And have a serious discussion with your mom. This CANNOT keep happening. One is bad enough, but two? Jesus.
As a person who loves dogs but also had my cheek ripped off by a dog when I was four years old I would say…..
You could see my teeth with my mouth closed, so it was pretty bad! 80 stiches and skin grafts later….
The dog deserves the big sleep.
Around 30 years ago, I lived in a different town. I was watching the town cable tv channel and saw one of the people on the board of select representatives speak about a dog who had killed another dog.
He said a dog that will do this may also kill a human child. The decision was made to cage it on the ownerβs property. Never yo run loose again. The dimensions and specifications of the cage were already defined, as other dogs had done this.
One of my closest friends has a dog she absolutely dotes on. Itβs a real pain in the neck to deal with because itβs a rescue from a breeder, having lived in a crate for the first six years of his life. If a dog killed this one, it would be devastating to her and her mother.
I canβt imagine the guilt Iβd carry, if I failed to prevent such a thing.
Good fences make good neighbors. That’s truthfully the only solution that enables that dog to continue breathing and residing in your mom’s yard. Otherwise, it’s only a matter of time before it happens again. And it’s only a matter of time before someone does something about it on their own.