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#4676 - 12/22/05 03:14 AM Re: Dogs in Traps
old number 7 Offline
Member

Registered: 10/27/02
Posts: 55
Loc: Oregon
Check your local and state laws on dispatching ferral animals. A responsible trapper/hunter should know the laws that pertain to him or her BEFORE they go out into the field. "Thats how I see it".

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#4677 - 12/22/05 12:17 PM Re: Dogs in Traps
animalpest Offline
Member+

Registered: 08/18/05
Posts: 197
Loc: Western Australia
Now Mike Muchurin has said that if a hunter has his shot at a big stag spoilt by a dog and then says " I would shoot the @#%$# thing" that somehow appears to be ok compared to trappers who should let a trapped domestic dog go. So is the hunter right or are you/we jealous of his attitude to just shooting the dog? If a hunter thinks (or acts) that way, is he right? Of course not! He is being irresponsible to his sport and as a citizen, and so would you as a good citizen and trapper.

Dogs dont "trespass", people do (dogs roam, wander, are lost, chase etc, they dont think that hard and cant read the law).

You let the domestic dogs and cats go because it is the right thing to do - end of story.

(Hey I am currently 1800 km from home and have been since October trapping FERAL cats, and WILD dogs. These are feral/wild, pure amd simple. That is vastly different from trapping in areas where domestic animals should be expected to occur)
Mike

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#4678 - 12/22/05 02:46 PM Re: Dogs in Traps
CoonCaller Offline
Member

Registered: 10/29/03
Posts: 240
Loc: Formerly NY, now TN
If you catch a dog in your traps it should be released, to the owner or if it has no tags call a dog warden, ECO, or police and let them decided what is best for it. You can also let neighbors around the area you are going to trap know, so hopefully they will keep their pets home. I once had a yelow lab show up at my house with no tags it was very thin ribs were showing had very little energy. I never once thought of shooting it though, I watched it just to make sure it wasn't going to pose a threat to me, and made my way back inside. I called my neighbors looking for an owner but none said they had a missing lab and none knew of anyone around that had one, so I then called the dog warden, the dog was picked up and taken away, what happened to it then I don't know and don't care its the wardens job to worry about it now. This story didn't happen out on the line, but if it had I would of handled it in the same manner. Don't shoot dogs that are in your traps or running game its not your call to make, this is why we have law enforcement officers. Besides we trappers have enough people against us we don't need to add to it by shooting pets.

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#4679 - 12/22/05 08:24 PM Re: Dogs in Traps
NEbowhunter Offline
Member

Registered: 04/21/05
Posts: 574
Loc: Holdrege, Nebraska
As I read this thread, I guess I've always sure underestimated the problem. I catch a dog, I release it and it runs home.

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#4680 - 12/22/05 11:21 PM Re: Dogs in Traps
Mike McChurin Offline
Member

Registered: 12/03/02
Posts: 497
Loc: NE Oklahoma
Animalpest,

I think you missed my point. If a trapper shoots a dog in his trap, it makes the evening news. And the people who cry the loudest are generally the ones who would shoot the dog for spoiling a deer hunt. I don't think it's OK to shoot dogs. I have caught my share of dogs and released all of them unharmed, even to the point of loading one up and giving him a ride back to the owner's house. And, as usual the trapper (me) paid the price. I'll relate the story:

I was trapping on some land owned by the family of my sister's husband, specifically on one 80 acre section set aside for hay. I caught the neighbor's dog. I knew it was the neighbor's dog, because it was one of his (of about 30) heelers he uses to work cows. I also knew it was one of his dogs because when I drove by his house everyday all 30 of them would run out into the road (in front of me) to chase my truck. I released the dog and loaded him up and gave him a ride home and notified the neighbor's wife. Next day I was asked by my sister's father-in-law to pull my land sets cause the neighbor was upset that one of his VALUABLE dogs was caught. I pulled the sets. frown But, as I was yanking each one of them I wondered to myself, "If those dogs are so !@##$%^&* valuable, why does he let them run all over the countryside to get caught in traps, or killed by coyotes or run over (my brother-in-law has accidentally run over several and not a word was said) or even get stolen?" :rolleyes: If they are so valuable...Why do you let them run loose?

Hal stated: "However, if that dog runs into a legally set trap, in the process, the hunter has absolutely no standing to be mad."

That is true. However, in everyone's experience, how often does it work that way? At best, we will find a nasty note, if the trap is not gone or destroyed.

I will continue to let the domestics go. I will do it because it's the right and ethical thing to do. But, I am not doing it out of sympathy for the animal or the owners. Apparently, trappers are held to a much higher standard of conduct. I guess I will try to maintain that standard, even if it is a pain in the butt.

Mike

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#4681 - 12/23/05 05:53 AM Re: Dogs in Traps
BillWI Offline
Member

Registered: 01/01/01
Posts: 339
Loc: Bonduel,WI,US
All good points that I've read in this post but to argue one point by animal pest. If a dog is on your property and you can prove it was and who the owner was the owner can be fined for the dog trespassing on your property plus leash law violation. Here in WI its like 110$ for the first offense. 300+ for the second and 500+ plus the dog is removed for the third offense. Years ago before game cams guys would put out "fox" sets on there property because it is legal to trap year round for fox on their own property. If it just happened to catch the dog running well the sheriff was called and the caught dog was proof of the dog being on your property and the dog owner was fined if no collar was on the dog it was destroyed. Proving a running dog is on your property takes physical proof and having the dog was one way to do it. Now before I get a lashing for talking about targeting dogs I don't condone this practice and don't recommend it do to the wrong people seeing or hearing this and giving trappers a bad name.
Now with hounds running game. Years ago when we ran coon if it treed in a farmers yard at midnight the farmer wouldn't care as long as you were getting rid of them stinking coon. Now with the movement of city people into the country the same instance would get a sheriff deputy put on you faster than a blutic on a hot trail. Heaven forbid that poor coon is getting chased by dogs. We have local hound guys around here who will go anywhere they want saying their after their hounds. I will let them cross our property but to leave the firearms in the truck. Talk about mad. This group has a bad rep and find themselves talking to deputies more than hunting.
I actually have land owners who have told me to destroy dogs if caught due to deer chasing. I've been able to talk most of them into calling the law and dealing with it that way. Hounds I usually can get a phone # and call the guy to get his hound. Most are pretty peeved that their dog was caught but one guy was happy because the hound ran off and he couldn't catch it again.
Bill

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#4682 - 12/23/05 11:48 PM Re: Dogs in Traps
animalpest Offline
Member+

Registered: 08/18/05
Posts: 197
Loc: Western Australia
In relation to a dog "trespassing" I was just playing the devils advocate to highlight the difference between peoples actions and domestic dogs'. Sure, a dog can trespass, and the owner is liable. While I also appreciate hunters and their dogs illegally trespass intentionally, some dogs are on land they shoulnt be purely by accident or through carelessness on the owners part. Either way, the person is at fault, not the dog. Certainly in almost all jurisdictions, there are laws relating to dogs at large, or wandering on your land. IMO, unless the action of the dog is an immediate threat to livestock or people, the the right way to go is to do nothing to the dog and take action according to the law against the dogs owner. Trapping ethically doesnt mean doing it within the law, it means doing whats right and based on the posts above, it sounds like that is something which most trappers should be proud of.
Mike
Mike

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#4683 - 12/24/05 01:27 AM Re: Dogs in Traps
KYBOY Offline
Member

Registered: 05/30/05
Posts: 115
Loc: Wolf creek, KY
Well fellas since I made my last post on this thread I talked to wildlife official and told him that I released a stray dog and was berated for it. People around here take a very dim view of stray dogs.( i knew that to begin with) Him and the other 4 or 5 wardens I know all feel the same way. danged if you do, danged if you dont confused

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#4684 - 12/24/05 02:57 AM Re: Dogs in Traps
BillWI Offline
Member

Registered: 01/01/01
Posts: 339
Loc: Bonduel,WI,US
For KYBOY the next time yiu catch a dog than call the local CO and have him come out and do what he wants to the animal that way he catches grief about it and not you. Best bet would be to have him take the dog away and then do what he pleases that way your covered.
Animalpest just noticed where about your from. Remember seeing on Discovery channel how the introduction of feral cats and dogs really reaked havoc with the native wildlife. Like you said your in a completely different situation than most of us in the states. Last year the sportsman from WI. tried to make feral cats a unprotected game animal and you should of saw the grief raised by this. No lawmakers would even touch this one even though the feral cat problem is really a problem but thats another story.
Bill

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#4685 - 12/24/05 12:10 PM Re: Dogs in Traps
animalpest Offline
Member+

Registered: 08/18/05
Posts: 197
Loc: Western Australia
While there are differences between here and where you are from, I still face similar problems. What I was saying was that where I was until today is different if I catch a dog or cat and the nearest town (or house!) is 90 miles away. That said, I am now trapping foxes within the capital city limits (pop 1,000,000) and suburbs (I get around!) so the problem of catching domestic animals is now very real! Agree with you 100% Bill in that it is best to leave it to your local officer who is responsible for that problem. Its been said before that the opinions of a government officer dont help you when the proverbial hits the fan. They can duck but you cannot - if they provide advice or opinion it is no defense to you.

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