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When I was a kid my family had cattle. A couple miles away was a small trailer park, dogs from the trailer park would often come to our farm and as a group they would chase our cattle. As individuals each of those dogs were okay, but once they formed a pack, the pack attitude was very different. I was taught to shoot rifles, by shooting those dogs as they were chasing our cattle.
But you must always, always S. S. S.
Where I live now is dense forest. We have dogs and cats. The cats go in and out as they please, all the time they go missing. Young cats enjoy hunting frogs, snakes and salamanders. I often watch as the cats feel more confidant that they are the predators they will wander deeper into the forest. Until typically they come across a real predator [coyote, fox, eagle or hawk]. I watched one day when a hawk grabbed a cat and killed it.
I view our cats mostly as coyote feed.
Our dogs are kept on a tether most of the time. Though I do allow them to run free at night.
I have a herd of pigs, coyotes enjoy harassing my pigs. Our dogs usually put up a lot of noise when coyotes are on my property. I recently picked up a new .50 rifle with a thermal-imaging scope specifically for hunting coyotes at night.
Dogs are great for security. When anyone comes down our driveway, the dogs are good at letting us know about it.
In the rural area I lived in back several years ago your dogs and cats could run free under your control... on your property. Maybe a neighbor who knew you and your dog/cat wouldn't worry too much if Barky or Scruffy came for a visit. You might get a call, or the next time you see them they will mention the visit. But, any neighbor, including us, would shoot any dog that chased or barked at livestock or deer/elk, or cats that sprayed on a car's tires or side of a house. No one I ever heard from complained, because it was common that you train your own dogs not to leave the property. Cats that wandered didn't last long anyway. Sometimes you'd run into a neighbor at the grocery store or gas station and they say something like: Barky ran off and haven't seen him for a few days... guess he gone. That's about it.
Utterly disgusting attitudes. And I say that as someone who NEVER lets her cats go outside, which means they bother no one. Our screened porch is as close to nature as they get, and that is when Mom is nearby.
I would hate having cats spray on my car, but holy crap, I'm not going to SHOOT THEM for that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Submariner
... The cats go in and out as they please, all the time they go missing. Young cats enjoy hunting frogs, snakes and salamanders. I often watch as the cats feel more confidant that they are the predators they will wander deeper into the forest. Until typically they come across a real predator [coyote, fox, eagle or hawk]. I watched one day when a hawk grabbed a cat and killed it.
I view our cats mostly as coyote feed. ...
Submariner, I love so many of your posts, but I am totally horrified by this. Why do you let them go outside if you know they will be "coyote feed"?
No. Most of us who live rural aren't uneducated hicks with passels of unfixed critters hanging 'round the back door.
Edit:
It would be interesting to know how long the woman who tried to defend the practice had actually lived in the area. This is a very atypical stance among those who live around livestock. As far as whether the other woman was technically stealing the dogs, that depends on whose property they were on when she gathered them up and took them to the rescue.
There might be circumstances that the Facebook crowd isn't aware of. The mother dog may have been dumped at the farm by a city person, leaving the farmer on the hook. This happens a lot. People think that anyone with rural property, especially farmers, will gladly take their unwanted pets. Edit: and even if this particular dog wasn't dumped, the chances are good that any random domestic pet you happen to see roaming in a rural area was indeed dumped by a city dweller.
I do recall my grandparents' border collies having the run of their farm, but it was all fenced. There were barn cats, including some really old ones.
I agree with OWS that city people who move to the country are more likely to let their animals run loose.
Not really sure what I said to imply that I thought otherwise.
The dogs were on the man's property when he gathered them up and took them to the rescue place. Apparently the dogs DID belong to the farmer, because the man with the property had been in contact with him a couple of times, and he warned the farmer that he would take them to a rescue if the dogs ended up on his property again.
And I am very aware that people will often dump their pets, thinking that the animals will some how be able to fend for themselves. I see dogs from time to time, walking or running along the highway, sometimes ducking into the woods, and I feel bad for them. I assume that they were dumped.
Not really sure what I said to imply that I thought otherwise.
The dogs were on the man's property when he gathered them up and took them to the rescue place. Apparently the dogs DID belong to the farmer, because the man with the property had been in contact with him a couple of times, and he warned the farmer that he would take them to a rescue if the dogs ended up on his property again.
And I am very aware that people will often dump their pets, thinking that the animals will some how be able to fend for themselves. I see dogs from time to time, walking or running along the highway, sometimes ducking into the woods, and I feel bad for them. I assume that they were dumped.
In my old neighborhood, we had a dog that was dumped by a hunter in the local woods. He had an old collar but the phone number was OOS. I ended up feeding him (it took months for him to even look at me), but eventually he became the neighborhood pet. It turned out he was an American Foxhound. My eccentric neighbor used to dress him up in outfits and take pictures of him; he was that docile. Eventually he got picked up by animal control, but he went to a rescue group and then to a permanent home in NJ. We were all so happy that "Teddy" had a forever family. He was a really sweet dog who just couldn't scent.
In my old neighborhood, we had a dog that was dumped by a hunter in the local woods. He had an old collar but the phone number was OOS. I ended up feeding him (it took months for him to even look at me), but eventually he became the neighborhood pet. It turned out he was an American Foxhound. My eccentric neighbor used to dress him up in outfits and take pictures of him; he was that docile. Eventually he got picked up by animal control, but he went to a rescue group and then to a permanent home in NJ. We were all so happy that "Teddy" had a forever family. He was a really sweet dog who just couldn't scent.
This mama dog was Pyrennese (I probably spelled it wrong) and the puppies were 1/2 Pyrennese and have german shepherd. I saw a picture of one of the puppies...pretty darn cute.
I've had a few stray dogs, even spend the night. I have 3 cats, indoor, outdoor, they don't go far. My Dad lives next door, we have 10 acres and they hang out by the bird feeders, or the brush pile (bunnies) or Jack gets Moles (love that). There is one stray cat that comes on my deck to my screen door at night. I have 2 males and a young female, all fixed. As soon as I go to the door he/she goes away, never seen it during the day.
My rule of thumb is if the dog does not get claimed, I call animal control.
I have always lived in a suburban environment, but we have some camping land in a very rural area. I am curious if there's a difference in attitudes, regarding suburban feelings about dogs and cats, and rural attitudes?
I'm well aware that lots of times, dogs and cats have 'jobs' in rural environments. Barn cats keep the rodent population down, and dogs herd, and guard sheep and cattle, etc. I get it, don't have a problem with it
BUT...IS it a general thing to let dogs roam all over the place? Not just all over YOUR own property...but just roam in general?
I ask, because where our camping land is, we have a Facebook group page, and apparently there is a farmer who lives close by, and he continually lets his dog(s) (a mother and puppies) roam, and they roam onto other people's property who then get on Facebook and complain about it.
It seems that one of the property owners has taken the mother dog and several of the puppies to a dog rescue organization, but it caused a controversy and one lady tried to defend the idea of just letting dogs roam, saying it's been happening for years and years, and that's just how it is in the country. You let your dogs and cats go wherever they want to go. And she was chiding the property owner who gathered up the mom and pups, saying that the property owner was basically stealing these dogs.
Is this classic misunderstanding of the differences between country life and city life...or is this particular lady wrong, or was the property owner wrong for gathering up the mother and puppies and taking them to a shelter?
If I wasn't clear, the mom and pups were continually showing up on the property owner's property, looking for food and attention.
I have my prejudice on this...but really, I'm just curious on what the attitude on this might be. And I don't feel judgy about it...just wondering.
I think you will have pet owners who think it is ok to let their dogs and cats roam in suburban, metro and rural areas. I live in a rural area and no, n my area most people do not let their dogs roam all over the place. Those on acreage will let their dogs/cats run on their property and sometimes the dogs will go to far but overall people keep their dogs contained. As others have said, to not do so often condemns your pets to death.
We do seem to have a lot of escapees but we also have a great group(s) on FB dedicated to reuniting lost and found pets with their people.
The Facebook page for our county’s lost and found animals went from public to private a few months ago. Before that, I checked in every week to see what animals had been posted in either category. Many lost dogs got reunited with their owners this way. Often, people reported sightings of the same dog in different places, so that someone would know where it might turn up next—or if it had already killed livestock.
Now, I don’t know if a dog traipsing around on our property (or loose on the roads) is being sought by its owner or was dumped (very common around here). So I assume the latter. Friendly dog gets picked up by deputy and taken to the shelter, if possible. Mean dog will not get that chance.
I have lived in NE Oregon for the last 4 yrs, and it is a constant problem out here for both dogs, and cats. Till I dumped FB I was on a pet lovers group where many folks said that this is the worst area for roaming pets that they have ever lived in.
The paper in the larger town over had an article on the animal control officers that cover the smaller towns also. They do a commendable job but the article mentioned a pit bull that was constantly getting loose, and had killed 7 different cats in the area that had 3 different owners. All that carnage only gathered a warning, and not an impoundment.
Pets are constantly getting hit by speeding cars since two two lane highways intersect in town, and speed limits are pretty much ignored. Some creeps go out of their way to hit animals. Anyway, yes it is a problem here which is considered rural. It is also dangerous when you are walking your dog, and dogs at large come after your dog. As much as I love walking, I've come to dread it because of the dog problem. Or I should say the owner problem. Pepper spray is my friend.
And yes, we also have the usual coyotes, wolves, great horned owls, foxes, rattlesnakes, golden eagles, and hawks. And who knows what else.
Last edited by mlulu23; 06-15-2022 at 12:06 PM..
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