To think you should not allow your dog to chase squirrels?

[lillypond75]

Because it causes distress to a wild animal! I said to my friend to put their dog on a lead and she looked at me like I was mad. Apparently it's fine as their dog is unlikely to catch it, but that's hardly the point imo.

Cats are far more damaging to wildlife in general and native wildlife at that, birds, frogs, slow worms, voles, the list is endless. They also tend to be a lot more adept at killing then dogs who often just love the thrill of the chase. Personally I think cats should be kept in enclosed spaces and not let out, and dogs should be allowed to chase the odd squirrel up a tree if they've never managed to actually catch one before.

My dogs are mesmerised by them, we are surrounded by woodland and they come into our garden via fence or power cables.

Their not scared of my 2 huskies in the garden at all, they have zero chance of catching one either.

It is irritating that there's a lot of dog bashing and anger at 'irresponsible' dog owners.

However very little mention of cats regularly killing wild birds and small mammals. Often only injuring birds so they can be played with by the cat.

However that is deemed acceptable as you can't control a cat and it's their natural behaviour.

Yep - even cats can kill squirrels. Squirrels are rats with flufffy tails. They destroy young trees and are over-populating the countryisde. They need culling. I would rather a dog did not catch them but there needs to be less of them. Unfortunately, they are not predated on by much!

[quote novaissuper]@sunflowersandbuttercups
Or perhaps she's simply highlighting that both are equal in their ability to suffer... [/quote]
I disagree that that's what she's saying.

But again, nobody here is saying that squirrels don't feel pain when they die, but humans do FAR more damage to squirrels than dogs do. We destroy their habitats, run them over on the roads, pollute their environments, and use toxins on our gardens, cars and homes that can kill them.

But I suspect this (yet another) thread that's being used to bash us awful dog owners, totally ignoring the damage that humans, cats, cars etc. do to wild animals every single day. Cats kill far more often than dogs.

Am I allowed to try and kill the mice we have in the house?

Our dog managed to kill one (suspect it must have been a suicidal mouse, Ddog is a bit hopeless), is that allowed? Or can I only set traps? Should I tie up Ddog in the house in case they catch another?

I can't see the difference between squirrels in the local park (which is over run with them) and mice. Not that Ddog has ever managed to catch a squirrel, even when they have popped up in front of her.

Or perhaps I should just allow the mice full run of the house?

Mine caught and killed one once when dh was walking her I wasn't there. So no I don't allow her to chase them it would really upset me. Dh was fairly traumatised by it.

My cousin had a Doberman. He used to laugh when it chased wild animals. His words - It's a dog...it's natural for it to do this...it's a predator...what's your fucking problem.

The problem came when his sister's 3 year old daughter laughed, squealed and ran away. The dog chased and attacked. The child needed plastic surgery on her face and still has scars.

A domestic dog should not be encouraged to practice it's prey drive. Squirrel, someone else's beloved small pet, small child...dog doesn't know the difference but the owner does so you control your dog before it hurts someone.

Again, that's an extreme example and not the norm. Did that dog have a history of being aggressive? Did the owners try to control it?

Most dog owners know their dogs and have no history of aggressive behaviour like this.

Dog and owner bashing is becoming unpleasant now.

Squirrels chase my dog poor bugger

@BoohooMagoo

My cousin had a Doberman. He used to laugh when it chased wild animals. His words - It's a dog...it's natural for it to do this...it's a predator...what's your fucking problem.

The problem came when his sister's 3 year old daughter laughed, squealed and ran away. The dog chased and attacked. The child needed plastic surgery on her face and still has scars.

A domestic dog should not be encouraged to practice it's prey drive. Squirrel, someone else's beloved small pet, small child...dog doesn't know the difference but the owner does so you control your dog before it hurts someone.

That's awful, but dogs absolutely do know the difference between a squirrel/goose/duck and a small child.

This was a dog that was clearly out of control - that has nothing to do with it's desire to chase squirrels.

My own dog is not allowed to chase anything living.

This place seems to have a ridiculous hatred for dogs. So it's all right for cats to catch and kill mice and birds, but dogs to chase squirrels not so much ?
And the two things are comparable as they're both household pets.

It would be different if dogs frequently caught squirrels, but that's a very rare occurrence. Rookiedog once sadly caught one - thankfully with DH not with me - and DH said he looked horrified by the result.

To be honest I'd rather he didn't chase them and definitely don't want rookiedog to catch them. But the only way to achieve that would be to have him on a lead when we walk in the forest. I totally agree with keeping dogs on a lead when around livestock, children and picnics, but not in the forest when he enjoys being off lead so much and there is none of the aforementioned. Unfortunately I can't control the location of the squirrel population.

I never did get an answer about whether my dog is allowed to kill mice in my house or whether only traps are allowed. Or a mouse infestation of course.

I love my dog and I would never let him terrorise and attack a squirrel. I have seen them torn apart by dogs while the owner does nothing. I trained my dog, so I don’t believe you can’t stop them.
I don’t care if they are seen as vermin, they can feel pain and fear! They may also have tiny baby squirrels in the drey that need them.
The true vermin are the adult humans who find the suffering of a living, feeling creature amusing. Yes, animals eat each other, that doesn’t give humans an excuse to be cruel. Animals can’t help it, humans can.

I never did get an answer about whether my dog is allowed to kill mice in my house or whether only traps are allowed. Or a mouse infestation of course.
Since dogs are legally allowed to kill rats, I can't imagine that they aren't allowed to kill mice.

@Kerravon34 how do you train a dog not to attack squirrels?

Bah. Foxes chase squirrels. Grey Squirrels drive out red squirrel. Hawks catch mice. Badgers eat rabbit. Crows eat carrion.
Cycle of life. A domestic dog isn’t usually going to ‘terrorise’ a squirrel. Chase it, bark a bit, but the squirrel will be off in a shot.
Locally they strip tree bark. They are pests. They get culled every s often because of damage to woodlands.

Our gardens are full of squirrels. We’re not about to lock the dog up in case they get scared. On the whole they exist together, but if there are no pheasant to chase the squirrels become more interesting.

wagwalking.com/training/ignore-squirrels

@NoSquirrels

As my username suggests, I’m on the side of let the dog at it.

if a squirrel can't outwit a dog, it isn't very good at squirrelling

Nice.

I walk my dog off a lead all the time and he has never chased a squirrel. He is just not interested.

One of my cats on the other hand had gifted me 2 in the past.

@otterbaby

I was at a park while heavily pregnant last year and a bunch of 12 year olds were setting their dog on the squirrels. It finally caught one and literally tore it to shreds, shaking it around. Park was busy with small children and everyone was hugely distressed but nobody said anything. Blame it on the hormones but I went off on one, ended up calling them weird little freaks and that they're going to grow up to be serial killers 😬 they picked it up when it was dead and bloody and were carrying it by its tail through the park and shaking it at people. Awful.

What absolute cunts those vermin are. The kids, not the squirrels. Good for you for giving them a gobful. We all know where they'll end up as adults anyway - residing at HM pleasure somewhere having committed GBH or murder.

Would you let your dog chase another human? No? Same goes for all other living creatures.

I fucking hate dogs.

@JellyBabiesFan

Would you let your dog chase another human? No? Same goes for all other living creatures.

I fucking hate dogs.

All dogs? Every single one?

This is why it’s actually dangerous to your dog to let it go for squirrels.

www.pets4homes.co.uk/pet-advice/why-you-shouldnt-let-your-dog-chase-squirrels.html

I notice in my local area that it is the same dog owners are always letting their dogs attack my partners sheep and lambs then are shocked when the horned ones he keeps try and fight them off. It is not the dogs fault, there are no bad dogs only bad owners. In my humble opinion, if genuinely you love your dog, you train it and look after it and take some responsibility.
I’m not attacking any of the posters on here, I haven’t read all the other comments. I’m ranting because of a nasty set of thugs in my town who think it’s funny to have a ‘vicious’ dog. They don’t love the dog at all. It’s a status symbol in their warped minds.