Dog killed sheep

[gottobehavemyself]

I know how awful this is, trust me. I also know that it's not his fault - he should never have been in the position to kill the sheep.

My in laws' 18 month old german pointer got into the farmers' field and killed two sheep. He's previously killed a peacock. Is there any coming back from this? Can this be trained out of them?

He's partially trained for day to day stuff but still a real handful and unpredictable with regards to his recall. They've had dogs for years, trained big and similarly bred dogs from puppies but they have struggled with this one from day one. I think they've underestimated the breed in terms of size and strength, and over estimated their own ability, given their age and other commitments.

Really I want to know if this can be sorted out or if he needs to be euthanised. I (know nothing about dogs) suggested he's never off the lead and wears a muzzle in the short term while they figure out what to do. Anyone with any experience of a similar situation? Any helpful advice or stories welcome

As others have said, many dogs, mine included, cannot go off lead unless in a secure field with no livestock. We don’t know if he would kill other animals. He probably would. He would definitely walk out in front of a moving car. So he stays on his lead. Your in-laws need to adopt the same approach or find someone who will, or will have the time to extensively train him.

I’d have been inclined to shoot your idiot fucking inlaws, not the dog. It’s not the dogs bloody fault that his owners are crap. Ffs.

No time for farmers at all, they only care about money, but the poor bloody sheep.

This genuinely makes me so fucking angry. Idiot people. They don’t deserve the dog but he needs to be kept on a lead from now on, dogs shouldn’t be off lead around sheep. 😡

Why on earth would he be euthanised? Lots of dogs will chase and kill what they view as prey. It doesn't make them dangerous to humans, it just means you have to actually keep them enclosed safely and on a lead when they're in a situation where they might do so.

Anytime the dog is in the same property as children he should be on a lead. Two sheep is impressive, he has mastered this killing thing.

I have a pointer, she is bloody hard work. She needs constant training, lots of brain work and canicross. She can hop over a six foot fence no problem.

Are your in-laws really up to the job? At 18 months he is peak teenager, they mature late.
Geman Shorthaired Pointer UK on Facebook is very supportive and there are specialist pointer rescues.

I have farming friends. Only twice have they shot dogs but they would expect this dog to be kept well away from their land and would also expect hefty compensation. If the whole flock aborts your in laws are in serious trouble sadly.

It is important to remember that the dog is an unnecessary pet, the sheep are the farmer's livelihood.

🙄😡

I think you should show your in-laws some of the comments on here perhaps that would make them realise what awful people they are!

What's this response about?

My friends German Shepherd killed four sheep. He had got out of the garden (when she was staying in a holiday cottage), and into a field of sheep. Carnage resulted. She paid damages to the farmer, and, she was very upset and distressed about it, but the dog wasn’t put down. He was kept on a lead anywhere rural or where he might attack livestock, there were no more incidents as he was kept under strict control.
I do think that with training and close attention, this needn’t be a reason to destroy a dog. Many, if not most, dogs would kill livestock or birds given the chance. The average Jack Russel would make short work of a chicken for instance.
I knew a border terrier that killed several cats, it literally went into killer mode if a cat came into the garden. I also knew a fox terrier that was a hardened cat killer. People seem to forget that lots of breeds have a high prey drive.
Training and supervision, and never being given the opportunity to get to sheep, that is the way forward. My dog would, I suspect, chase sheep if she could. I live rurally surrounded by livestock, she has never been in a situation where she could hurt sheep.

You fil is a prick to punish a dog he knew could kill

they should rehome it as it can never be off lead and they are irresponaible owners to ever let of off lead after it got the peacock

Disgusting that your FIL thinks he can shoot this dog. Your in laws are responsible for this and a dog should not be shot by anyone, repulsive attitude. Also, to be capable of this????? fuck sake.

There are worse things that can happen to an animal than being PTS. Learn from it and prevent any further damage in the future.

Those sheep would have been pregnant so it’s killed at least four sheep and potentially caused others to miscarry. I hope the farmer charged them for money lost.

Off lead in a private enclosed field. No idea how he got out as all fencing totally in tact. He must have jumped the fence I guess.

So unsupervised?

The dog was in an enclosed private field. Very sad, but an understandable mistake!

Rehoming an aggressive dog, with a history of killing larger animals such as sheep, in an urban setting is asking for trouble.

What happens if the new owners let it off leash in a park and it attacks a child?

The dog should be put down.

That’s worrying - definitely a muzzle then.

Are your PIL open to a lead and muzzle?

I hope the farmer is compensated for this, it’s his livelihood and your parents have been irresponsible with the dog.
I’d hope never to see that dog on my land again and it should be muzzled when out every time.

I've got Pointers and grew up with them as our family dogs. They're a lot of dog and need a huge amount of time and energy. It sounds like your PILs haven't done this and they've ended up with a clever, energetic dog that's found a way to make its own fun. I agree with others that killing a peacock should have been an enormous red flag. They have a really high prey drive but generally are soft as shit with people, it's not fair on the dog to start tarring him as dangerous to people with no evidence, although obviously you should be watching him around your children regardless.

They're not a dog for an urban environment, rehoming it somewhere like that's a terrible idea. I don't think it sounds like your PILs are the right home for the dog, though, but of course it shouldn't be euthanised for human error - poor animal. I don't think it can be "trained" out of it if it's had the experience already, that should have been done from the off (my Pointers have never so much as glanced at sheep because we spent a lot of time teaching them not to from puppyhood, and their recall is good enough that any deer they flush in woods we can call them off immediately, but I'm a farmer's granddaughter so have had the importance drilled into me).

Contact the breeder first or GSP Rescue second. They'll be able to place the dog in a suitable environment. In the meantime, no unattended garden visits, no off lead walks, lots more mental stimulation and focus on training the basics - recall, walking to heel etc. need to be spot on.

The dog’s owners should pay the farmer a few hundred pounds to compensate for the lost sheep, if only to make them realise that they cannot EVER let this dog off the lead again unless they hire a secure dog field with high, secure fences. Clearly a normal fence is not high enough to keep this dog in. They need to wake up and realise how serious this is. They should have already when the dog killed the peacock. If they can’t do that they should rehome it to someone who can.

That's really inflammatory and untrue. Most farmers care deeply about their animals, and understand them far better than any ignorant keyboard troll ever will.

Aggression towards prey doesn't equal aggression towards humans. Otherwise we would all be running away from most dogs we see.

He probably did jump the fence, they are extraordinarily athletic. We had to make our garden like Fort Knox to contain mime when she was young.

No not unsupervised, just not visible at that instance

Personally if it were my dog I would have taken the peacock incident as a big warning and got some professional training and kept it on a lead, then if it was still showing signs of aggression toward animals I'd rehome, given there are children regularly visiting. The farmer has been exceptionally understanding, but I hope they are reimbursing him. I would also keep my children away in your position, but it's really not the dog's fault and I wouldn't euthanise.