Just as an aside - foxes do not kill for fun, thats a total myth!

Foxes as any other animal are opportunists and need to find food whenever and wherever they can. Yes they will take what ever they can, ie kill a whole run of chickens - its easy prey but they will if possible return to the scene as such and bury the surplus for leaner times.

On topic I think as many do that the owners are responsible for making sure the dogs cannot get off the property and that it is more a breed thing. On saying that I too would be a bit peeved to say the least if it was my chickens.

Slow news day, was it? Sounds more like a neighbour feud to me.
I was walking my GSP and shorthaired pointer in France (offlead - no traffic) and came round a corner to find a flock of hens wandering about. Someone had obviously left a gate open. The hens very slowly and carefully stalked one way and the dogs did the same the other way, both parties keeping a very wary eye on the other till they were safely past. My dogs had never seen hens before and really didn`t know what they were.
So I think the fact that the hens lived next door had a lot to do with this.

Ooops, I pressed send and didn't mean to (ignore this post).

“or a bit of sheep chasing”


We had a dog around recently that went in for a bit of "sheep chasing." Also took the flesh down to the bone on one side of the sheep’s muzzle and ripped out a large hole. So a “bit of sheep chasing” is not to be taken lightly. Whilst the dog cannot be destroyed for chasing chickens it certainly can (and in many places will) be for sheep.

erm... neither should killing chickens, but its not the dogs fault, its the owners...

Not sure what you mean by "erm... neither should killing chickens"

Second part is interesting. If our dogs have no intelligence and do not know right from wrong then I would agree. However, we all think that are dogs are so clever and on that basis is the dog totally devoid of responsibility? Of course, the owner will have had to train it not to chase sheep, chickens etc but it still may do so.

Re the Akita, I know of at least two Akita owners, one of whom is a highly qualifed trainer who woudl not let there Akita off lead in public. The description of an Akita as a fighting dog is not completely undeserved as they were rather good at that I understand. However, would they have described a Dalmation as a carriage dog? Probably not! The real worry is the growing tide of attitude that says four dog legs bad two human legs good at all times.

i mean, that killing chickens shouldnt be taken lightly either and the way your post was worded, was as though the killing chickens doesnt matter and chasing sheep is a whole lot worse.

i didnt say dogs have no intelligence and dont know right from wrong. but it isnt about that, it is about their instincts... nothing to do with intelligence or right from wrong.

I suppose that is a matter of perspective. Dog eats chickens = dog told off
Dog eats sheep = Dog gets shot. From the dog’s and the owner’s perspective there is a difference between the chicken and the sheep killing, indeed, it could quite literally be a matter of life or death.

I did not say that you had stated that dogs have no intelligence, rather I was posing a question or suggesting a set of circumstances. Equally, I am not sure that instinct can be separated from intelligence.

Its in the mail, that says it all to me

a life is a life, IMO it doesnt matter if its a chicken or a sheep, its still a lost life. the way you wrote it in your first post, was as though a chickens life was worth less than a sheeps (and im not talking about cost for the farmer/owner).

at the end of the day, its the owners fault. not the dogs.