Home » Plants & Animals » Simple Homesteading » Dogs and Good Country Neighbors

Dogs and Good Country Neighbors

© Gloria Morris

Some people who live in the country (or who dream of living in the country) envision a place where their dog can "run free." One would not even think of turning out the horses, sheep, goats, cattle, or hogs in this manner, but for some reason there is a great romance about the free roaming dog. It has something to do with symbolism: Rover's freedom equates with his owners' freedom. I love dogs and currently have two. Like many other livestock owners, I do have a complaint about some rural dog owners. The concepts of allowing your dog to run free and of being a good country neighbor are incompatible with each other. Unless you really do not care what happens to your dog, what your neighbors think of you, the potential cost of paying for the damage that your dogs may cause, or for the humans and animals that your dog may injure or kill, you should fence or otherwise control your dog just like you fence in your goat.

Most dogs will chase something, unless they are very well trained. Car chasing is dangerous to human life: if the driver swerves, trying to avoid the dog, the dog may cause a serious accident. Pedestrian and bicycle chasing are often far more dangerous to humans. You may think that moving to the country will eliminate pedestrians and bicyclists, but this is not the case. Many people enjoy taking a walk, a long hike, or riding bicycles in the countryside. A dog chasing a bicyclist can cause a wreck, and many dogs that chase bicycles or pedestrians also end up biting the person. Everyone in my family has been bitten by dogs while we were out walking or riding bicycles.

Many dogs love to chase horses. Many country dwellers keep horses and ride the roadsides; others enjoy hitching up and driving their horses along country roads. Dogs that are allowed to run loose are a great hazard to these people and their horses. Frequently, even if the dog does not actually bite the horse, its barking and snapping will cause the horse to rear, endangering the rider, or driver and passengers in a cart. Short of carrying a firearm for protection (not legal in many places), a person with a horse must resort to water pistols, pepper sprays, pellet guns, etc. in an effort to drive away threatening dogs. These non-lethal methods are often insufficient to prevent attacks, as I have learned the hard way. I had a pony cart turned over due to dogs trying to attack the pony I was driving.

The copyright of the article Dogs and Good Country Neighbors in Simple Homesteading is owned by . Permission to republish Dogs and Good Country Neighbors in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.