Dogs chasing deer. Shoot?

[Mark Christianson]

A guy that lives by my parents cabin had a deer that was laying in his field chewed up.
He called the game warden to check it out.
Apparently, if the a$$ end of the deer is chewed up, its a dog kill.
If the guts/belly are eaten into, then its coyote or wolf.
Anybody else ever heard that?

[Steve Foss]

biglakeba$$:

I have heard that, but it's not that simple. Do wolves always eat an animal the same way? Do dogs? No.

[Mark Christianson]

Heck I have no idea how wolves or dogs eat an animal. I've never watched them devour a deer.
It was just a question if anyone else had heard that.
The game warden apparently put a lot of value in that "myth".

[Steve Foss]

Didn't mean to sound like I was jumping on you.

That game warden should know better.

[Lunker]

I have the belief that if you have a family or hunting dog, that it should have a collar on it. And if I see someones lab or house dog collared in the woods chasing, I'm not gonna shoot. I'd probably shoot in the air to try and scare it but I dont think I'd shoot the dog. But a lot of the time loose/feral/farm dogs will make habits of chasing dogs, and even pack up to do it. If I saw a dog like that chasin I'd shoot it in a second, even thougn I love dogs.

[fonz58]

This is a true story:

Two elderly neighbors of mine made it their retirement hobby to dispatch of wild dogs and wild cats throughout the neighborhood farm area just West of St. Cloud. (PS. this story is about 14 yrs old, and both of these neighbors have passed on)

One day one of the neighbors drives over to Clarence's house where he and his huntin' buddy George are shootin' the breeze.

The neighbor says to Clarence and George "Have either of you seen fluffy? She's been missing for 3 days, and Martha's really worried". Clarence says "what she look like?" Well, she's kinda yellow mostly with some white markings"
Clarence says"Well, you know where the old field road is over just before the Maha place? Ya....turn left down that field road and follow it to the fork and bear right, take that down to the end of the road, then get outta ya car and walk to the east about 50 yards until you hit the trail that goes to the north and follow that until you get to the cliff that overlooks the river, if you look down the hill to the right there's a pile, if she's in there you can have her. (there was a pile to the left too, it was where they put the dogs)FYI-all the names have been changed.

[Ruttin' Buck]

This is an interesting thread and thought I'd share a story. I grew up outside of the Twin Cities on 10 acres surrounded by fields. I remember as a kid that there used to be alot of wild dogs when I was younger. I remember many occassions when the old man pulled out the 7 mil. to dispose of a few of them. I don't mean the neighbor dog Fido either, I mean packs of mangy, sick looking and mean dogs...feral dogs according to some above.

My story as promised...well our family returned home from a mid-summer vacation when I was about 8, 2 brothers were 6 and 4. We stepped out of the car to find 2 crazy, and I mean just a step below your Cujo crazy, black lab/inbred dogs on our doorstep. I mean ON our doorstep. They would not let us near the house and growled furiously. I remember as a kid being both nervous and how much this infuriated my father. I can't even explain to you how mad my dad was. Not only had these dogs threated his 3 young boys and wife but they tore up everthing in the yard. We used the side door...and yes, the 7 came out of it's case. After both animals were pumped full of lead my father didn't even bother touching these freak dogs. He tied them to the bumper of the truck and dragged their miserable carcasses down the gravel road a mile and ditched them...literally.

Now, I own a lab and know how hard it can be to keep a young dog from bolting after something they're curious about. You guys are right...it's not their fault...it's yours if you don't stop it. However, there is a huge difference between my lab and the wild dogs I've seen.

My opinion, and maybe I'm out of touch on this, is that the regulation was set up for the 'old days' when there were alot of these crazy wild dogs running around. I think there's been some 'cleaning up' done and I personally haven't seen a wild dog for years.

Now, I think most people could tell between a pet dog and these wild dogs. Also, alot of hunters hunt around their house and know who the neighborhood dogs are. Now, per the regs, if you choose to kill a domesticated dog, that's up to you. I think I would choose to spare the dog the first time and speak with my neighbor before shooting...notice I did say the first time. However, if an obvious wild dog were to cross paths with me, chasing deer or not, I guarantee I will do everything in my power to make sure that dog will not live to see another day.

I'd just recommend using common sense if ever faced with this predicament. Before you pull up on a dog, think and take a second to observe the situation. Associate it with the 'look for horns' step you practice while deer hunting!

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"Aim small...miss small"