Neighbor is baiting animals....

[cjean]

and drawing in all kinds of predators. He has a live trap set up on his property (just a couple hundred yards from our place) and a blind to shoot from. So far we have bears, at least one cougar, and a billion coyotes hanging around. And, he caught our dog in his trap, because he couldn't resist the stinky rotten meat in it.

We have sheep and goats, and kids, and pets...as do all the rest of our neighbors. This is a very frustrating situation! In the 12 years that we've lived here, we've never seen this amount of predators.

Any ideas on how to handle this? Our neighbor is the selfish, belligerent type.

[suburbanite]

Depending on the state, fish and game may prohibit baiting animals for the purpose of hunting them.

Baiting a trap is different.

See if you can get F&G on his head, if he's in violation.

[Hillbillybob]

Originally Posted by cjean

Our neighbor is the selfish, belligerent type.

I have been told I am the same by some who buy a lake lot and think that they have bought the whole country or tell me it is government land and free to access even though fenced and posted.

I also have life long neighbors that know me and know I won't be pushed around by a neighbor on my land nor do I bother them on their land. We help each other out when help is needed and we get along with each other fine.
I don't know the trap laws in your state and that is the first thing you should check. Also look up what is legal to bait and hunt and when you can bait and hunt.

What have you done to make this neighbor un neighborly?

Here I trap but in all the years I have trapped I have only cought 1 dog and that dog followed me to my set. I turned her out and she wasn't hurt as I use smaller traps for most things and find some animals like raccoon don't fight as much and have less pelt damage.

He may be in his rights to do what he is doing but that doesn't mean that it's right or wrong. I know I have hunted over many dead livestock over the years but did so with the owners permission.

He could have lost livestock himself and may be thinning out the predators and it will take a bit.

You are asking what you can do about it? Try to have a cup of coffee with him and find out if he was losing livestock before he went on this killing spree. He may be doing you a big favor in the long run.

Hillbillybob

[Hillbillybob]

Originally Posted by suburbanite

Depending on the state, fish and game may prohibit baiting animals for the purpose of hunting them.

Baiting a trap is different.

See if you can get F&G on his head, if he's in violation.

Baiting a trap is legal in all states that allow trapping. Baiting is what draws the animal to the trap in the first place.
Hillbillybob

[cjean]

What have you done to make this neighbor un neighborly?

He has made it his mission to -----off all the neighbors, as he believes that since he lives in the country, he can do whatever he likes. This is what he told us personally, back when we were all great friends. As for what we did.....we quit drinking and partying, so now we have nothing in common with him.

He does not have livestock. He had chickens years ago, but got drunk and proceeded to shoot them all with his .45, from his porch.

He rides his 4-wheelers and snowmobiles on the other neighbors' property, even though they have asked him to stop. He says "it's a free country."

This is what I mean by "belligerent".

It's not just a trap that he is baiting, as the other neighbor's dogs are always dragging home dead fish and loose meat pieces. We've found arrows on our property, right behind our house, since his blind and tree stand faces our direction.

We'll have to get ahold of Fish and game and see what they say....thanks for the info.

[MaineFarmMom]

Originally Posted by Hillbillybob

Baiting a trap is legal in all states that allow trapping. Baiting is what draws the animal to the trap in the first place.
Hillbillybob

If it's legal trapping season. I'm not familiar with live traps for large animals. This isn't common is it? Trapping here involves leg hold and connibear but not live traps. We use those for nuisance pests like raccoons and skunks.

[turtlehead]

He sounds like a real winner

Finding his arrows on your property is a BIG problem, in my opinion. He shouldn't be shooting where he can injure someone/something on your property.

Regarding the dogs getting trapped and/or dragging things home - the dogs shouldn't be on his property.

[Hillbillybob]

Originally Posted by cjean

He has made it his mission to -----off all the neighbors, as he believes that since he lives in the country, he can do whatever he likes. This is what he told us personally, back when we were all great friends. As for what we did.....we quit drinking and partying, so now we have nothing in common with him.

He does not have livestock. He had chickens years ago, but got drunk and proceeded to shoot them all with his .45, from his porch.

He rides his 4-wheelers and snowmobiles on the other neighbors' property, even though they have asked him to stop. He says "it's a free country."

This is what I mean by "belligerent".

It's not just a trap that he is baiting, as the other neighbor's dogs are always dragging home dead fish and loose meat pieces. We've found arrows on our property, right behind our house, since his blind and tree stand faces our direction.

We'll have to get hold of Fish and game and see what they say....thanks for the info.

I don't know what your laws are where you live about trespassing but I would find out. I would also document every arrow that I found on my property.
I can't tell you how to handle 4 wheelers in your state but I have put a stop to them coming here on my land useing the laws of this state. It took a while but I don't have that problem anymore.

What ever you do make sure that you use the law to do it as a bully can only stay a bully as long as people are afraid of them. Document every intrusion and everything that he does to you. You must prove though that the arrows come from him and no one else.

They have some neat cameras out to take pictures of wild life that movement sets off. They are water tight and don't cost that much. I cought a city weekender neighbor dumping trash on my property with a few of these cameras set up and he had to clean up all the trash that was dumped and ended up paying a big fine for dumping.
Hillbillybob

[texican]

Some possibilities....

Shoot the neighbor.
a)will be fun in the short term and solve the problem
b)will be bad in the long run, as you'll have another problem... such as a new hairy'er roommate in the new state provided facility...

Buy out the neighbor.

Prosecute the neighbor on the slightest trespassing infraction

Learn how to destroy a 4wheeler without killing said owner.

Sell out and move. Buy a huge tract of land. Neighbors bad. No neighbors good.

Or, live with it. Keep dog on chain. Off leash, anytime dog approaches boundary, scold it. Buy boundary control electronic control shock collar.

Or you can go medieval... once you know for certain he's gone.... start a barrage of large rocks from your catapult, to totally crush his hunting blind... make sure to hid your catapult afterwards. Or use a rifle to completely pepper the stand... or hire ninjas to go over and burn it down...

Contact LE about arrows arriving in your backyard at all hours of the day. Mention how you were out working and one landed next to your foot! Inches AWAY! and how you felt your life was in DANGER!!!!

is that enough? you're either a sinner or a saint...

[Hillbillybob]

Originally Posted by MaineFarmMom

If it's legal trapping season. I'm not familiar with live traps for large animals. This isn't common is it? Trapping here involves leg hold and connibear but not live traps. We use those for nuisance pests like raccoons and skunks.

Sorry I misread (live trap and only read trap).
I use live traps on peoples docks to catch raccoon during trapping season and have cought dogs and cats in them. The live trap doesn't hurt the dog or cat and that is why I use them around where a lot of people live. I don't want to kill or hurt someones pet. I have over a hundred docks that I can set.
Funny I only catch a cat once.
Sometimes I catch a dog twice. I did have one place that I just had to move my trap as I had one dog that would go into my trap every time I set it.
Hillbillybob

PS I have 6 coyote size traps to catch coyotes around where a lot of pets are but you only get one chance at the animal and that is what I tell anyone want me to get rid of a coyote. If I miss then shooting is my only option and I always want to know before hand how bad someone want rid of a coyote.

[cbarj]

Beat him to the kill? Maybe if he doesn't have anything to hunt he'll knock it off....of course I know that's really not that feasible...

In NC baiting for the purpose of attracting wildlife to hunt is illegal. Now baiting a TRAP is a different story.

Too bad he can't have enough sense and be reasonable enough to just get over his need to have trophy critters on his wall. I'm all for hunting, but this dude is just an inconsiderate jerk. And something about this just doesn't seem very legal to me...of course I dunno how much the law could or would do anyways.

Rats! I wish I had an better suggestion for you. I hope somehow this gets worked out. Heck....maybe the tables will turn and he'll become the prey item...(sorry, that wasn't so nice.)

[Lairvine]

In NC not all baiting is illegal, you can bait for deer.
CJEAN with out your location we really cannot come up with the laws that may be there to help you... unless it was something federal like ducks??

[cjean]

We live in WA state.

The live trap he has is big, for bears, and he had it out all summer. Our dog is the size of a small bear. (Yes, I absolutely agree that dogs should stay home, and for the 10 years that we have had him, he has. Until the neighbor started with the baiting. A dog is a dog is a dog. They have noses.) I'm thinking that we are going to just fence off the rest of our 8 acres, to keep the dog home.

We really have no problem with hunting - we do it all the time! And if he wants to legally or illegally bait predators, then we just wish he would do it a few miles from civilization.

Two years ago, he drew in a big black bear, and got so excited that he shot it with his .45 pistol. Which just wounded it, and it ran off, and he couldn't find it.

[haypoint]

Interesting comments. neighbor wants to do whatever he wants on his property and it negatively effects the neighborhood. People are outraged, want the Law (government) to stop him. This isn't the same people that are outraged about a guy's junk yard in a neighborhood of McMansions and his rights to do what he wants on his property? Zoning provides a number of protections to a neighborhood, yet people continue to chafe at the thought, UNTIL someone does something to/with their property that effects the whole neighborhood.
Using the logic described on the Junk Yard thread, I guess it is up to you to build a fence around your property.

[Hillbillybob]

Originally Posted by haypoint

Interesting comments. neighbor wants to do whatever he wants on his property and it negatively effects the neighborhood. People are outraged, want the Law (government) to stop him. This isn't the same people that are outraged about a guy's junk yard in a neighborhood of McMansions and his rights to do what he wants on his property? Zoning provides a number of protections to a neighborhood, yet people continue to chafe at the thought, UNTIL someone does something to/with their property that effects the whole neighborhood.
Using the logic described on the Junk Yard thread, I guess it is up to you to build a fence around your property.

Arrows landing off of his land onto someones else's land is as wrong as you can get and taking 4 wheelers onto some one's else's land is wrong or did you read the whole thread?

I follow game laws myself and believe in them. I don't think the man can trap bears legally but I don't live in Washington State.

As far as other people's dogs going onto his property they are in the wrong and it is up to them to keep control of their dogs.

Hillbillybob

[cjean]

I didn't read the Junk yard thread, but it sounds like a totally different issue. It's probably not endangering anybody, or their property.

As far as people doing what they want on their own property...yaaay, go for it. Shoot your guns, but please have a back-stop. (Then you can avoid the reckless endangerment charges.) Have your animals, but keep them fenced. It's all legal, here in our rural area.

Aren't there limits to what a person should be allowed to do on their own property? Meth lab? Crack house? Burn 50 ft brush piles during a fire season shut-down?

Common sense needs to come in somewhere, right? We are trying very hard to keep peace with all of our neighbors, but this one is stretching our patience a bit. That is why I'm here, wondering if anyone has some legal ideas on how to handle this, before someone gets hurt. ???

Thanks, all!

[Wolf mom]

1. It's illegal to shoot within a certain area of any home. Check your state laws.

2. Fence the area where your dogs run. They are on HIS property where HIS traps are...

3. If he is trespassing on your land with his 4-wheeler, take pictures, call the sheriff/police Here, it's doing something wrong to you 3 times within a year & you can get a restraining order...

Or go have a cuppa & talk it over...Maybe do that first, then do above.

Always keep a running report in a note book of what's happening with time & date if you ever plan on going to court.

[Pops2]

check w/ the fishcops if he is really causing a problem they'll sit back, watch, make a case and burn his but. they can LEGALLY confiscate every item involved in breaking the game laws to include his house if he shoots from the porch even for something as little as an out of season grouse.

[js2743]

this kinda sounds like the thread where the person was fussing about their neighbors big bellys & butt cracks showing. i say keep your dogs home and mind your business about what he does on his own property. but when he comes onto your property you have the right to say something until then worry about something else.

[RosewoodfarmVA]

You should be glad he's knocking off all those predators, instead of them getting your animals! All of what he's shooting are things that need to be shot, to protect livestock. Keep your dog in YOUR yard, and tell your neighbor thanks for protecting your animals! Around here a neighbor like that would be appreciated.