Options for dealing with trespassers?

yeah I am gonna get opinionated.... I'm in pain and yall love me so excuse me for the day.

if you do not know the answer to those questions, or have to ask, I can tell... most likely, you are a replanted yuppie. no offense. Spikeing trails can injure wildlife, kids, horses, and later on, anyone whos using a field mower.

catch and shoot their animals... if they are atacking livestock, yes, if just running deer or birds, no. it's common sense.

is it itime to call the police? the first time they ignored the signs and your requests was time... whats keeping you?

I hope you are joking ffunky. If not I hope you get caught in one of your own snares.

hoop I will hope you are not really this stupid and also are just joking.
of course it isnt.... I hope someone forgets they are there when your gandkids are playing outside in a few yrs. Use your head. Ever see a deer with an infected leg from redneck landmines?

you open your cell phone, you dial 911 or your local backwaters equivalent, and you wait quietly while they come to cuff the bas+ard.

mike... you are the kind of neighbor I fear to have. Not to let someone track a wounded deer across your property line is stupid. If thats all they are doing... there is no harm done. zfind your deer, finish it and get out. otherwise they and I and the law have some loose ends to tie up the next day.
again.... one has to know their neighbors and when the dont make that effort, who really is to blame?
if they are strangers hunting, and they track a wounded deer on your land... be civil and give them a chance o tell you that before you become a belligerent azzhole. And thats really the key to it all here... who becomes the snotty azzhole first. Give someone a chance to explain themselves and not feel threatened by you doing it.

not applicable to all situations of course but most, yes it does.
how long has it been since the first occurnace, and the time you reported this to the local cops? filed a formal complaint? or did you [as I get the impression from your first post here] sit and fume and get mad and argued untill now, you have a real problem?

oh goodie for you, you have the statute on hand. last time I checked cops were not lawyers or judges. cops take reports, keep the peace, and go after obvious crimes. show the statute to the magistrate judge. thank the donute toking pig for showing up to do the paperwork.

time to go over his head to the state police. everyone has a boss, find them. file charges on the sherrif for dereliction of duty. be a PITA.
or go run for sherrif yourself... you might win!

This used to be a wonderful area to live in, and those of us who still are here know whats going on around us... we know each other. the yuppies who move in have this 'its mine get off it" mindset... and they ruin life. when I was a kid we all ran lose on each others property, hiked it all, hunted it all, we knew where not to shoot... we rode horses and dirt bikes freely and respected each others property and trails. in move yuppies, and well off white trash, who are not "neighbors", they are a pestilence. A disease. they are %50 of the PITA.
the other is the backwoods mouthbreathers who cant walk twwo steps without skol dripping off their bottom lip, who think since they freely lived and got along with everyone as a kid, then everyone, who ever moves in should abide by those old handshakes. the dont grasp the concept of "new people, new handshakes" and yes... if they put up a fence, you dont cross it, see thats what a fence is for. You have to go press charges on these airheads becuase they are stupid... and they hate to have to go to court, they fear courts and cops for some reason. use it. they aint bad people, they are just stupid....

I know, yall got bad neighbors who are butt heads... those idiots who seem to think they own it all and they come and go with impunity. your ONLY useful option is to chase them with the local laws and be relentless. be a pest. cost them money.

act like them, you'll get no where.

every new neighbor that moves in around here I go slather them in good old boy BS and pick their empty yuppie skulls for all the personal info I can get out of them. when I leave we know each other.

then I leave them alone.

I have a house behind me for sale.... I fear some yuppie will buy it or worse, some penniless white trash bunch who will just drive me insane. I'll have to sue, file and cop them into submission. Arguing get you no where.

ya know what? I'm gonna move if they aint june and ward F'ing cleaver.

Ive had to fence my entire property. it aint the country no more.

After reading more of these responses. I just have to say, I am extremely grateful I live where I do & get along with my neighbors.

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~Be the change you wish to see in the world.

me too.... as long as june and ward buy the house behind me, it will stay acceptably peaceful.

its been empty so long I keep waiting for the crackheads to show up and start squatting in it.

and alas... its to close and visually located for me to burn it down.

thats where trapped skunks come in real handy.

lol

Mike in ohio I can see why you have problems with tresspassers. After the way you talked to wihh, you have to remember nobody respectes an #$#hole.

I don't believe this comment was warranted...Mike stated and defended his position; his arguments had some merit and he refrained from personal attacks...I'm more middle of the road myself, I believe the situation will determine my actions as I am loathe to kill any animal if I do not have to, but I understand there is a need at times.

Trespassing is illegal for a reason - to protect ones property.

When you have posted your property then:

Georgia State Code 44-1-13. Have their trucks car towed - it's your right and their money your spending.

Catch the dogs and call animal control -spend their money again. Fines

Call DNR -around here they'll come out and wait on them.

GA's shoot first or stand your ground law
Allows you to use deadly force to threats in public or your own private property with no duty to retreat.

We do give permission when asked and have never been upset with the guys that hunt here - They walk in- carry any garbage out and share their game with us and in General watch after our place.

It's just nice to be asked If you care for someone to hunt your property instead of them thinking it's their right.

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"He who is harmony with Nature hits the mark without effort and apprehends the truth without thinking."- Confucius

I agree with the others who say to call your local game warden, DNR officer, conservation officer, whatever you call them in your state. For one, in many states, the DNR have AT LEAST as much power as a State cop, if not more. They are also fully up to date on characters "of colorful education and disposition" that are probably hunting in your area, and may already be aware of these people and their tresspasses on other properties. I would also make your pathways innecsessible unless you unlock the barrier. An extra wide gate that doesnt allow them access will certainly help discourage them. Maybe post a sign where they all enter saying that tresspassing is forbidden, but to call your phone number in an emergency. That would certainly give the honest errant hunter an opportunity to call your place and plead his case.

Of all the folks that have responded to this debate, the one who shows the most reasonableness, maturity, understanding, and adult behavior is Mike from Ohio. He even POLITELY refrains from responding to the childish overt and covert name calling and mud slinging.

Good for you Mike! Hold on to your integrity, it is rare in todays world.

You just don't have a clue do you? You already made it clear that it is acceptable to kill your bull when he comes on my property, and that if you come and bellyace about it I can do the same to you.

Go look up the word "equivocate".

Being "polite" and being an "(expletive deleted)" are not necessarily mutually exclusive...........

I try hard not to be a jerk with tresspassers, I figure 2 jerks are worse than one jerk! A couple of years ago we were up working on the roof and heard chainsaws working nearby. DH went to investigate (with his normal gun) and located two men cutting the trees our fence was attached to for firewood! He tried to get their attention but could not be heard over the chain saw...so he fired one in the air...one of the men had a heart attack! and the other wet! Apparently they though they were the only human beings within a hundred square miles or something. Got the ill guy loaded into the truck and the other guy drove him to town after both gave DH their DL's. Later on the non ill one and his son came up and cleaned up the mess and delivered the wood they cut to us. Sometimes folks can be jerks but I have found that if I post the line well and decently tell folks that no tresspassing is allowed (cause they never see any signs lol) then they leave and tell their friends. Have had one jerk driving through the property with his elderly mother hunting from a vehicle. They were driving within sight of my home so I pointed my great big rifle at them and the old woman began yelling "dont shoot, dont shoot". When I went down to the vehicle the son got real mouthy (turns out he has done time for some crime or another) and my reply was "if you move this vehicle while I am leaning on it ...that is assault and I will be within the law when I shoot you in the head with this here rifle." have not seen this guy since!

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www.MontanaSticksAndStones.com at Goshen Farm

The difference is that I didn't say I would come and bellyache,bully or threaten. And I haven't said that I shoot dogs or livestock out of hand. What I have said is that it is each landowners perogative. I may not agree with a particular persons choices but I absolutely believe that it is their choice. I may take the time to warn a person once (Such as the fellow from California down the road). I may not give a person prior warning. That is my perogative.

I have also pointed out that there is a difference between intentionally setting dogs loose to run and livestock getting loose (perhaps because a tree came down across a fence).

Someone else may make other choices as to their property.

You intentionally confuse my stated position that it is each individual landowners choice with advocating a "shoot anything that moves policy". You may choose to allow anyone and anything on to your property....that is up to you. Someone else may choose to shoot every stray dog that crosses their property line. As long as it is legal in their jurisdiction, that is their perogative.

Perhaps you haven't noticed that in threads on SSS I have stated that if you are willing to shoot an animal you should be willing to do it publicly. I don't believe in slinking around or sneaking around.

The bottom line is that if you really and truly cared for that dog you wouldn't intentionally turn it loose to run knowing that there is a likelyhood that it will go on a property where someone may shoot it. The fact that you (that is a generic you by the way) make that choice means (or should mean) that you recognize (or should recognize) that you are intentionally ignoring other peoples privacy and property rights for your own selfish purposes (I just have to run my dogs....really, I do.)

No equivocation here. I believe in property and privacy rights whether they are my own or someone elses.

I try and keep up with the local human population hereabouts, and if any newbie enters my dogs wandering distance, or travels across my couple miles of roads, I let em know my rules. Basically the country golden rule. My dog causes you a problem, I'll fix the problem, and prevent it from happening again.

My red heeler is a full time outside dog... who's main job is guarding my critters... unfortunately he looks like a big fox running down the road or thru the woods.

Last week I came home and found him half dead. It appeared that someone had shot him. After a very expensive after hours vet exam, it turned out not to be a gunshot, but an impaling accident...

If he had been shot, someone would pay... dearly...

Shooting one of my dogs is bad, if you're fond of breathing...

I care for my dogs more than I do most humans... and if someone were to shoot one of my dogs on my own property, well........ I hope for their family's sake they don't get caught...

btw... Texas in all of it's wisdom, banned all deer hunting with dogs... back in the dog hunting days, there were lots of deer. After the dogs were banned, our population crashed... seems baiting deer is more 'humane' (being facetious, in case you can't tell!) I went from seeing ~30 a day, down to maybe 2, 3 if I am lucky...

My land IS posted... everyone knows it... I respect my neighbors, they respect me... we don't tolerate strangers though...

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Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Seneca
Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

The question of course is would it be you? Ive found most people say that but when faced with the reality of paying for a few thousand dollars of damage they make excuses.
And you are still unfairly placing the burden of catching the dog perpertrarting the crime on the landowner .Ie you expect him to be more resoponceable for your dog than you are. Can that really be the right way to treat people?

Mike in Ohio and Fantasymaker,

Read my post. I'm a nice guy but am telling you that if you have a hound, feel free to train the dog and while hounds can be trained on the regular commands: sit, down, stay, etc....they forget all that once they're off the leash or not contained behind a fence. They exist to HUNT. Even beagles and bassett hounds hunt. Be aware that they're also champion diggers and often will dig out from fences and run. The only breeds I know that are worse than hounds are the sled dogs which have no concept of property lines so alot of those sled dogs and hounds are chained up to prevent escape. Come to think of it, so are terriers, lol. They will dig out..I forgot about them.

Jenn, dogs that work in search and rescue are often on a very long leash. They're still contained. The ones that are allowed off leash to do very dangerous work of trying to find trapped people are the ones that don't run off and the owners of those dogs know it. Bloodhounds have to be on leash to do their work..I've never seen one off leash while working..the working instinct IS that strong.

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Ted H

You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas.
-Davy Crockett

I did read your post you seem to be one of the most reasonable dog hunters I know. But you are wrong they can be taught to remeber their commands while on hunt Ive seen it.
And like Ive said before if you cant kep them on land you have a right to hunt is it fair to relaese them at all? You seem to be an honest man so think on this situation and tell me how to handle it so its fair to all concerned.
You relase your dogs on property you have a right to hunt
They run off and at some point remote from you and unknown to you they cross a pasture killing $20,000 worth of sheep they contineue on to a point here they stop the game you are hunting...on property you have permission to hunt. Your happy you dont see a problem
But a shepard who has his entire life and life savings comes home to find his flock dead and has no way to tell who or what did it.
Is that fair?

I have not had sheep before so I'm going to ask how would they die from dogs crossing the pasture? most honest dog hunters use electronic collars on their dogs in the training sessions if they come from cow working stock to teach them it's not ok to bay up a cow or any other critter such as deer. The old trick to get them not to hunt deer is to pen them up as puppies along with goats! It's speculated that goats smell like deer so when the said pup grows up, that pup (if the pup has never been allowed to bay up the goats) will not hunt deer. Sheep? Good question. I have no idea. Maybe a livestock guard dog was the best thing for those sheep?

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Ted H

You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas.
-Davy Crockett

Agree completely. While I don't necessarily agree with Mike's stance on this subject, it sure looks to me like he is the one who has taken the highroad in terms of communicating using mature discourse, and acting like an adult.

Game wardens have more knowledge and influence in court than police. A police officer has to prove you did wrong, a game warden only has to say you did wrong or he wouldn't have cited you. I had a problem with trespassers while I was in church, but my neighbor called the state police who through no real fault of their own botched it up ( trooper later admitted it to me). The next time we got Fish and Game involved and the results were fantastic, $25 for each no hunting signs on the wrong property, $1000 for littering and the threat of license suspension for the whole club. Haven't had a problem since because the word got out. Personally, I wouldn't shoot anyone's dogs.

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United states of America

Born July 4, 1776

Died November 4, 2008

Suicide

Property owners and their agents (for example, security guards) may only use reasonable force to protect their property. For example, setting booby traps on a property to hurt trespassers or shooting at trespassers are usually strictly forbidden except in extreme circumstances. A notable exception is the U.S. state of Texas, where it is legal to use deadly force against trespassers after dark (Penal Code § 9.42).

Property owners may allow some trespasses while excluding others. For example a sign saying just "No Hunting" could conceivably allow hiking, snowmobiling, or bird-watching, but would give notice to hunters that they would be trespassing if they entered onto the property.
Trespass is not limited to human beings. For example, the owner of cattle or dogs may be responsible for an animal's trespass in some jurisdictions. Make certain the sign you post states dogs and everything else. In some cases a good fence the dogs can't enter might be the only answer.

A few states have laws that address hunters trespassing to retrieve dogs or wounded animals. In most states, however, hunters may not retrieve dogs or wounded animals if they cannot legally hunt on that land.

TEXAS: It is against the law to hunt or fish on privately owned lands or waters without the permission of the owner or owner's agent. No person may pursue a wounded wildlife resource across a property line without the consent of landowner of the property where the wildlife resource has fled. Under the trespass provisions of the Penal Code, a person on a property without the permission of the landowner is subject to arrest.

A trespasser would probably not be prosecuted if the land was open and not fenced, the trespasser's conduct did not substantially interfere with the owner's use of the property, and the trespasser left immediately on request.

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Chinese Proverb:
'When someone shares
Something of value with you, and you benefit from it, you have a moral
Obligation to share it with others.'