How would you feel ...

[equusvilla]

or what would you think if this happened to you?

Last night after work I ran some errands - so I did not get home (the farm) until after dark. Our farm is out in the counry in a tiny town. I drove up the gravel road and onto our paved drive and was met by my 4 sheep and the 3 dogs that spend much of their time living in the same paddock where the sheep live. I easily got the dogs into a stall in the barn - just to get them out of the way and then corralled the sheep back into their paddock. It was not easy as they were confused and spooked...but the lure of food got to the ram and he ended up chasing me in. The others followed.

This is hard to explain - but we have a metal trellis with 2 gates as the entrance to the lambs pen. That is more than enough to keep the sheep in - but not the dogs. My husband cut a piece of plywood to the size of the opening, drilled holes into it and then hung it on 2 large pegs. We used a cloth elastic bungie to secure the bottom of the wood. The bungie is stretched from the bottom of the wood over to one of the near pickets on the fence and secured there. It is a very simple system and is enough to keep the dogs from escaping.

Last night I discovered that the piece of phywood was down on the ground and the bungie was not only off - but hung on the picket fence ...about 10 pickets down from the gate. It seemed to me that someone had let the lambs out...intentional or not..there was just no way that the bungie could have ended up that far away. Reminder..it was a cloth bungie - not a rubber one so it did not have that much stretch to it.

Confused - I started back to the barn, got to one of my doors and found a Jehovah's Witness pamplet on the ground...

We live on a farm road, but thre is a lot of traffic at times and no street lights. I could have easily lost several of my 4 legged family.

[f4leggin]

I would be incredibly ticked off. And, I am a very easy going person.To be fair, if their number is on the pamphet - I would call them, tell them what you found, and then say - I just am trying to figure out what happened to stop it from happening again - anything you can add to shed light on the situation would be appreciated. See what they have to say. If you have posted no tresspassing signs - I would certainly ask them why they ignored the signs and suggest that ignoring signs like that in the country can be dangerous since anything could have happened to them (ie gaurdian/attack dogs) while they were on your farm. .

Jill

[CallMeGrace]

Post a warning sign about your vicious dog!

[May07Bride]

I would be furious. Is there a number or contact info on the info they lived? I'd be calling and ripping them a new one, but then again I go crazy if someone does something that could harm or kill my animals.

I would put no trespassing signs at the beginning of your driveway, so hopefully, they don't make it up that far next time.

[SonnysMom]

I am wondering if the J. Witness people came and saw the animals were out already and made an attempt to corral them but because of the non-conventional gate arrangement kinda gave up. But picked up the bungie in the process and rather than throw it on the ground placed it neatly on the fence.

[Seven-up]

I'd go down to the Jehovah's Witness place and have a come to Jesus meeting with them.:mad:

[pintopiaffe]

I would call the local Church of Jesus Christ of Latter (sp?) Day Saints, and ask if you could speak to the people who were there in order to ask what they saw, what the situation was when they were there.... Explain that you had loose sheep and dogs, and were trying to figure out if it happened before or after their visit.

I would never blame anyone based on circumstantial evidence. It's actually pretty weak to leap to a conclusion of ANY sort based on physical evidence... Call and ask. They are people, just like you and me. Most--heck, almost all--are quite educated and quite reasonable. If you just ask for the sake of figuring out what happened, you'll probably get an answer.

[equusvilla]

I am wondering if the J. Witness people came and saw the animals were out already and made an attempt to corral them but because of the non-conventional gate arrangement kinda gave up. But picked up the bungie in the process and rather than throw it on the ground placed it neatly on the fence.

I love the fact that you are looking for the good in every person...and I really mean that. If that were the case though - why did they not enlist the help of the police - or at least leave me a note. I mean they left their pamphlet at my door. They also could have shut a gate that they had to go through to get to our farm. It is a gate on a shared drive of my neighbor and I.

There was no specific contact number on the phamplet or I would have already called. We do not have any No Trespassing signs...YET. I hate them - but just may have to resort to that.

[yellowbritches]

Yuck. That's scary, whether the Jehovah's Witness was trying to do good or accidentally let them out or had nothing to do with it at all.

Suggestion. I used to farm sit for a friend who had a small menagerie of critters (sheep, goats, horses, geese, ducks, chickens, etc, etc, etc). They put combination locks on their main entrance gate (they had perimeter fencing to keep critters in/out) and I want to say they had another combo lock on the gate going to where the majority of the creatures lived, in the barnyard. This made it so there was ZERO chance of anyone not supposed to be or even a delivery man accidentally letting anyone out (or in). I also think they started doing this after their generator was stolen. There are definite issues with this, but it may be a good solution for occasions like this.

[Dad Said Not To]

I would call the local Church of Jesus Christ of Latter (sp?) Day Saints, and ask if you could speak to the people who were there in order to ask what they saw, what the situation was when they were there.

That probably wouldn't help much, considering CJCLDS members are Mormons, not Jehovah's Witnesses. Substitute Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses, and you've got some decent advice.

[equusvilla]

Yuck. That's scary, whether the Jehovah's Witness was trying to do good or accidentally let them out or had nothing to do with it at all.

Suggestion. I used to farm sit for a friend who had a small menagerie of critters (sheep, goats, horses, geese, ducks, chickens, etc, etc, etc). They put combination locks on their main entrance gate (they had perimeter fencing to keep critters in/out) and I want to say they had another combo lock on the gate going to where the majority of the creatures lived, in the barnyard. This made it so there was ZERO chance of anyone not supposed to be or even a delivery man accidentally letting anyone out (or in). I also think they started doing this after their generator was stolen. There are definite issues with this, but it may be a good solution for occasions like this.

I cannot lock out delivery companies...so the locks will not work for us. I work for a magazine that delivers boxes of magazines for me to distribute at horse shows and my husband gets his cold pack injections via mail delivery...

[theoldgreymare]

Go to your local PD or sheriff's office and ask them about a "no trespassing notice" which you can fill out and send to your local Kindom Hall. I'm not sure if an organization can be served or if it has to be an individual but your local law enforcement should be able to answer that question. Invest in "No Trespassing" signs as well.

[Chief2]

Okay, here's my stab at it:

Perhaps the animals were already out and one of the JH's was afraid of dogs. Which could be why the pamphlet ended up on the ground and not on/in your door. Animals out, JH sees nice sheep, places bungee cord on fence, along comes the dog and JH flees for the hinterlands. A friend had an electric meter reader who did that once. Like an idiot, he entered through the breezeway door without ringing the bell, attempted to start down the basement stairs and was met head on by a pair of airedales charging up from the basement. He fled the house, running down the street, and the trail of meter reading he had flung up into the air told the rest of the tale. The dogs only chased him down one block, and never connected.

I second the idea of No Trespassing signs, and would also suggest hanging one with a big dog on it. Then call the JH office listed on the pamphlet, find out what happened, as kindly ask them not to return in the future.

[mandalea]

I'm with the signs.

A similar thing happened to a friend of mine.

She lives about 20 minutes drive from town, and her road is not easy to find - and it's a no-through. But, the JW's managed to find it.

Her husband was waiting for the shower, and was sitting on the recliner, with just a towel, reading the paper.

The JW's went to the front door (after climbing 3 heavily padlocked gates, through the yard with the mare who will attack, because she's crazed), and, past the 'dangerous dog, signs (even though he's a sweet heart and wont do anything, he's a big intimidating GS, so there just to ward people off :)).

Nobody heard them at the front door (big long house) so nobody answered. SO, they went around to the back door (climbing more fences and gates) and stood at the big glass door, at the lounge room, where said husband was sitting, and knocked until he finally looked, and there, standing at his back door, were a woman and 4 young girls, staring at him, half naked, with a bunch of pamphlets and CDs.

Now all the fences are electrified, and all their friends know the pass code to turn them off so we can get to the house :lol:

Luckily for us we have never had this happen, but our land lord insists on coming to our house all the time, and every time he does, we're never there, and we always find the horses all sweaty because they obviously try to ride them or do something similar to them, so we've now padlocked EVERYTHING, and tell the real estate that if he want's to come over, and agent has to be with him, and he's not allowed past the front gate when we're not there.

[kookicat]

Post a warning sign about your vicious dog!

This is a really bad idea- if one of the dogs does bite someone, the op would really be in trouble.

[kookicat]

I cannot lock out delivery companies...so the locks will not work for us. I work for a magazine that delivers boxes of magazines for me to distribute at horse shows and my husband gets his cold pack injections via mail delivery...

I have a drive that's over a mile long. I stuck a post box at the end of it, with a big hatch on the top. Hatch only goes in, so they can push parcels into it but no-one can take them out. Might be an idea for you. :)

[tikidoc]

Not helpful to the OP, but this talk about the JWs reminded me of a funny story. Years ago, I worked for a year in Panama City (Panama, not Florida). There are lots of JWs there, frequently showing up on your doorstep, and they can be quite persistent. My old boss, who was a dead ringer for John Cleese (from Monty Python), was in an area that got lots of visits. One weekend morning, he was making breakfast for the kids in his robe and hears them at the door. He answers the door, in a white robe, hands folded in front of him, chanting "ooooohhhmm, ooohhhmm, oooohhmm" over and over. They didn't bug him again for quite a while. Probably loses something in the translation, but he had me in stitches the next week telling me about it (like John Cleese, his delivery was very deadpan), and it still gives me a giggle to picture it.

[M. O'Connor]

I would call the local Church of Jesus Christ of Latter (sp?) Day Saints, and ask if you could speak to the people who were there in order to ask what they saw, what the situation was when they were there.... Explain that you had loose sheep and dogs, and were trying to figure out if it happened before or after their visit.

I would never blame anyone based on circumstantial evidence. It's actually pretty weak to leap to a conclusion of ANY sort based on physical evidence... Call and ask. They are people, just like you and me. Most--heck, almost all--are quite educated and quite reasonable. If you just ask for the sake of figuring out what happened, you'll probably get an answer.

LOL why would you want to start a Holy War between the Mormons and the Witnesses?

I know quite a few JH's and they are not into wreaking havoc at ALL. I would call up your local Kingdom Hall and ask to be put in contact with whomever visited your farm; whoever it was will tell you the whole truth--that's ALL they do!

Perhaps they saw dogs in with your sheep and thought they weren't supposed to be in there...you'll never know if it was them unless you ask, though.

[Alice]

Front gate left open, I'm ready to blame my SO.

Both times, JW pamphlets left at the door. Of course there is no way to contact them, just a website address.

We got the "No Proselytising" sign, and now keep forgetting to hang it on the gate! You've reminded me to do that...

To be fair our gate can be difficult to close at times, but no one seems to have a problem with it.

[Cielo Azure]

Yuck. That's scary, whether the Jehovah's Witness was trying to do good or accidentally let them out or had nothing to do with it at all.

Suggestion. I used to farm sit for a friend who had a small menagerie of critters (sheep, goats, horses, geese, ducks, chickens, etc, etc, etc). They put combination locks on their main entrance gate (they had perimeter fencing to keep critters in/out) and I want to say they had another combo lock on the gate going to where the majority of the creatures lived, in the barnyard. This made it so there was ZERO chance of anyone not supposed to be or even a delivery man accidentally letting anyone out (or in). I also think they started doing this after their generator was stolen. There are definite issues with this, but it may be a good solution for occasions like this.

Zero chance of someone rescuing animals in the case of fire or disaster, when the owner isn't home. Plus locks on perimeter/interior barnyard fencing make it really hard for fire and emergency vehicles to repond to a crisis. I would feel very unsafe with that set-up.

However, a shut gate and no trespassing signs will keep 99% of strangers out (including missionary folk).

One can put up many warning signs about dogs that will not invite a lawsuit.

"Dogs on Premises"
"My dog can make it to the gate in 40 seconds, can you?"
"Animals on premises, enter at your own risk"
"Dogs on premises, enter at your own risk"
etc.
But I think "NO TRESPASSING" in BIG LETTERS works best.

If it were me, I would assume my animals got out, and someone tried to corral them up. Strange dogs and unwilling sheep probably stopped them from finishing the job. I wouldn't assume because a brochure was left on your doorstep that the two were connected. That is a very link -very much a maybe or maybe not.

Frankly, To be pissed off at the thought that someone didn't call the police to help round up your animals is a little weird (did I read that right, would that really irritate you?). Maybe the person who discovered your animals were out were afraid the police would call AC and they take your animals away. Maybe it was the meter man and gets paid for reading meters, not calling 911 for loose sheep and waiting two hours for a non-emergency response from the police department.

I have five dogs, they do have ways of creating havoc. I do feel your pain, I hate the thought of anyone messing with my animals.

[pintopiaffe]

:lol: :o

Sorry, I was definitely confusing the two. Up here it's Mormons that we have going door to door. I'm in LE and we get lots of calls about 'men in dark clothes' going door to do. You show up, they are dressed impeccably in dark SUITS, tie and all. They have always been incredibly polite to deal with. They are just fulfilling a requirement in their religion. They always visit in pairs.

I had that on the mind. Honestly, I don't think I've ever me nor been visited by a Jehovah's Witness. I get the occasional tract or pamphlet left, but usually I find it in the driveway. I'm guessing they don't really get to the door, with the three big dogs wanting to 'greet' them.

[MunchkinsMom]

A friend had an electric meter reader who did that once. Like an idiot, he entered through the breezeway door without ringing the bell, attempted to start down the basement stairs and was met head on by a pair of airedales charging up from the basement. He fled the house, running down the street, and the trail of meter reading he had flung up into the air told the rest of the tale. The dogs only chased him down one block, and never connected.


OMG - the mental image of that scene cracked me up!

We have a "beware of dog" sign on our front gate, because we have 4 dogs with free access to the front yard via their dog door. There are some fools that either cannot read, or think the sign is just for show (like the little doggie "land mines" all over the yard would be fake too)? One day some "gentleman" knocked on the front door, (dogs must have been sleeping) and I managed to get to him and slam the front door shut just before all 4 dogs came barreling around the corner to tear him a new one. I don't even remember what he wanted, my husband came out right behind me and took care of it.

I agree with the other posters, give the local JW center a call to see if they can shed some light on the situation, and prevent it from happening again.