Q: I live in a rural part of Colorado. After 40 years of rescuing Siberian Huskies one of my dogs escaped the yard and
Killed 2 chickens. I am more than willing to pay the fine for dog running at large but the neighbor wants $500.00 per chicken. What is a reasonable price for a chicken? Bear in mind it wasn’t a pet.
A: Your question doesn't have so much to do with animal law as it does with business transactions, but probably the best way to determine a fair price for the chickens is to check your local newspaper or "craigslist" listings for the going price for a chicken. I know off hand they are not $500 piece - unless they are some kind of rare, special chicken, but I've never heard of even a rare, special chicken costing that much. Most chickens are between $5-20.
A: If you get charged with violating the state law of ownership of a dangerous dog that has killed a domestic animal, which includes livestock, animal control can seize the dog that did it, force you to pay for the animal's cost of care for months (and if you don't you lose ownership) and the court can order to put your dog down (it's actually a mandatory death sentence for killing a chicken, goat, cat, or any other domestic animal but I have sometimes been able to persuade a DA not to purse death), you will have a lot more problems than how much 2 chickens are worth. I can't tell you how many times charges were filed just because the victim and dog owner could not agree on restitution.
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