The Portland daily press., 1898-01-08
SHEEP KILLING DOGS.
Census Figures I hat Show the Enormous
Damage Done by Them to the FIocks.
New York SUM-

The dogs in the United States XIII near
" two per cent. of the sheep In the coun-
try every year. They killed more than
COG, coo sheep in the year ending June /,
1890, when the last statistics in regard to
the focks were gathered. The damage
done by them Is greater than that from
any other cause except unexpected storms
in which whole f1ocks of sheep are killed,
and disease. In six States moro da mage
was done to the fiocks of sheep by dogs
than by anything else. In Florida 8, 1888
sheep were killed by dogs, and only 4,7ao
by the weather and disease. The numb N
killed by dogs was about per cent. OF
the total number of sheep in the State.
The Florida sheep are not exposed to
such changes in temperature as those Oh
the farms in Nevada, where 1873. $50 tied
of cold and disease. Only 1872 sheep
were killed by dogs In Nevada in the cen
sus year. The enormous number of
deaths from changes in the weather was
due to unprecedented storms, which
caught the breeders unprepsred and al
most halved their fiooks.
In South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama,
Louisiana, and Arkansas dogs do more
damage to the sheep than anything 81 se
and more than weather conditions and
disease combined. II Massachus it's,
Rhode Island and Connecticut the nu M
Der of deaths in the fiocks due to dogs is
almost the samo as that due to disease
and the weather. This is tr,a in Missis-
sippi, too. In slis State, N zine, New
Jersey, Pennsy lvania, Nebraska, Ari-
IONA, and the Dakotas one-fifth as m UGH
damage is charged to dogs as to the other
Chief causes of loss.
The dogs make the best showing in
Vermont, where they killed 5000 sheep
xuhich died 6icao 40
and exposure in an average winter. The
Ohio and Michigan dogs have good re c.
ords, too, for they killed one-sixth Us
Dlany sheep as storms and disease. North
Carolina and Tennessee dogs are red with
the blood of sheep. They killed four
fifths as many as the other causes Of
death combined. In kentucky, Texas,
Iowa the dogs did one-half as much
damage az other causes combined in
Virginia, Missouri, and Oklahoma, two
| thirds as much; in Illinois and Wiscon
| sin, one-third as much, and In Delaware,
Marylan Kansas, California, and New
| Hampshire. one-quaruer as much.
II the winter Of 1SS9.S0 had not been
Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Utah,
Washington, and Wyoming, the dogs
would make worse showing in the CEN
sus tables than they do. In these States
some of the farmers are not unfriendly to
| the dogs. II sheep die or Is killed by
| a wildcat or falls from ledge OF rocks,
| the thrifty farmer returns 1T to the prop
er officers as sheep killed by dogs. Then
| he gets paid for it, Sometimes a New
| England farmer, when he loses sheep,
will collect tie value of it from the coun-
| ty and from the owner of the dog that
Killed it, Sheep killing dogs become well
known in the community where their
masters live. Sometimes the dogs are
such good hunters that their masters re-
fuse to allow them to be killed, and try
| to keep them from doing any damage.
Such a dog owner is an easy mark for
| the interruptions sheep breeders. Every
| time sheep Ia killed, dies or disappears
the owner will go to the dogs master and
demand pay for the dead animal, threat.
ening to have the dog killed if its owner
does no pay up. This dog may be inno-
cent, but because it bears bad reputa.
ton it's owner submits. III there are more
owners of sheep killers than one. the
farmer may collect from each and make {
good thing out of his sheep. He may col
Iect from the county too.
Most dogs that kill sheep are bad dog
ali the way through, and sportsmen ant
| farmers unite in trying to get rid Of
them. A sheep killing dog is usually G
tramp, untraiDable, and worthless fol
hunting. Many of the dogs that kill sheer
are ownerless The farmers shoot then
VIII en- they can, and sportsmen, apxiou
that their dogs shall not be accounted
bad because Of the misdeeds of ownerlesl
ours, help them. Some farmers set trap
for sheep killers. The traps are like vol
traps and are set where sheep is killed
the body of the sheep being used for bait
Sheep killing dogs usually visit th'
scenes Of their depredations as murder
or is said to haunt the spot where he com
mits crime. The farmers and breeder
count on this and set their traps accord
ingly. Sometimes they put arsenic il
the carcass, to make sure that the guilt,
dog shall not escape.
When a real sheep killing dog gets ints
q flock of sheep he kills as many as ht
can He does not kill for food. but fol
fun apparently, and he finds his pre-,
easy, for the sheep cans fight bnck, anC
don't know enough to run. They cam
run fast enough to escape anyway, ant
their only hope Of salvation lies in scat
tering. This the sheep won't do, bu
persist obstinately in following the bel
wether while the dog kills them.