The Florida agriculturist., 1907-07-03

try home, it is edited by lady and
she is working very strenuously to
abate the dog nuisance. In the last
number she devotes all her space. two
columns, to this subject In addition
to the part which we copy she also
gives numerous letters from readers
detailing their losses OF poultry from
marauding dogs. They are all from
parts Of Georgia, except one from Lake
City, Fla. This last tells that ONE OF
the Smartest men in Columbia county,
Fla, lost the nomination for the State
Senate last year because he advocated
a dog tax. The majority of voters pre-
ferred their dogs to sheep and poultry.
How long will this state OF things be
tolerated by an intelligent people? Be-
sides all the loss from their depreda-
tions, there is the constant danger
from hydrophobia. That this last is
a real danger, no one who reads the
newspapers OF the State can deny. The
article alluded to is as follows:
The petitions from farmers wives
still pour in. [ received twenty-four
in today's r. F. D. mail. Our good
letter carrier told me few days ago
that he handled 900 pieces of mail mat
ter in the month of March, and OF these
600 came to me. While [ always get
considerable mail matter, a good deal
of the March mail was due to these pc
titiOns.
There are three strong, cogent reas-
o1rs why surplus dogs should be abated
as a nuisance. First, because they eat
and will eat, at home or abroad. The
food that will support a dog as it
should be fed would support a pig.
Vagrant dogs prowl about peoples
back yards and eat up all in sight, and
are simply god for nothing. They
come to my slop bucket and eat up the
chicken feed. I find my coops over
turned nearly every morning. My
hens nests must be placed high off
the ground, or there will be no eggs
left. These dogs are nursances, and
should be abated as nulsances. Sec
ond, they are dangerous. Nearly every
day | read OF some child Or grown per
son being bitten by mad dog. These
rabid dogs will bite and poison COWS,
hogs, sheep and horses. This hydro
phobic poison is as deadly as rattle
snake poison. When a tramp dog
comes in your yard you cannot tell at
first glance whether it has hydrophobla
or not. If it bites your child, which
ii can do in second, the deadlv mis-
chief is done. Sometimes they will
bite anyhow. I had a child bitten by
stray dog once. There were twelve
wounds and bruises on the little fel-
lows back If the dog had not pushed
him down on his face Or had bitten
him on his stomach and bowels, there
is no telling what would have happen
ed. Fortunately, the child had on
thick winter wear, and fell on his face.
When [ quickly undressed him there
was a little stream of blood running
down where the brute's tusk had gone
in deep just below the shoulder blade.
The dear child was wild with terror for
a whole afternoon and night Anything
so dangerous as a biting dog should
be shot down on sight, and a dog with
l1ydrophobia is a terror beyond any
comparison Third, dogs have made
sheep culture impossible in my part
of the country. Correspondents write
me they also kill little goats [ had
letter today from a lady in Bibb
county, ''We have," she writes, "for-
ty acres in Bermuda pasture. How l
would rejoice to know dog law had
been passed! We could then raise
sheep"
Away down in Thomas county two
farm women write me: eve are trou-
bled no little in our section with row.
ing, no account dogs"
One of Our own possessions is ex-
tensive Bermuda sod Possibly we
have fortv or fftv acres we'll set and