Marauding Dogs Shot By Farmer

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30398, 24 March 1964, Page 7

Marauding Dogs Shot By Farmer

An Alstatian dog was shot by Mr R. Thomson, a farmer, on Friday morning after it had killed five sheep on his property at Woolridge road, by the Russley golf course.

Two more dogs, an Alsatian and what he thought was a Labrador cross, were shot by Mr Thomson on the same property on Sunday morning when they were worrying sheep. “Some were mauled but I was in time to save them,” he said yesterday. Mr Thomson said he now had three dog collars bearing the current registration with the Waimairi County Council. The sheep were four-year-old breeding ewes valued at £3 each, he said. He had notified the police. The sheep and the dogs had been buried. Mr Thomson lives at the corner of Yaldhurst and Russley roads. The property where he runs the Sheep is between Memorial avenue and Wairakei road with a frontage on Wooldridge road. About 7.30 a.m. on Friday he got a telephone call to say a dog was among his sheep. He hurried along and found an Alsatian worrying the sheep. “He was still looking for more when I shot him. He would pull one down and then go after the mob. Four ewes were dead and a fifth was so badly mauled I had to kill it,” said Mr Thomson.

“The dog had apparently started about six o’clock that morning. The ewes had the run of three paddocks but the dog. did all his killing in one paddock.” When Mr Thomson was notified on Sunday that two dogs were among his sheep he was in time to shoot the dogs and stop any ewes from being killed, though some were mauled.

During recent years Mr Thomson has lost a number of sheep through their being worried by dogs. About two years ago a dog would get among the sheep in the dead of night, kill two or three and disappear. Mr Thomson had to stay out at nights before he was able to shoot that dog. It was a fox terrier. About three months ago he shot two dogs which had killed two lambs and mauled others.