Coyotes have been a continuous threat to livestock on Colorado’s eastern plains, frequently raiding small farms’ chicken flocks, goats, calves and other livestock. However, they also keep the rabbit and other small mammal population in check. A human-caused threat also has been wreaking havoc on small farms in El Paso County ó domestic dog packs.Dog packs result when owners ìdropî off their unwanted puppies/dogs in the country, wrongfully thinking that the dog will find a home and live happy ever after out on the plains. The abandoned dogs that survive often find other strays and form packs. And they breed, and their offspring become feral dogs ó an animal born in the wild that has never had human contact. Those packs instinctively prey on livestock.Wishing Star Farm in Ellicott, Colorado, is a small farm that hosts summer farm camps for kids, birthday parties and a popular fall festival in late September and October. One night in August, a pack of at least 10 dogs almost destroyed the future of those activities.ìWe lost 25 animals, including sheep, goats, llamas and alpacas,î said Jackie Chambers, co-owner of the family farm. ìWe woke up to go feed our animals, and the dogs had gotten into the pens and killed them in their pens.îVisitors and neighbors found out about the losses through a post by a Wishing Star customer on Facebook. The post went viral; and, although Wishing Star Farm had the most exposure, there were numerous posts about similar attacks through the area.A dog pack attacked Freeman Family Farms in Calhan in March. ìWe had over 100 chickens, and we lost about 60 of them,î Doneil Freeman said. ìWe lost all our turkeys, as well. There were bodies scattered everywhere, but none of them were fully eaten.î The ìsport killingî nature of the attacks were typical of reports from other homesteads, Freeman said.The remaining chickens in Freeman’s flock were traumatized. ìWe lost the egg production of the killed chickens, and the chickens that did survive didn’t lay anything for two weeks after because of the stress,î he said.Financial impacts can be devastating to a small food producer. ìIt’s compounded through the financial loss and time loss,î Freeman said. ìThose chickens we had been raising 26 weeks had just started laying and getting good on egg production ñ- then bam!îThe emotional impacts can be dramatic as well. ìIt was awful, there was no other way to describe it,î Chambers said. ìThey were so much more than our animals. They were all big pets, which they needed to be with the kid visitors.îThe Division of Animal Law Enforcement officers from the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region deal with stray dogs and other animal issues in the urban and suburban density areas of El Paso County. They only respond in rural areas if the El Paso County Sheriffís Office initiates the call.Small farms and ranches are expected to protect their own livestock. Colorado law allows rural landowners to shoot dogs that are attacking, running or worrying their livestock without criminal liability for the death of the dogs. The dogs’ owners, if found, can be held criminally and civilly liable for their dogs’ actions. Residents and ranchers in eastern El Paso County are getting frustrated with the number of dog pack attacks, and taking to social media to make it known that any dog found on their properties will be shot on sight. Firearm instructors, including Robert Butler of Kenax Tactical Group, are educating livestock owners about their legal rights and liabilities when protecting their farms.ìIt is absolutely legal to destroy a dog that is running your livestock,î Butler said. ìHowever, the property owner has to ensure that local laws allow the discharge of firearms on their property, outside of personal defense. So, that’s something that an individual would need to check with the sheriffís office prior to it.îFirearm safety is vital when protecting livestock. ìYou are responsible for where that round goes,î Butler said. ìDon’t shoot toward houses, and don’t shoot across roads because that is illegal. Be careful what you shoot, where you shoot and how you shoot, because there’s an attorney attached to every round that comes out of your weapon. The gun is the last thing you use. If you can get the dog away by scaring it away yourself, then great.î There is no statutory duty to report a dog that has been killed to law enforcement, but the landowner would be wise to take steps to save themselves from civil lawsuits. ìI would call the sheriffís office to report it, just to save myself from that,î Butler said. ìTake pictures; and, if the owner comes out, then leave the dog where it is until the sheriff can do their report. But I would recommend making an attempt to find the owner because they can be cited and held responsible (for their dogs’ actions),î he said.In Wishing Star’s case, sheriff deputies and animal officers were able to locate, trap and confiscate 10 dogs that had been attacking Ellicott-area livestock. ìThe sheriffs were absolutely wonderful,î Chambers said. ìThe dogs came two times, after killing our neighbors’ animals, too. All the dogs have been taken care of.îThe reaction of the community to the news of the attack stunned the Chambers family. ìWe were trying to keep it on the down-low, but after the social media post went viral, we had so many calls: goats, sheep, alpacas, someone even donated a pony,î Chambers said. ìPeople even mailed us money. As a business, we didn’t want to ask for things like that, but it was amazing.îWith the donated animals restocking their farm displays and petting areas, the annual fall festival will go on. ìWe definitely want people to still come,î Chambers said. ìPeople can come to the pumpkin patch, the new hay maze, and at night we’ll have a haunted maze. And they can meet all the new animals.îFreeman Family Farm is now bringing on new chicks, six months after the attack. ìWe couldn’t bring ourselves to order more chickens,î Freeman said. ìWe couldn’t fathom the idea until now, but it will be another five months before they’re laying.îThe dogs that destroyed Freeman’s flock were never found; and, like other ranchers and residents, Freeman has strong words of warning for city and suburban residents who think it would be a good idea to abandon unwanted dogs in the country. ìThat’s probably the cruelest thing you could do to an animal besides dog fighting,î Freeman said. ìThey dump them out here like they’ll find a ranch to live on. But they end up starving to death, dehydrated or shot by a rancher.î ìTake them to the humane society,î Chambers said. ìYou’re not doing the dog a favor, or the people out east a favor by dropping off your responsibility on someone else.îThe Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region is at 610 Abbot Lane in Colorado Springs; the phone number is 719-473-1741.Wishing Star Farm’s Fall Festival continues until Oct. 31. The farm is at the corner of Ellicott Highway and Highway 94.
