jimandyen wrote:A couple of years ago my wife and I were out walking our dog in an open field in our neighborhood.
It's on a path that many other people also use to cross the field. At the time I wasn't carrying (no CHL).
I noticed a dog about 200 feet away jumping up against an old wooden fence and barking
finally breaking through and running full speed towards us. (We probably wouldn't have been there if I had ever seen this dog before now.)
With only a few seconds to react I told my wife to get behind me with our Lab.
The attacking dog (60-70lbs rott-mix?) ran straight to our dog and put it's mouth on her neck.
Strangely enough it didn't bite or leave a mark although it could have killed our dog.
It was all I could do to try and hurt the dog before it just left and ran off. We were lucky I guess.
Called 911 and the responding officers were of no help but that's another story.
My question is:
What if I were carrying and took a shot in a safe manner to protect my family from this dog that was barking
and running full speed at us and killed or stopped the dog? Am I in the right?
I wasn't looking at the breed but the animal's attitude coming at us. Very scary for us!!!
...Texas Health and Safety Code says:
"§ 822.013. Dogs or Coyotes That Attack Animals
(a) A dog or coyote that is attacking, is about to attack, or has recently attacked livestock, domestic animals, or fowls may be killed by:
(1) any person witnessing the attack; or
(2) the attacked animal's owner or a person acting on behalf of the owner if the owner or person has knowledge of the attack.
(b) A person who kills a dog or coyote as provided by this section is not liable for damages to the owner, keeper, or person in control of the dog or coyote.
(c) A person who discovers on the person's property a dog or coyote known or suspected of having killed livestock, domestic animals, or fowls may detain or impound the dog or coyote and return it to its owner or deliver the dog or coyote to the local animal control authority. The owner of the dog or coyote is liable for all costs incurred in the capture and care of the dog or coyote and all damage done by the dog or coyote.
(d) The owner, keeper, or person in control of a dog or coyote that is known to have attacked livestock, domestic animals, or fowls shall control the dog or coyote in a manner approved by the local animal control authority.
(e) A person is not required to acquire a hunting license under Section 42.002, Parks and Wildlife Code, to kill a dog or coyote under this section.
CREDIT(S)
Added by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Renumbered from V.T.C.A., Health & Safety Code § 822.033 and amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1002, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
[Sections 822.014 to 822.020 reserved for expansion]"
...your pet is a domestic animal...
http://www.duhaime.org/LegalDictionary/ ... nimal.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;