Problem with Neighbours cattle

bennyineire

Hey there guys, I built a house in the country about 5 years back and I have had alot of problems with my elderly farmers cattle coming into my lawn.
I have gates which I usually close but sometimes when people visit they forget to close them.
Anyway my neighbours cattle are constaly getting into my lawn and distroying it, I would say that they get into my lawn about 4 - 7 times a year.
My neighbour has never once apologized for this, he is a bachelor in his 70's and he just doesn't seem to care but it is driving me mad.
I spent a couple of days fixing my lawn over the summer (not easy work), but last week 4 cattle got into my lawn and made a right mess, I ran them out of my gerden into my neigbours yard, he was standing there.
i will admit I lost my temper and started shouting "would ya keep your cows out off my garden" he then said to me, "how did they get out", I couldn't believe what he said.
I honestly beleive he thinks its up yo me to keep his cattle of MY lawn, what do you guys think and what do you think my next course of action should be.

Markcheese

You've a couple of options ... You can get madder and madder end up being angry and bitter
You could try reasoning with him... Unlikely to get any where
You could put in a cattle grid... Money spent but prob sorted

jomoloney

Markcheese wrote: »

You've a couple of options ... You can get madder and madder end up being angry and bitter
You could try reasoning with him... Unlikely to get any where
You could put in a cattle grid... Money spent but prob sorted

the onus is on the owner of the cattle to keep them out , why should the OP go to the expense of a cattle grid

benny.. keep a record of the dates and take photo of the cattle and damage and get your solicitor to write to the farmer warning him if trespass doesn't stop you will begin legal proceedings ,

Black Smoke

Lawns are way overrated in my opinion -:)

ci985

Had the same trouble with neighbours cattle but in my case they were coming into my crops I put a grid in and new electric fence all round my farm and no trouble since!! Honestly getting mad or making threats of law was wasted on him!!! No hassle now and blood pressure a lot better off!!

Condatis

Yes – a cattle grid is the obvious solution – the cows don't know that they are trespassing.

If you do go for a grid be sure to install an escape ramp to allow small animals which may fall in to get out. Hedgehogs and the like have a tendency to become trapped at the bottom of a grid.

ootbitb

another benefit of the grid is your visitors will be free of the pain of getting in and out of their cars four times to open and close the gate. No brainer IMO.

49801

our electric gates

lots of cattle are so used to slatted houses these days that they pay no heed to grids

epfff

Would be in favour of grid or simular myself
legal route could case bad feeling amoung other locals and no man is an island
other option is next time they come in put out and give good run in opposiate direction 3 or 4 mile
after a few days looking for them he will learn how to fence
dont get caught though

oldyouth

Had the same problem some years back. Cattle kept coming in, with resulting damage to my lawn. I was fairly reasonable in trying to get along with my neighbour and, in fairness, he used to come in and fill the hoof marks with soil afterwards (though it was never the same)

Then one day they wandered in again and I ran them out of the garden. I rang the farmer to tell him that his cattle were in again but he got snotty with me and said they weren't his cattle. I followed the strays up the road and they all went in to his yard.

I sued him, got my lawn fixed and it never happened again. Hit a farmer in his pocket and he stays down

pakalasa

Cattle will break out. It's part and parcel of life in the country. But 3 or 4 times in the one year, that is just not on.
I wouldn't go down the legal route. You'll be known in the locality as the one that bought a 70yr old man to court. Fix the problem yourself. You've said yourself, that you leave the gates open.
Solution - electric gates, cattle grid or keep your gates closed.

zetecescort

who builds a house in the country without a cattle grid? serious oversight.

larthehar

jomoloney wrote: »

the onus is on the owner of the cattle to keep them out , why should the OP go to the expense of a cattle grid

benny.. keep a record of the dates and take photo of the cattle and damage and get your solicitor to write to the farmer warning him if trespass doesn't stop you will begin legal proceedings ,

DO NOT GO THIS ROUTE, you will do yourself no favors.

Cattle grid all the way, other neighbors cattle can get out too.

paddysdream

jomoloney wrote: »

the onus is on the owner of the cattle to keep them out , why should the OP go to the expense of a cattle grid

Have to say I agree with this.
Having seen this from both sides,ie have had both cattle and sheep break out (thankfully very rarely!!) over the years and also had neighbours stock break in on occasion I am firmly of the opinion that the saying"good fences make good neighbours" is an apt one
One farmer adjoining me was noted for his lack of willingness to fence and I could usually expect his cattle in after the first day or so after pulling our beet(dont know why but it happened for years)The same man was fairly quick at ringing if a ewe as much as looked over his ditch. Thankfully things have changed with the next generation and its much better now
As I have a mainly livestock(90%+) farm in a mainly tillage area the onus is on me to keep MY fences in order
Believe me ,its not nice either having a load of cattle trampling thru your property ,be it either a field of beet or a lawn; or having an irate neighbour asking you at 5am when the f*** you are gonna shift those ******(fill in whatever expletive you like) sheep out of his temptingly green field of barley in mid April when your own place resembles the Sahara desert
To surmise:as farmers its up to us to keep our own stock in,yes they can break out from even the best fenced fields(been there, seen that) but that aint no excuse, if your stock escape then its up to YOU to do something about it ,not the homeowner.Have seen dairymen pay for cattle grids for houses on our road to make life easier for them to move cows in and out for milking

Belongamick

To surmise:as farmers its up to us to keep our own stock in,yes they can break out from even the best fenced fields(been there, seen that) but that aint no excuse, if your stock escape then its up to YOU to do something about it

Have to agree 100%. Had a neighbour some years back who allowed his stock graze the 'green mile' frequently - he would turn his cows out to graze the side of the road regardless of traffic, gates open, other cattle being distrubed etc. No mention of public liability in the event of an accident.
My stock are my responsibility - they may break out the very odd time but letting them wander into other peoples property is not on.

dzer2

Had a savage problem with the next door neighbours cattle. At least twice a year they would plough the place every year it was sorry we will fix it I done it while he drove down the road laughing at me. The last time the y came in I had video evidence by god he said it was my duty to of care as it was my property. Took him to court 25k it cost him I have never in 7 years seen an animal of his break out since. Its only bad manners and ignorance to have your cattle break out.

bennyineire

Thanks for the all the replies peps. I would love to get a cattle grid to be honest but I am currently doing a masters degree at the moment and tha missus is out of work so we just won't have the money for a couple of years.
It reall is annoying me at the moment, since I'v had a few "words" with my neigbhour he is now ignoring me on the road.
I don't think the legal route is a go for us, we got the site from herselfs dad so we are local really and I don't want to start any trouble.
I just can't understand how this man doesn't seem to care about his cattle getting out the whole time, I'm sure that in his eye's I'm the bad guy.
I'm gonna have to do something though because I'm a placid guy most of the time but when something festers in my mind it can come to a head,
any ideas

Finnt

Cattle grid would be money wasted!!
We've a cattle grid on front of the house never stopped a cow or a sheep! With stock spending so much time housed now they pay no heed of cattle grids!

mf240

bennyineire wrote: »

Thanks for the all the replies peps. I would love to get a cattle grid to be honest but I am currently doing a masters degree at the moment and tha missus is out of work so we just won't have the money for a couple of years.
It reall is annoying me at the moment, since I'v had a few "words" with my neigbhour he is now ignoring me on the road.
I don't think the legal route is a go for us, we got the site from herselfs dad so we are local really and I don't want to start any trouble.
I just can't understand how this man doesn't seem to care about his cattle getting out the whole time, I'm sure that in his eye's I'm the bad guy.
I'm gonna have to do something though because I'm a placid guy most of the time but when something festers in my mind it can come to a head,
any ideas

Have no ideas really other than to say the easiest thing to do is keep the gates closed.
The old guy is probably never going to change and even though he is in the wrong its not worth the hassle. There will be lawns and cattle around when were all dead and gone.

Black Smoke

bennyineire wrote: »

Thanks for the all the replies peps. I would love to get a cattle grid to be honest but I am currently doing a masters degree at the moment and tha missus is out of work so we just won't have the money for a couple of years.
It reall is annoying me at the moment, since I'v had a few "words" with my neigbhour he is now ignoring me on the road.
I don't think the legal route is a go for us, we got the site from herselfs dad so we are local really and I don't want to start any trouble.
I just can't understand how this man doesn't seem to care about his cattle getting out the whole time, I'm sure that in his eye's I'm the bad guy.
I'm gonna have to do something though because I'm a placid guy most of the time but when something festers in my mind it can come to a head,
any ideas

How many of his stock, would fit in your freezer? -:)

Bizzum

I'm just wondering OP are these cattle that randomly break out onto a public road or cows being taken to/from milking?

bennyineire

Nope, we're on a small lane of a lane and our house is right beside his farm yard, the farmer probabaly only has about 40-50 cows grazing, he's just an old man keeping a few cattle just to pass the day I reckon, looks like I'll just have to suck it up.

dar31

msybe the father in law could have a word with him, might carry a bit more weight

bob charles

dzer2 wrote: »

Its only bad manners and ignorance to have your cattle break out.

Are you an owner of animals with the above remark? For the last few times I have had animals escape onto the road it has being because of the cattle being chased by neighboring houses loose dogs. No fencing will stop frightened animals. And it really is a royal pain when someone claims of my insurance for damages when it wasnt my fault in the first place that the animals got on the road. There should be some part of liability shared if the home owner never bothers to close their gate. But for now all liability is on the owner

dzer2

bob charles wrote: »

Are you an owner of animals with the above remark? For the last few times I have had animals escape onto the road it has being because of the cattle being chased by neighboring houses loose dogs. No fencing will stop frightened animals. And it really is a royal pain when someone claims of my insurance for damages when it wasnt my fault in the first place that the animals got on the road. There should be some part of liability shared if the home owner never bothers to close their gate. But for now all liability is on the owner

If you think that dogs chasing your cattle and running them against the fencing is your cattle breaking out then you need to look at yourself. Thats criminal damage by your neighbours The thread is about a mans cattle breaking out continually not an istance of them being chased. Normally if dogs chase cattle around here they are shot on the spot and dumped back at the owners feet.

ZETOR_IS_BETTER

dzer2 wrote: »

Its only bad manners and ignorance to have your cattle break out.

Thats such a broad sweeping statement its only going to be taken badly

There are many instances where cattle break out even on the best fenced farms.
With me for example, came down the farm to discover two fields of fencing knocked down and the cattle scared shi*less. Took me hours to settle them.

Discovered a hole made in a neighbouring ditch where dogs and owners came in. We cant account for everything. Cattle will break out because thats life.

In the op case obiously happening too often and yes its a different situation but no need to make out we let the cattle go for a walk in the neighbours

paddysdream

bob charles wrote: »

Are you an owner of animals with the above remark? For the last few times I have had animals escape onto the road it has being because of the cattle being chased by neighboring houses loose dogs. No fencing will stop frightened animals. And it really is a royal pain when someone claims of my insurance for damages when it wasnt my fault in the first place that the animals got on the road. There should be some part of liability shared if the home owner never bothers to close their gate. But for now all liability is on the owner

Whats the problem with someone claiming on your insurance? surely the reason you have it is to avoid having to personally pay out for damages.By the way yes I have had claims on mine (not any stock related though) and premiums havent increased on me (last year had a 9k payout on the tractor part of the farm policy ; premium the same and the other farm insurer when priced came back even better despite a claim!!!!
Wondering about the age profile of some of the posters on here or have they any non farming friends etc
The reason is that most of the "you should put in a grid yourself ;cattle wander get over it ; its part of living in a rural area etc etc yadda yadda " answers strike me as people who maybe farm but its the "bossman" who has to meet the neighbours ,etc as people who go around with that attitude really put peoples backs up

mikeoh

jomoloney wrote: »

the onus is on the owner of the cattle to keep them out , why should the OP go to the expense of a cattle grid

benny.. keep a record of the dates and take photo of the cattle and damage and get your solicitor to write to the farmer warning him if trespass doesn't stop you will begin legal proceedings ,

Happens once shame on the farmer ,happens 7 times shame on you......what was ur thinking for putting up gates day 1.....if ur studying and can't afford a grid...sell the gates...or close them and keep ur money in ur pocket and ur problems solved .It will cost you hundreds to find out the law is funny eg. you vere aware a of a problem,had a solution and didn't use it......I'm not taking sides ere just giving worthless advice......I would be interested to find out what would happen if you turned the cattle out of ur lawn and they hit a car.......law is funny!!!!!

dzer2

ZETOR_IS_BETTER wrote: »

Thats such a broad sweeping statement its only going to be taken badly

There are many instances where cattle break out even on the best fenced farms.
With me for example, came down the farm to discover two fields of fencing knocked down and the cattle scared shi*less. Took me hours to settle them.

Discovered a hole made in a neighbouring ditch where dogs and owners came in. We cant account for everything. Cattle will break out because thats life.

In the op case obiously happening too often and yes its a different situation but no need to make out we let the cattle go for a walk in the neighbours

I consider it bad manners to have my cattle roaming the roads or any one elses land. I Fenced the farm back in the nineties when I took over. I have maintained them ever since. Every one here is getting SFP and most are getting reps or asos payments for farming and minding the envoirment. I havent had my cattle break out ever. I have had horse the next door neighbours cattle and even a herd of goats rampage around. Many I have caught fairly early as I farm fulltime. Any time I have had an incursion I have refenced the area and helped the offending herd owner to get their animals back. I had an incident where the gardai opened a gate and let cattle in off the road never had the manners to let me know, the cattle never seen an electric fence and wrecked the place:mad:.

mf240

paddysdream wrote: »

Whats the problem with someone claiming on your insurance? surely the reason you have it is to avoid having to personally pay out for damages.By the way yes I have had claims on mine (not any stock related though) and premiums havent increased on me (last year had a 9k payout on the tractor part of the farm policy ; premium the same and the other farm insurer when priced came back even better despite a claim!!!!
Wondering about the age profile of some of the posters on here or have they any non farming friends etc
The reason is that most of the "you should put in a grid yourself ;cattle wander get over it ; its part of living in a rural area etc etc yadda yadda " answers strike me as people who maybe farm but its the "bossman" who has to meet the neighbours ,etc as people who go around with that attitude really put peoples backs up

Im the boss (on paper anyway) the point I was making was to close the gates would be handier than getting into a lawsuit with an elderly neighbour who will no doubt be seen in the area as the victim in all this.
I have seen this from both sides and my conclusion is, why give some slick lawyer a couple of grand when you can just shut the gates. After all someone elses cattle could be on the road the next time and gates will keep them out aswell.

Hitchens

Black Smoke wrote: »

How many of his stock, would fit in your freezer? -:)

A fella I know of had the same problem as the op, neighbouring farmer's stock encroaching on his lawns on a regular basis, constantly complained but your man more or less laughed at him.

So what he did was get a a loan of a humane killer from his brother who worked in an abbattoir and sure enough a short while afterwards he got up early one morning when he heard them on his back lawn, and took down a nice fat bullock with the bolt gun, rang the brother who tore over and bled the beast out and butchered him and into their respective freezers with him.

The long suffering guy then contacted the farmer and complained about the latest incursion, got the usual response, but, it never happened again.
The perp put ads in the local newsletter looking for his 'stray' bullock and your man used to say he often read the ad while enjoying a nice piece of steak.

I wouldn't have the nerve to do what he did myself, but it was a result on the double!

Dont be daft

dzer2 wrote: »

Had a savage problem with the next door neighbours cattle. At least twice a year they would plough the place every year it was sorry we will fix it I done it while he drove down the road laughing at me. The last time the y came in I had video evidence by god he said it was my duty to of care as it was my property. Took him to court 25k it cost him I have never in 7 years seen an animal of his break out since. Its only bad manners and ignorance to have your cattle break out.

I've a small bit of expierence in this area and I think its a unusual for a case like yours to end up costing the defendant 25k.

Do you mind saying whether or not you recieved your costs as part of the judgement?

Its just the OP has a problem.
You say you had a similar problem. You sued the farmer and it cost him 25k.
But if it cost you 5-10k to take the case or there are much more complex facts involved in your case (which I suspect there is) then your advice is flawed.

I would say to the OP, get electric gates or close the ones you have. Going down the legal route will cost you twice the price of electric gates, take years to sort out and will leave bad blood between you and this farmer for many more years after.

dzer2

Dont be daft wrote: »

I've a small bit of expierence in this area and I think its a unusual for a case like yours to end up costing the defendant 25k.

Do you mind saying whether or not you recieved your costs as part of the judgement?

Its just the OP has a problem.
You say you had a similar problem. You sued the farmer and it cost him 25k.
But if it cost you 5-10k to take the case or there are much more complex facts involved in your case (which I suspect there is) then your advice is flawed.

I would say to the OP, get electric gates or close the ones you have. Going down the legal route will cost you twice the price of electric gates, take years to sort out and will leave bad blood between you and this farmer for many more years after.

We have electric gates that are always closed the cattle came down the road and leaped overthe 3 foot wall nocking some of the stonework and ploughed the two lawns. we had cc tv put in at the garage to stop heating oil being lifted. We got a landscaper in to rectify the lawns and repair the trees and hedging. We have lived here 15 years and some trees were mkaturing nicely all were replaced. We got our costs and the contractor paid that is all we asked for.

Dont be daft

dzer2 wrote: »

We have electric gates that are always closed the cattle came down the road and leaped overthe 3 foot wall nocking some of the stonework and ploughed the two lawns. we had cc tv put in at the garage to stop heating oil being lifted. We got a landscaper in to rectify the lawns and repair the trees and hedging. We have lived here 15 years and some trees were mkaturing nicely all were replaced. We got our costs and the contractor paid that is all we asked for.

Right. I think you'd agree, your case involves considerably more significant damage.

Also by the sounds of it your property was closed by electric gates yet the animals jumped the boundary wall.
The OP has a scenario were the gates are left open. This is no defence to the farmer but would be a mitigating factor especially when calculating damages.

The point I'm making is that the OP might not enjoy the same resounding success in court that you did.

dzer2

Dont be daft wrote: »

Right. I think you'd agree, your case involves considerably more significant damage.

Also by the sounds of it your property was closed by electric gates yet the animals jumped the boundary wall.
The OP has a scenario were the gates are left open. This is no defence to the farmer but would be a mitigating factor especially when calculating damages.

The point I'm making is that the OP might not enjoy the same resounding success in court that you did.

No he wont get the same compensation he will have to get a quote for the work involved and costs and will most likely be held 50% responsible and get that with held as duty of care for not closing the gates.

Black Smoke

dzer2 wrote: »

We have electric gates that are always closed the cattle came down the road and leaped overthe 3 foot wall nocking some of the stonework and ploughed the two lawns. we had cc tv put in at the garage to stop heating oil being lifted. We got a landscaper in to rectify the lawns and repair the trees and hedging. We have lived here 15 years and some trees were mkaturing nicely all were replaced. We got our costs and the contractor paid that is all we asked for.

3 foot wall, is not at all suitable as a boundary to a country road, where cattle will inevitably be on. I'd hate to be moving cattle past your place with such a low wall!

Kinda defeats the purpose of the electric gates, I reckon!

dzer2

Black Smoke wrote: »

3 foot wall, is not at all suitable as a boundary to a country road, where cattle will inevitably be on. I'd hate to be moving cattle past your place with such a low wall!

Kinda defeats the purpose of the electric gates, I reckon!

Its as high as a pailing fence there is 40mtr wall with piers every 5 mtrs higher that a steel railing will be fitted to when funds allow. If any one wants to turn cattle down the road all they have to do is let us know and we will stand by the wall to help its only a phone call. We dont have that much droving down here as a lot of the farms are single entity and any out farms are miles away and its no feasible to drive cattle to them. Basically its only on neighbour whose cattle were a problem. And then a dub who bought a plot not far away and started a small hobby for his kids. Once it was pointed out what was needed to keep the animals at his holding he spent the money and paid for proper fencing.

the_syco

bennyineire wrote: »

I have gates which I usually close but sometimes when people visit they forget to close them.

Your gates, your problem.

I'd blame your guests for the damage, rather than the cows. Unless the cows have more intelligence than your guests :pac:

zetecescort wrote: »

who builds a house in the country without a cattle grid? serious oversight.

Esp as the land is right next to a farm yard? The mind boggles! Although it may not be 100% effective, it should have been part of the cost of the house.

bennyineire wrote: »

I would love to get a cattle grid to be honest but I am currently doing a masters degree at the moment and tha missus is out of work so we just won't have the money for a couple of years.

Either get electronic locks, or lock the gates and tell your guests to park outside.

mf240

dzer2 wrote: »

Its as high as a pailing fence there is 40mtr wall with piers every 5 mtrs higher that a steel railing will be fitted to when funds allow. If any one wants to turn cattle down the road all they have to do is let us know and we will stand by the wall to help its only a phone call. We dont have that much droving down here as a lot of the farms are single entity and any out farms are miles away and its no feasible to drive cattle to them. Basically its only on neighbour whose cattle were a problem. And then a dub who bought a plot not far away and started a small hobby for his kids. Once it was pointed out what was needed to keep the animals at his holding he spent the money and paid for proper fencing.

That sounds reasonable. If it were my cattle that did this damage I would most likely have offered to repair damage and replace trees supplying my own labour.
Would such an offer have been accepted dzer2?

dzer2

mf240 wrote: »

That sounds reasonable. If it were my cattle that did this damage I would most likely have offered to repair damage and replace trees supplying my own labour.
Would such an offer have been accepted dzer2?

He was offered the optiion of helping me repair the damage and covering the costs of replanting and he laughed at me told me I was stupid he would never have to pay for the damage. He drove me to the court case with his attitude

mf240

dzer2 wrote: »

He was offered the optiion of helping me repair the damage and covering the costs of replanting and he laughed at me told me I was stupid he would never have to pay for the damage. He drove me to the court case with his attitude

Good enough for him so me thinks

paddysdream

the_syco wrote: »

Your gates, your problem.

I'd blame your guests for the damage, rather than the cows. Unless the cows have more intelligence than your guests :pac:


Esp as the land is right next to a farm yard? The mind boggles! Although it may not be 100% effective, it should have been part of the cost of the house.


Either get electronic locks, or lock the gates and tell your guests to park outside.

Are you people for real??
I am farming for over twenty years and have a bungalow with gates which I never close.If my neighbours stock come in off the road then I see him as 100% wrong as they shouldnt be out in the first place.
On the other hand if my stock do damage to someones property ,be it a lawn or crop then its my baby ; no ifs buts or maybes.Thats what we have insurance for.
In most cases an apology and an attempt to fill in holes in the lawn etc suffices esp. if its a once off or rare occurance but if stock are constantly enroaching then thats just taking the p**s
Lads how would you like it if 20 or 30 bullocks came roaring through your yard and ploughed all along the top of the silage pit or burst a few half ton bags of fert.?
You should close the gate if you see cattle on the road but if they come in when you aint there then its hardly your problem if the gates are open
Thought one part of the SFP rules contain a bit re. stockproof boundaries
All I can say is that around here nobody (farmer or otherwise )would put up with cattle constantly roaming.

bob charles

had two cases in the last few years. one involved my animal entering a lawn from my neighbours land after the hunt drove the cattle bonkers and into my neighbours land. Animals then walked a stretch of internal road into the back of his brother lawn. total cost was 2.5k even though there was little damage I had no better to do only let insurance pay up. They seemed to get a serious amount of extra work done and a nice few quid for their pocket aswell. but such is life.

Second incident last year was when dogs drove my animals onto the road and then they ran into lawn about 100m down the road. Damage was pretty minimum and myself and a guy I had working for me spent 5 hrs repairing it. When we finished the lawn was 95% returned to normal. owner wasnt happy so managed to claim a grand off my insurance using a quote off a landscaper I know. Landscaper done 3 hrs work and billed him for €150 in total so the owner trousered the rest. Their are my animals so I can do F all about it. I told my insurance company it was a con, but for the amount of money involved they just pay up.

bob charles

Hitchens wrote: »

A fella I know of had the same problem as the op, neighbouring farmer's stock encroaching on his lawns on a regular basis, constantly complained but your man more or less laughed at him.

So what he did was get a a loan of a humane killer from his brother who worked in an abbattoir and sure enough a short while afterwards he got up early one morning when he heard them on his back lawn, and took down a nice fat bullock with the bolt gun, rang the brother who tore over and bled the beast out and butchered him and into their respective freezers with him.

The long suffering guy then contacted the farmer and complained about the latest incursion, got the usual response, but, it never happened again.
The perp put ads in the local newsletter looking for his 'stray' bullock and your man used to say he often read the ad while enjoying a nice piece of steak.

I wouldn't have the nerve to do what he did myself, but it was a result on the double!

that guy would have a serious problem on his hands if the farmer ever found out. Sounds like a pub story

Hitchens

bob charles wrote: »

that guy would have a serious problem on his hands if the farmer ever found out.

It's no country for old men ...and getting worse!

whelan1

dzer2 wrote: »

We have electric gates that are always closed the cattle came down the road and leaped overthe 3 foot wall nocking some of the stonework and ploughed the two lawns. we had cc tv put in at the garage to stop heating oil being lifted. We got a landscaper in to rectify the lawns and repair the trees and hedging. We have lived here 15 years and some trees were mkaturing nicely all were replaced. We got our costs and the contractor paid that is all we asked for.

and did he pay up?

sink_or_swim

bennyineire wrote: »

Hey there guys, I built a house in the country about 5 years back and I have had alot of problems with my elderly farmers cattle coming into my lawn.
I have gates which I usually close but sometimes when people visit they forget to close them.
Anyway my neighbours cattle are constaly getting into my lawn and distroying it, I would say that they get into my lawn about 4 - 7 times a year.
My neighbour has never once apologized for this, he is a bachelor in his 70's and he just doesn't seem to care but it is driving me mad.
I spent a couple of days fixing my lawn over the summer (not easy work), but last week 4 cattle got into my lawn and made a right mess, I ran them out of my gerden into my neigbours yard, he was standing there.
i will admit I lost my temper and started shouting "would ya keep your cows out off my garden" he then said to me, "how did they get out", I couldn't believe what he said.
I honestly beleive he thinks its up yo me to keep his cattle of MY lawn, what do you guys think and what do you think my next course of action should be.

have you any place you could hold theese cattle for a period of time

if you have some kind of yard , the next time they pay a visit , close them in , ring the department of agriculture and tell them that stray cattle are on your property , that they look ill and you fear they may have some disease , the dept will be out in jig time , the whole thing should smarten your inconsiderate neighbour

if you have no place to hold them , lock them into your property and refuse to allow your neighbour access to retrieve them until he coughs up ( in cash ) the cost of damage , if he bulls on in , call the guards and do him for tresspassing , ring the dept aswell and tell them very ill looking cattle are on your lawn , make sure you dont say who owns them and play dumb if its pointed out to you that the cattle belong to your neighbour

this thing is passed being settled amicabley

Markcheese

bob charles wrote: »

had two cases in the last few years. one involved my animal entering a lawn from my neighbours land after the hunt drove the cattle bonkers and into my neighbours land. Animals then walked a stretch of internal road into the back of his brother lawn. total cost was 2.5k even though there was little damage I had no better to do only let insurance pay up. They seemed to get a serious amount of extra work done and a nice few quid for their pocket aswell. but such is life.

Second incident last year was when dogs drove my animals onto the road and then they ran into lawn about 100m down the road. Damage was pretty minimum and myself and a guy I had working for me spent 5 hrs repairing it. When we finished the lawn was 95% returned to normal. owner wasnt happy so managed to claim a grand off my insurance using a quote off a landscaper I know. Landscaper done 3 hrs work and billed him for €150 in total so the owner trousered the rest. Their are my animals so I can do F all about it. I told my insurance company it was a con, but for the amount of money involved they just pay up.

You've got some pretty lousey neighbours... Did you not just pass the first bill/ complaint onto the hunt... ?? I think if their dogs were any where nere mine again I'd have the gun out( if I had a gun)
Think I would have rung the Gardai about the second case ... Or the insurance company or the A-team or some one

dzer2

whelan1 wrote: »

and did he pay up?

Only after the sherriff was sent:D:D

MMFF

bennyineire wrote: »

Hey there guys, I built a house in the country about 5 years back and I have had alot of problems with my elderly farmers cattle coming into my lawn.
I have gates which I usually close but sometimes when people visit they forget to close them.
Anyway my neighbours cattle are constaly getting into my lawn and distroying it, I would say that they get into my lawn about 4 - 7 times a year.
My neighbour has never once apologized for this, he is a bachelor in his 70's and he just doesn't seem to care but it is driving me mad.
I spent a couple of days fixing my lawn over the summer (not easy work), but last week 4 cattle got into my lawn and made a right mess, I ran them out of my gerden into my neigbours yard, he was standing there.
i will admit I lost my temper and started shouting "would ya keep your cows out off my garden" he then said to me, "how did they get out", I couldn't believe what he said.
I honestly beleive he thinks its up yo me to keep his cattle of MY lawn, what do you guys think and what do you think my next course of action should be.

If you have a shotgun you are well within your rights to use it

Markcheese

Is there anything cheap you can fit to an ordinary gate to open and close it mechanically, I dunno a spring or something, even if it just closed ... Does your gate keep your kids in as well as cattle out... ?