Wildlife walk incident

gzoladz

Wildlife walk with the kids in a Dublin park...glorious sunny morning...the three of us with binoculars/camera in hand...then one of the dogs off leash comes running towards us, jumps on me (luckily on me, and not on one of the kids) and damages with his tooth one of the lens of my binocular (model is anecdotic, but it is not a cheap one).

I approached the owner who gives me the usual "she was just playing, etc"...I explained that her dog is after causing damage to my binoculars and that I'd like her to go with me to the Garda station to file a report, the dog owner came along.

Long story short...for the Garda this was an "unfortunate accident", "there is nothing they can do", "those things happen", "we are not getting involved".

It did not matter that the dog owner had the dog off leash at a time and a place where this is not allowed (this the Garda made very clear), caused property damaged, etc,

I asked for future reference what my options are if this happens against...can I just defend myself if a dog comes running towards me? "Just ring the station" I get...now I know...

Apologies for the rant, I had to get it off my chest.

Take away lesson...never go on a walk again without my walking stick.

I think sue in small claim courts

What was your motivation for bringing her to the Garda station? Did you ask her to compensate you for the damage and she refused or were you intent on pressing charges regardless?

seamus

The Garda was technically right. Matters of accidental property damage are a civil issue. A Garda can be called as a witness, and they may assist in getting personal details for you, but they don't get involved in pursuing civil matters on your behalf.

The dog being off-lead in a place that it's not permitted is a bye-law issue and a matter for the local authorities or dog warden to deal with, really.

The Gardai will really only get involved if the dog has caused significant property damage or attacked someone. This is where it may be a criminal matter.

Damage caused by dogs is one of strict liability; in other words if the dog causes damage, the owner is liable for the costs and basically cannot contest it. But if they won't pay up, you have to sue them in court.

However you are entitled to use reasonable means to defend yourself or your property from a loose dog. This doesn't mean you can carry a cattle prod around with you, but a sharp whip with a stick or a blast of an air horn would be acceptable measures.

gzoladz

[Deleted User] wrote: »

I think sue in small claim courts

Thanks, I am exploring this option.

gzoladz

[Deleted User] wrote: »

What was your motivation for bringing her to the Garda station? Did you ask her to compensate you for the damage and she refused or were you intent on pressing charges regardless?

We didn't get into compensation discussions as she denied the dog had caused the damage.

The motivation to bring her to the station was to file a report to have some sort of record to use in the future. I don't know if that was the best course of action but the alternative was to let her go.

griffdaddy

Which park was it? If it was a Dublin City Council Park before 11am the dog would more than likely have been allowed off leash

gzoladz

seamus wrote: »

The Garda was technically right. Matters of accidental property damage are a civil issue. A Garda can be called as a witness, and they may assist in getting personal details for you, but they don't get involved in pursuing civil matters on your behalf.

The dog being off-lead in a place that it's not permitted is a bye-law issue and a matter for the local authorities or dog warden to deal with, really.

The Gardai will really only get involved if the dog has caused significant property damage or attacked someone. This is where it may be a criminal matter.

Damage caused by dogs is one of strict liability; in other words if the dog causes damage, the owner is liable for the costs and basically cannot contest it. But if they won't pay up, you have to sue them in court.

However you are entitled to use reasonable means to defend yourself or your property from a loose dog. This doesn't mean you can carry a cattle prod around with you, but a sharp whip with a stick or a blast of an air horn would be acceptable measures.

Thanks, this is very helpful... My intention is to file a claim in the small claims court, but I need to do some research.... For that I need full details of the lady, but the Garda says they would only give that to my solicitor (but I don't think I need one for the scc...) Anyway, I need to do some research.

gzoladz

griffdaddy wrote: »

Which park was it? If it was a Dublin City Council Park before 11am the dog would more than likely have been allowed off leash

Actually, the lady said the dog was ok off leash at that time (and she sounded convincing) but the Garda disputed that...

Princess Calla

gzoladz wrote: »

Actually, the lady said the dog was ok off leash at that time (and she sounded convincing) but the Garda disputed that...

I think st anne's in raheny is 11.

I try to bring the kids after this time as I hate dogs near my kids and it bugs the sh*te out of me when dogs come bounding through the bushes after this time.

One thing this last year has shown me is a fair proportion of dog owners are selfish inconsiderate w*nkers.

magicbastarder

even if the park bye laws allow the dog off the leash, it's still supposed to be under the control of the owner, who is still responsible for the dog's actions.

gzoladz

Attitude is the main problem...if there was care and consideration from dog owners to other park users, very few of them would complaint.

But there seems to be no awareness that some kids (and some adults) are affraid of dogs, don't like them jumping on you after playing in the mud, chasing you when you try to have a picknick and fouling everywhere (lately sport fields, where kids play, seem to have become the dog's toilet of choice).

Del.Monte

Far too many clueless, selfish people have pets (dogs in particular) and in general there are far too many dogs in the country - just my own experience. OP sue all around you.

fryup

can you upload a pic of the damage ?