Living in a rural area we see many dogs that are dropped off on nearby highways and left to fend for themselves. In the past three years I have had 7 horses left in my pastures by owners who apparently could no longer afford to care for them. We take the horses to a local vet where he tries to find homes for them. We do not have an animal control department that can come out and get stray dogs like they do in more urban areas so we have a couple of choices. We can let the dogs roam around until they are killed on the road, die of starvation, killed by a coyotes or begin chasing calves for food or we can get rid of the animals in the most humane way available.
I have neighbors and they have dogs. Occasionally Fluffy will wander onto my property and I will give him a dog biscuit and he will wander on back home eventually. We try to catch any dog that is collared or acts extremely friendly and will take these animals into town hoping they find a home. This happens 8-10 times every year as most dogs are friendly and just want to be petted. My daughter would keep every stray in the state if I let her. Shooting dogs may sound barbaric and inhumane but, when you look at the options available, it is probably the best.
