Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Re: dog killed neighbor's sheep

How much does a sheep cost? Send me an email.

Best,

Daniel Bakondi, Esq.

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Re: dog killed neighbor's sheep

Generally, in CA, dog owners are strictly liable for the damage caused by their dogs which bite. She could likely recover the reasonable value of the sheep if she decided to press her claim against you. The circumstances of how she acquired the sheep are not all that important.

You should settle this.

Re: dog killed neighbor's sheep

Your neighbor is entitled to recover the fair value of the sheep regardless of what she paid for it. Getting the sheep for free was a windfall for her, not for you. Whether she paid nothing for it or a million dollars doesn't matter; your dog deprived her of a sheep and you owe her either an equivalent sheep or enough money to buy one.

My answer presumes that the sheep was kept as livestock, not as a pet. If it was a pet then you would also owe her for her lost emotional attachment to the animal. Settling for its fair value would be a much better deal for you than for her.

Re: dog killed neighbor's sheep

I want to modify my prior answer somewhat.

Your neighbor is entitled to the value of the sheep minus the fair value of its fleece (or for any other portion of its remains) that she either has sold or can reasonably be expected to sell. If she sheared the sheep after the attack and sold the fleece, then she has already recovered part of the sheep's value and you only have to pay for the rest. If she still has the fleece but hasn't found a buyer yet, you should be entitled either to keep the fleece if you pay the full value of the sheep or to a judgment that deducts the value of the fleece from the value of the animal.