DEATH OF A DOG

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 1, Issue 36, 14 July 1939, Page 5

DEATH OF A DOG

MAORI DROVER'S CLAIM FAILS ; 4- ' a ; u?'" V ! DRIyER;,NOT NEGLIGENT Damages amounting to £10 were I sought from Takarua Tamarau, far. mer, of by Krujer Tuhoo, a drover, who claimed the amount as the value of a dog alleged to have been killed by a truck owned by defendant. The case was heard before Mr E. L. Walton, S.M. Tuhoe's story was that he was fining along a straight, narrow road to muster sheep. His two dogs were running beside the horse. He saw defendant's truck coming towards him and he pulled over to the left of the road and called the dogs in. The -Jog which was killed was near the centre of the road when the truck ran over il at a fairly fast rate. It did not swerve and went some distance before it pulled up. The dog was a well, trained sheep and cattle dog, worth from £25 to £30. • To Mr Otley he said the dog was just off the chain and was running about near the middle of the road. He gave varying answers to questions on the dog's actual position, relative to the horse. Moe Terewetr who was riding on horseback behind the~ truck, said it did not slow up before hitting ne dog. It was not going very fast. He could see the plaintiff and his dogs from behind the truck. Mr Otlev, submitting that plaintilf had failed to prove negligence, asked for a non-suit. Mr Smith, for plaintiff, said that the fact that it was a level road 5 that the dog was in the centre of the road, and that the truck did not stop untii it h.°..d H gone some distance proved negligence. He quoted decisions on cases where dogs had been killed. Mr Walton said that it did not amount to negligence if a driver <jid not stop or swerve to avoid a dog. Mr Justice, Rekl had said that there was no obligation to swerve to avoid a dog. No one, however, had the right to commit mischief by deliberately running over a dog. He could not see Avhere negligence arose in this case and thought , that plaintiff had failed to prove his case. He gave judgment for the defendant with costs.