Property ownership and legal stand point

[jobarker1969]

My neighbour who lives in an adjoining flat has placed a squirel trap on a shared wall. This has been in place for about 1 month and so far he hasn't caught anything. He has been throwing golf balls into our garden to scare them off also. I have collected 5 so far! Today I came home and found a little terrified squirel in said trap which had landed on part of my property. I let the little chap go and have brought the trap indoors so that the man can't use it again. What are my rights if the neighbour comes and asks for this back? Am I legally allowed to keep this as it fell, presumably when the trap was sprung onto my property?

[Carakeel]

I think you might find that you have to give him his trap back, as it is his property. He actually is not doing anything illegal, unless he leaves the poor little things in there for longer periods. Then it can be seen as animal cruelty and you could report him to the RSPCA. Squirrels can actually be quite dangerous and can deliver a fierce bite, as cute as they are. Apparently, they do have to be killed if they are caught, as they are not indigenous to this country. This does not give your neighbour the right to throw things into your garden though. He may well be trying to keep them out of the house. They can cause a lot of damage if they do get indoors. I was amazed that when my mother was in hospital, a women in the next room to her nearly died, because she had been feeding the squirrels at her hospital window. When she was then put on a drip, they came in through the window and ate through her drip line. They will have a go at anything if given half a chance. They will even chew their way through timbers in the loft , if they get under your roof and use all the insulation for bedding. Doesn't stop them being so cute, but you do need to see both sides of the story.

[joko]

claim you know nothing about it, because you are not legally allowed to keep other peoples property simply because it happened to fall on your land

[Ethel]

You are not allowed to keep the trap and should return it.

You should tell your neighbour to stop throwing balls into your garden.

You have broken the law by releasing a trapped squirrel - you should have killed it.

The RSPCA will never be interested in a distressed squirrel - they are classed as vermin. No different to leaving a rat in a trap.

[RATTER15]

Sorry Ethel, whilst you may be correct in saying that they wont be interested in a squirrel or a rat in a trap, ethically they are still animals and are supposed to attend, we are talking humane traps here where an animal could stay trapped in this so called humane trap/cage until it starves to death if left unattended.

I agree that sometimes they will not attend as I have found myself, In my work as a Pest Controller I am frequently called out to animals in distress when the RSPCA have refused to attend for one reason or the other.
The main reason for them not attending in my view is the lack of a television camera, you mention TV and they are there in a flash. I hasten to add that in these circumstances I have never turned these people or these animals down, never failed to rescue the said animal and never charged a single penny.

[Ethel]

The main aim of the RSPCA is to bring cruel animail owners into court and get them banned from keeping animals for a period.
To rescue these abused animals, treat them or destroy them as appropriate, and rehome where possible.

They are NOT in the least interested in vermin. Unless a person is showing deliberate, unusual and extreme cruelty to the point of perversion, they simply will not respond. They do not have the resources.

[RATTER15]

The trouble is Ethel, no one told the rat and the squirrel that no one is looking out for them, they don't realise that they are vermin and should be allowed to die under such circumstances, perhaps the top management fat cats at the RSPCA should take a long hard look at their salaries and the resources at the RSPCA and try to justify themselves.

Ethel I'm not having a go at you, I have had so many dealings with the RSPCA I know how they work, I have spent so many hours freeing cats, dogs, gulls, rabbits, you name it, I been there.

Look I have been a pest controller for 13 + years I have destroyed more animals than I have saved. I can put my hand on my heart and say that I have done everything in my power to prevent any animal suffering, whilst knowing that I have had to kill them, yes I have had many a moral dilemma and hope I always acted on behalf of the creature concerned. It is unfortunate that in most circumstances humans health comes above the health of these animals but that's life and if I didn't control these creatures, someone else will, one way or another, generally speaking my way is more humane.

I step down from my box to make room!! Phew!!!

[Carakeel]

I totally agree with Ratter on this one. Thank God there are pest control officers out there who, unlike what most people think, actually do care a great deal for all creatures! I know someone who until recently was a dedicated RSPCA inspector and doing a very worthwhile and hard job. I can tell you that she would be siding with Ratter herself here, as I have had a similar conversation with her before. At that time she was disgusted that some of the top people in the RSPCA were getting very high salaries, while our local office was totally underfunded, dilapidated and and drowning in animals. The staff there were working themselves to death trying to make the best of a dire situation.

[Ethel]

Ratter - we seem to be at cross purposes here!

I fully understand that you do a difficult and sometimes harrowing job. I also know that you do your damnedest to make sure the animals are killed as quickly and humanely as possible.

I fully support the RSPCA - I donate monthly - and understand where there priorities must lie. I too have seen extreme and intended cruelty against pets and working animals.

Like you I am not starry eyed about animals, but realistic. Whilst I do not kill the grey squirrels and rats that cross my property, I have no problem with one neighbour who shoots them and another who traps and drowns them.

I would not hesitate to call out a pest controller like yourself, and believe me, I do wish you well. :)

Apologies to jobarker for the hijack of her post.

[Eve]

There a site here with all kinds of squirrel info including saying not to contact the RSPCA due to their vermin policy and giving some useful advice on looking after poorly injured squirrels (in case he gets any more of the poor little things) and suggests contacting the Fox Project's squirrel adviceline on 0906-272-4477 (calls charged at 25p/min).

Link is www.squirrels.info.

As regards property you may find this interesting...http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles /news/news.html?in_article_id=403460&in_page_i d=1770&in_page_id=1770&expand=true

[RATTER15]

Thank you Ethel for kind words and so glad you didnt take it to heart.

when you see the guy doing the drowning thing try and hold his head under the water for a few minutes, far kinder ways of doing it.

Anyway nuff said.

Thanks jobarker for letting me vent my spleen.

[woodchopper]

Just to clarify - it is illegal to trap Red Squirrels as they are protected in this country ( UK ) and are indigenous - but not Grey Squirrels which are classed as vermin and can be trapped but not released again resulting in the need to bash them on the back of the napper with a good stout stick.

[Bevron]

I think you would have been within your rights to release the squirrel from the trap because it was on your property. To back this up I would mention nothing about it being on the wall and just say you found it in your garden thus implying that the trap had been set in your garden. Roman law states that if a squirrel is a res nullius ie, it belongs to noone because it is a wild animal. As for the trap, possession is 9/10ths of the law. You have found the trap in your garden, on your property and therefore by taking possession of it you are not necessarily committing theft (dont admit you knew it was his).

[boomster]

our neighbour bought his house from the Council and our's is still Council owned and the two properties are joined. No problem with that. However, our neighbour has got a builder to erect a lean-to on her back-door patio and the supporting frame side struts and plastic roof panels encroach a good 3" over our side of a dividing garden wall. Apart from looking an eyesore, rainwater will run onto our side of the wall and cause damp problems with the wall.We have only just removed internal mould and decorated inside and
can't afford to repeatedly decorate. Moreover, we feel this is a ***
cheek, as we did make it quite clear to the builder as soon as we realised what he was about to do.
I feel like cutting off the offending protrusion. Am I within my legal right to do so? If, perhaps, you've had a similar experience, or know of someone who has, I'd be most grateful for any helpful and useful advice regarding the said matter.