It sounds so very “of the times” the sorta story where a person goes to a random business to ask permission to enter the property across the street that the business has nothing to do with and then that person is pursued by the owner’s dogs, falls, hits their head and sues.
Stranger things have definitely happened 
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Was it me, I’d go across the street to that business and tell them that if the tappers come back to complain about their buckets, to contact you about them.
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You should also be very concerned about protecting yourself. If he got hurt and it went to trial the attorney fees alone would be painful and you could even lose. The taps and pots could be used to indicate he had implied permission to enter your property - at least to retrieve them. Also, by posting your dog’s behavior here you have indicated you know they can do harm. It could be argued that you are under obligation. See What If My Dog Bites a Trespasser? | AllLaw
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Mystery Fully Solved – All is Well!
Thanks to everyone who helped me talk out this maple sap situation. I’m happy to announce there will be no property wars. The mystery tapper turned out to be a local hobbyist who made a mistake in where property lines were. He found our note after coming 10 days later to check on the buckets and immediately called me. I had already put back the buckets after learning it was an honest mistake of asking the business across the street for permission. He was very apologetic about getting confused where the property lines where since he felt he had permission from the business across the street to use “their land.” I’m now convinced it was an honest miscommunication.
He had just bought a brand new evaporator for the season and was excited to try it out so he went around to local businesses asking if he could tap their trees in exchange for some syrup. We immediately hit it off on the phone and I said we’d be fine with him tapping the trees this year since we had no plans to. He said he’d text me before coming onto our land, and I’d make sure the dogs were inside. He invited us over to the inaugural evaporator party where they’ll make the syrup.
This situation had the best of possible outcomes but it was also good to talk through things with you guys just in case it would have been a stickier situation. Thanks again.
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I would definitely put Beware of Dogs and No Trespassing signs on the border, just for precautions.
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glad it worked out for both of you.
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A fabulous resolution!
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The laws are very basic. You can cut limbs off a tree we’re the limbs overhang. I let my neighbor harvest the fruit that hangs over…it’s the law too. If a tree is on the property line either party can remove it at their expense. Best thing is to know where the property line is. Than reach an agreement if you can. If you can’t get some advice from the local sheriff.
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Very Good Young Friend!
Glad it worked out well for everyone. Mistakes happen all the time and like you said there is no trouble. Some of the best situations in my life came from my ability to look at things from someone else’s point of view. Once people know your that type of person it’s easy to build successful networks. People have given me gifts worth thousands of dollars for things I’ve done for them that i hardly remember doing. A cattle farmer as an example moved in a nearby house once and they were struggling so I gave them hay to feed their cows that winter. Happened to have excess hay that year which helped them get established. The next year they gave me half a beef. Yes that’s 800 pounds of beef. In your case your kindness may reward you with fresh maple syrup that otherwise you would not have. Wished everyone understood most people are not trying to get over on them.
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The police will typically say it’s a civil matter because it is if it is nothing more than a property dispute. Sometimes surveyors need involved and lawyers to settle things if the conflict is big enough. Some states these conflicts turn really nasty. As an example if the fence has been in place for years dont try to move it even if it is set wrong by a few feet in your favor. Those are legal matters. Fences sometimes are removed and cattle roam. The person that cut the fencing may be liable for hundreds of thousands of dollars or more. If a fence is cut and a bull winds up standing in the highway when a family hits it and dies it gets real ugly for the fence cutter and rightly so. Most of the time none of these problems happen and everyone looks to resolve any issues.
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