I have a pretty big dog that hangs out on his runner a lot of the day…i have some elderly neighbors that are always out in their yard working. The old bag hates big dogs and carries a stick and shakes it at hime everytime he so much as looks at her. So, he then barks at her. She has made a point over and over again to “shut him up”…I bring him him as soon as I hear him barking at her, yet she still feels the need to bitch at me.
How would you handle this?
I am at the point of teaching him to be an attack dog. 
(that was a j.o.k.e. people) well, kind of.
Perhaps your frail, elderly neighbor finds the presence of a large dog threatening, even if there is no way the dog could get at her. This fear then spoils her enjoyment of her time in her garden.
There is a dog in a house behind ours that barks. i don’t know what it is barking at, I can’t see over the fence. But it happens for a few minutes, many times during the day and night. It is loud enough to wake me up through a closed window.
I wish the owners could teach the dog not to bark. Like putting on an anti-bark collar, or actually training it or something. I’m not a dog owner so I don’t know what is possible, but surely there must be some remedy.
The reason your elderly neighbor is shaking the stick is so the dog will bark, so that you will have to take the dog in, so that she won’t feel fearful in her garden. If you could teach the dog not to bark, she wouldn’t have anything to complain about. But she would still not be able to enjoy her garden, due to her fear. This would require her to deal with her fear instead of blaming the dog. And would make your other neighbors happy, not having to listen to the damn barking.
Roddy
She sounds like a bitch. Look up your noise ordinances; if your dog is allowed to bark during the day (and I’m betting it is), let it bark. If she complains, tell her shaking her stick gets your dog barking and she should stop. Then ignore her.
I understand she has a right to enjoy her garden, and I don’t think you should provoke her in any way (if the dog is in when she goes out, keep the dog in till she’s done, for example), but she also shouldn’t be dictating what you do in your yard. Establish boundaries NOW; once she gets it in her head that she has any say so about what you and your dog do, she’ll never let up.
I’ve had multiple dogs for about three decades, I also have always had neighbors, and I’m reeeaallly careful to stay within the law and common courtesy with my dogs. So, I think the first thing you should do is make sure you are legally squared away in regards to noise ordinances, dog license, tethering laws and so on. It sounds like you don’t have a fence, so the dog must be on a tie-out or run when he’s outside?
Getting friendlier with the neighbors, building rapport and getting them to realise that shaking a stick will simply make your dog bark more is a good plan, even if the woman is a cranky old biddy.
That said - does your dog actually enjoy being tied out on his runner all day? Does he need to be? I have three dogs plus a foster dog (black Lab, little mutt, Rottweiler, pit bull cross) and a humungous fenced yard, but really the dogs don’t want to spend time in the yard beyond pottying unless I am out there with them. Every one of them would be dismayed if left out by themselves a lot of the day. They get regular walks, runs, classes and what-not to keep them occupied but most dogs want to be where their humans or “pack” are and will start acting out, like barking too much, if left in solitude too much.
So it could be you have a somewhat bored, frustrated and reactive dog tied out alone most days, and he will naturally do what bored, frustrated, solitary dogs do - bark at shit.
You don’t say what breed, how old, and what else he gets to do with his life, which also may be relevant.
You could ask her to come get to know your dog. Put him on a leash, have him sit, and let them get used to each other. With kids, if I can get them to throw a tennis ball for my dog, everyone’s happy.
If (When) she declines, you’ll always be able to blame her for not not getting to know you dog when she complains in the future.
I disagree with miss elizabeth. I would continue to bring in my dog if it were barking, no matter what the noise ordinances are. There are presumably other neighbors than the old lady who will be bothered by this. Don’t be a jerk: it’s not just for message boards.
ETA: If you can get your dog to not bark just because she shakes a stick, then you can leave him out there even if she doesn’t like it.
I want to reiterate that I do not think the OP should be a jerk in any way. It would be mean and wrong to purposely upset your neighbor, or bring the dog out when she is there. But, assuming your dog isn’t outdoors barking all day, you and your dog also have a right to the outdoors. You shouldn’t feel cooped up indoors because of her. And, in my experience, people who cause problems (shaking the stick) and then complain about the results (making you take your dog in) enjoy stirring up trouble, and if you give in on this she will come up with new demands. But, i could be misreading the situation; obviously details are scarce and without more info it’s hard to say for sure.
Anyway, I don’t think you should ever be a jerk. I just don’t think that you should let her control your yard, if you aren’t breaking the law or being a nuisance.
I used training, and familiarizing my dog with the neighbors. If I had to, I’d get a bark collar-- they’ve worked wonders for my friends (and probably saved a lot of bad feelings and anguish).
A barking dog is almost never a happy dog. Given time, even the owner isn’t happy.
A stray thought here - the dog is “pretty big” and from the OP I understand he is on a tie out/zip line set up, and the lady next door is more or less threatening him. I’m thinking that whole scenario needs to stop before the neighbor aggravates the dog enough that he bites her out of frustration or what he feels is self defense. If a fence isn’t possible, how about a kennel run and then block the view to the side where the neighbor is?