Dogs and my neighbors

The BBQ Pit
#1

Why is it that I have to have two neighbors that have dogs that bark constantly? WTF is up with that?

It’s one thing when I let my dog out (he primarily inside) and he barks for a couple of minutes till I realize it and let him in.

Well, leave it up to my fucking next door neighbors to let out their three boxer type, assholes-on-four-legs outside and they bark for no fucking reason. This was not a two minute deal, this was constant barking that lasted for 10-15 minutes. What makes it worse is my bedroom looks right out on their backyard with two very large windows that do not insulate noise.

My other neighbors have a dalmation that during the summer time I can hear bark in their house. He/she barks because the moon is up, the sky is blue, a piece of dust flew by it’s face. This poor thing needs space and lots of running but it’s couped up all day while they are at work so it barks and barks and barks. Dalmations are not meant for people who don’t have a lot of time to spend.

Yes I was awakened by their fucking dogs this morning. I was the one that yelled to their dogs to shut the fuck up. Why the fuck didn’t they do it?

What I don’t get is I train my dog not to bark at a fly like some dogs do. Dogs should not be a pain in the ass for your neighbors. There is no excuse in my eyes for this. If your dog is barking, put it inside. I know my neighbor is home right now…

On top of that my neighbor is a 911 operator and works the late night shift, you’d think she’d have more sense than that. She of all people should know that not all people keep 8-5 jobs and do work wacky hours. She should know that barking dogs are not welcomed at any hour of the day.

One of these days I am going to record her dogs barking and blast it at an hour I KNOW she’s asleep. Their bedroom window is not that far from mine…

Ah if only I were the type to take revenge.

DAMNIT I am tired.

#2

Just curious, were the doggies barking outside your window BEFORE you started going commando?

#3

Why do people need a dog license but can’t have it revoked for cruelty to the dog?

And why does my neighbor get mad at ME for calling Animal Control on her dog (Evil Dalmation) when SHE leaves it out to roam the neighborhood all day?

And why does she keep leaving it out repeatedly?

And why won’t she pay the emergency room bill for the three stitches that my son has on his face from the bite from her dog? (He was in our yard, the dog ran up, bit him, and ran off!)

BTW - I like to take the cordless phone out in the yard and call the neighbor at work and leave five minutes of barking on her voicemail. I can imagine that if she listens to her voicemail on the speakerphone like most people, she has some explaining to do! I have also ordered “doggie-porn” and had it sent to her boss with her name as the orderer - gift card and everything!

#4

I’ve had neighbor dog problems, but my method might not make your dog happy. I use packs of lady finger firecrackers. Yup, after they start barking, I light em up and throw them in their general direction (not to hurt them) while telling them to shut up. Some dogs learn fast, 1 time, others 3-4 times. It has worked for all but one of the dogs I had a problem with, so now when I say “shut up” they know what might be next. BLAM BANG Bappity bappity pop pop. Smart dogs catch on quick. And the neighbors, fuck em if they are that inconsiderate. In Florida, we can buy fireworks as a deterant for bird problems. “Sorry (officer/neighbor) I was just trying to get those nasty crows out of my tree.”
Good Luck.

Cynical,
Hehe, doggie porn, love that one.
I really liked the phone message idea too. Definately done at the wrong time for the owners sleep.

later, Tom

#5

The neighbors behind me have two Chows. It’s just disgusting. Those dogs never leave their little pen. They stink. The big black one beats up on the smaller red one occasionally. He’s mean. Right now I have a pile of fire wood in that corner so that the kids won’t get over there near the fence. When you go near his part of the fence he approaches and growls at you. They bark occasionally but it doesn’t bother me. What does bother me is the condtions they live in. If the owners are cleaning that pen, I’ve never been around to see it. If they ever take those dogs out, nobody in my house has ever seen it. Nobody goes in there and plays with them either. They do have two boys, one is a teen the other a little younger. Are the dogs their pets? If they are then the boys don’t ever seem to play with them. I’d call animal control but the neighbors have already done that before. I think it’s cruel to lock those animals up like that and never exercise them or pay them any attention. Those dogs must be getting a little age on them now, they were there when I moved in and it’ll be 5 years this year. What an exsistance. I feel so sorry for them. Yet I can’t stand them either.

Needs2know

#6

Good idea hflathead!!! My best friend used to live next door and had two dogs, a lab and a shepherd, and they would not shut up. Thier pen was right next to our house, the same side as our bedrooms and family room. The barking would echo down our chimney. I was so close to calling the police but it was hard because they were our friends. Across the street there is another shepherd that would never shut up. Every exhale this dog made was a string of four barks. Bark Bark Bark Bark. Bark Bark Bark Bark. Every minute of every day for about four years. We have huge yards and they kept this poor dog in a kennel as far from their house as possible. We told them about the problem but they didn’t do anything. Finally the next door neighbors moved and the dog across the street chewed his kennel to pieces, peace at last. I WISH. People moved in behind us with a sheperd that never stops barking, the hysterical barking of a dog in a fenced in back yard CHAINED TO A FENCE. What the hell do these people get dogs for. I can rant for hours on this topic, I think I will try the fircracker thing instead.

#7

No barking problems here (thank heaven), but I have a dog story.

Boomer spends his mornings on the enclosed porch, and he loves everyone except the mailman.

But the mailman – Boom’s barking and growling as soon as he can see the guy, and he barks until the guy’s out of sight. We figure it has something to do with the uniform, because we’ve had different mailmen (and ladies) and Boomer hates all of them.

The only other person he’s ever barked at is one of our neighbors. We’d been wondering about that until last weekend, when we were talking with the neighbor (in his yard, not ours) and he told us he used to be a mailman.

Maybe this should have gone in the Very Vaguely Creepy thread. I think it’s weird.

#8

Dalmatian.

Dalmatian.

Dalmatian.
It’s a pet peeve. Sorry. Carry on.

#9

Our dogs go outside to do what dogs do and then bark to be let back in and rarely bark at anyone when they are outside. They are completely different inside the house and bark at almost everyone who comes through the door. I am the only one they listen to when they are told to shut up. This drives Lola crazy when I am at work. I think that they consider me the Alpha male and don’t feel as much need to protect things when I am at home.

My neighbours dog is another story. “Rudy” is just a fucking psycho. He gets put outside and barks incessantly, he barks at everyone and everything including me. He has started to listen when I tell him to shut up and next year I am going to use the hose on him… I don’t give a flying fuck what my neighbour thinks. He also barks when he’s inside the house and since we live in a townhouse we hear him.

What gets me is that it isn’t Rudy’s fault, he is actually a big sweetie and wouldn’t harm a fly. My cat goes over to play with him or share the back porch on summer afternoons. His owner is clueless when it comes to training a dog and about as clueless when it comes to raising children but that’s another story.

I almost lost it the other day when this womans father came to take Rudy out… Rudy is barking his head off and this guy walks up to him and starts telling Rudy what a good boy he is and gives him a treat.

I don’t like telling people what to do but in this case I am going to make an exception…

#10

FUCKING A, I AM ABOUT TO GO BALLASTIC ON A NEIGHBORS ASS

For once I finally was able to get my ass to bed at a semi-decent hour and attempt to get in my nine hours of sleep that I have been deprived of for literally weeks. I was actually able to get to bed and crash by 1:30 am. For at least 2 weeks I have not been able to go to sleep before 3:00 am, most nights at 5:00 am.

But NO.

My fucking neighbors let their sorry excuse for dogs outside at about 6:15 this morning.

Those little fuckers didn’t have continuous barking but enough to wake me up.

Okay, at 6:15 in the morning your dogs should be let outside to do their thing then brought back in. That’s like mowing your lawn at that hour. That’s simple courtesy. Fuck, this pisses me off, especially knowing that the bitch next door works weird hours.

I don’t know them well enough to just walk next door and ask them if they can contain their dogs.

If I don’t get a few nights of good sleep I am going to go insane. I am sleepy, shaky from lack of sleep and my temper is beyond short. I can’t concentrate and overall I feel like crap.

Fucking neighbors.

#11

Techie,
I have a suggestion (before you go nuts and kill them, as I’ve been tempted to do on occasion myself). Write your neighbor a note, calmly explaining the problem and how it affects you- people tend to believe they are the only ones on earth until someones points out otherwise. Make a copy of this letter for your records. If the barking continues, mail or leave the EXACT same note, dated appropriately. Continue this for a few weeks. If it continues, try to tape record the barking along with the time it is occuring.

Then call your local animal control officer and give them all the info- we had a problem barker in our neighborhood, did this exact thing and reported the neighbor, and now ANONYMOUSLY if any of us call and report a problem, the neighbor is fined $30. Each and every time. Believe me, when those dogs start, they are taken in immediately.

#12

I agree with zette that before you call animal control, you should keep a log of the exact times/dates that the barking is going on. A note to the neighbor is a good idea, maybe even by certified mail, so you have a delivery signature. Do other neighbors share your outrage? My mother-in-law just signed a petition about a nuisance dog in her neighborhood, I think it was for the homeowners’ association.

As sad as it is, a “nuisance” is not really a nuisance until it’s official.

Remember too that some breeds are just stupid, and are only trainable to a certain extent. Don’t get me wrong, I am a HUGE dog lover. But I have met some dogs that seem to have the IQ of a radish, and no matter how many times you go over something, they are clueless. I have noticed this in beagles, some chows, several dalmations (who also have a pretty major biting problem sometimes), though never with shepherds. Maybe the shepherd is just really pissed and taking it out on everyone.

Good luck, please don’t do anything cruel or illegal, even if the fantasy is very satisfying…

#13

I swear I think all you guys live in my neigborhood. I have two large dogs that I have worked very hard to keep from being problem barkers. If there is a person coming towards by back yard, the lab will go crazy. Otherwise he only barks to be let in or say “Hi”. My neighbor has two dogs that bark ALL THE TIME. With the recent time change they start an hour earlier now. They usually start around 1:00 am and continue until 4:00 am. Like you, I cannot imagine this guy sitting in his house either not hearing it (he’s closer than I am, for Pete’s sake) or hearing it and not realizing that it could possible bother someone.
An even bigger problem for me are the people on the other side of me. I am afraid that they are going to think it is coming from my back yard. I have no way of proving that my dogs aren’t the ones doing it except that 1) My dogs sleep with me so they aren’t outside, and 2) my dogs sound different (to me, anyways). I have taken to leaning out the window and yelling at them and finally the guy next door has caught on. Maybe if the neighbor sees others making an effort to calm the dogs down he will begin to realize that this is a problem. Poor doggies probably want some attention.

#14

I appreciate the suggestions.

I would never do anything to hurt the dogs, ever. Although I did yell out the window, “Shut the fuck up” pretty damn loud so I think that a note is worthless at this point.

Well tonight I am going to try to get to bed early (like that ever works) and hopefully try this again.

#15

Dear Neighbor:

This is just a note to let you know that if you don’t keep those barking shit factories on four legs quiet, I am going to come over an place a muzzle on your face, tie your hands and legs together like a rodeo calf, expose your genitals and dip your body in a tub filled with dry ice.

Thank you,

Your neighbor with the quiet dog

#16

The nice method:

Hello,
I wanted to drop you a note to address an issue you may not be aware of.

Several of your neighbors have been disrupted by your barking dogs, and I want to make you aware of it so that steps can be taken to remedy the situation. Everyone understands that dogs bark from time to time, but when barking goes on for extended periods of time (more then 5 minutes, for example), regardless of the time of day, it becomes a nuiscance.

This situation could easily be resolved if you would please let your dogs back into the house when they begin barking so that the neighborhood does not have to be awakened or disturbed by them. It would really be appreciated by many people, particularly those with infants or elderly people living in their homes.

I hope this letter is recieved in the spirit in which it is intended- a polite request to address an issue that has been affecting many of us for quite some time. Problems like nuiscance barking can put a great strain on neighborly relations, and I hope that this letter will prevent any further action from being taken. Many neighbors have become irate enough to call the police or dog warden, but I thought you should have the chance to remedy the problem before it came to that.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and I wish many happy years for both you and your dogs.

Sincerely,
Techchick, concerned neighbor

Now, if THAT doesn’t work, I can compose a real nasty-gram. At any rate, that’s the sort of thing you want to send and photocopy so when he/she DOESN’T comply, you can give it to the proper people and prove that you have been nothing but nice about this and they are jerkfaces for letting it continue.

Along the same lines, they sell a device that works up to 30 feet, I believe, that sends out a nasty sound to the dogs, supposedly training them out of barking. I didn’t try this method, as the house was too far away, but it may work for you.

Good luck!
Zette, responsible dog owner and diplomat

#17

Thanks for the rational letter but at the moment my version is what I am thinking. I will appreciate the words, I just may use those.

I am so freaking tired and my rational thinking is shot.

Besides, my version is more fun for The Pit.

#18

Zette, that was masterful.

#19

EJs- thanks. I am a most rational negotiator. However, steer clear when things don’t go MY WAY. It gets ugly quick :wink:

Zette

Good luck, techie. Get some earplugs before you go completely insane!

#20

Call Animal Control. Whatever your neighbor’s deal is they cannot allow their dogs to bark constantly. Oh, how do I know? Been there. My neighbor’s dog barks non-stop from the moment they let him out to the moment they take him in. This dog is so fucking wired he barks at his owner when she pulls up!

He barks at EVERYTHING! Leaves falling, people walking, a car parking… it’s insane! I’ve called and complained for 8 years so let me give you the inside scoop if you really want it to stop… get a video camera. Have video PROOF of what is going on. Provide Animal Control with tapes that show the dog barking and try to capture WHAT the dog is barking at or the fact that the dog is barking at nothing. (This works for “at loose dogs too”)

After YEARS of calling and complaining, my tape made the difference. They had 30 days to solve the problem or the dog would be removed. They opted for keeping the dog in the back yard but it kept barking (which I recorded) and they are now about 10 days from losing the dog.

And I have to say nix to the fire cracker idea. Don’t do anything to further antagonize the dog. Hey folks, a major heads up; it’s not the DOG that is to blame; it’s the fucking owner. A dog learns by what it’s owner TELLS it is okay. Don’t harm the dog or make it worse. Always remember to direct your disgust at the owner, not the dog.

I say this because some folks go around and poison dogs thinking this is a good idea. It’s not. These dogs are really not to blame; the owner is. I’m not recommending poisoning the owner either (although I like that idea more…) But you really shouldn’t take the law into your own hands.

AuntiePam – my dog ALSO hates the mailman… I don’t know why. She loves the UPS guy but anyway… my dog can only see the mailman from inside the house so her barking is minimized and short lived; however, my neighbor’s dog is barking at him and everything else.

Feynn – echo, echo, that’s exactly what I’m saying. It’s not the DOG it’s the fucking clueless OWNER!

Zette – bingo!