# I may have just gotten my neighbor's dog killed, and I don't feel even a little guilty. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 11, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704 "2009-07-11T20:02:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/41 "2009-07-12T15:34:46Z")
> [@King\_Bobo](#): > > SO tired too of hearing that “Fang”, “Chomper”, “Fifi” or “Muffin” has never harmed a living soul. What I’m even more tired of is hearing that right after the mutt tries to have me for brunch. This is exactly what the fucking moron said the other year after his two boxers attacked me while I was on crutches. ---
**Author:** ![Snnipe\_70E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@Snnipe\_70E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snnipe_70E)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/42 "2009-07-12T15:45:03Z")
If we had a dangerous dog in the neighborhood that kept getting out I will take a picture of it and call animal control. And in your neighbor’s condition with the court order and all that should have gotten some action earlier. And to her questions Why didn’t we call you? Because that does not seen to work at keeping you dog in your yard and my family safe! Why did you not wait until I got home? My yard and I need acess to it and I did not want to be liable for storing a dangerous animal. You are making it look like I am violating a court order. Well yes you have been and I can not correct that. My baby will be murdered. Yes I am sorry about that, it is to bad that YOU could not take care of your dog, and now it will have to suffer. The person to blame would be the dog’s owner. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/43 "2009-07-12T15:59:58Z")
> [@Snnipe\_70E](#): > > And to her questions > > Why didn’t we call you? Because that does not seen to work at keeping you dog in your yard and my family safe! > > Why did you not wait until I got home? My yard and I need acess to it and I did not want to be liable for storing a dangerous animal. > > You are making it look like I am violating a court order. Well yes you have been and I can not correct that. > > My baby will be murdered./ Yes I am sorry about that, it is to bad that YOU could not take care of your dog, and now it will have to suffer. The person to blame would be the dog’s owner. _My baby will be murdered._ You alone bear sole responsibility for that - not the people who were attacked by the dog, not the court that ordered you to keep it locked up, not the animal control people who had to take a perfectly healthy animal and destroy it. You alone are responsible for the death of your baby. What a half-wit. How sad that the dog has to pay the price for the owner’s stupidity, but she made the choices that have put her dog on death’s row and no one else is to blame for that. ---
**Author:** ![Jolly\_Roger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/91b2a8/32.png) [@Jolly\_Roger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jolly_Roger)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/44 "2009-07-12T16:37:42Z")
> [@Jettboy](#): > > You’re a better man than I. > > I would’ve tossed a rat poison-laden meatball over the neighbor’s fence the first time it lunged at my wife or kid. Agreed. People with aggressive dogs that are untrained are morons. The last dog I had was well trained and we never let her outside without a leash unless it was in our yard. She wasn’t aggressive at all, but I understand how people don’t want MY dog running through their yard or scaring their children. The one time my dog got out (because my dumbass cousin opened the door while I was at work and left it open AL DAY!) she frightened a kid down the street. When the neighbors told me that the dog only wanted to play, but the child was autistic and frightened of dogs I felt so badly I immediately went to the parents and apologized. (They were cool, they knew I didn’t normally allow Niko to roam unsupervised or unleashed) I wouldn’t feel badly at all either, **Skald**. One can only hope that if she gets another dog she’ll train this one. I don’t know why people get dogs and don’t at the very least try to train them against snapping at people. Its like when pitbulls and rottweilers were all the rage about ten years ago. I met so many people that owned one and the dog wasn’t even trained to freaking sit. Idiots. Our neighbor behind us has chickens. the freakin’ rooster crowing every morning is a small source of amusement for me, since I’m up anyway. (I get up for work at about 0530) He left his coop open one day and it couldn’t have been something he forgot. It was propped open with a shovel. (Let me note that I don’t live in the boonies, I live in a suburban neighborhood right outside of Bragg, so its not like there are farm animals around or expected) I was home for lunch and the missus was doing some yard work when she comes to tell me the chickens were in our yard. I don’t know how they got past the chain link fence seperating the yards…there must be a hole, but the fence is covered with thick bushes. I tried knocking on their door, but no one was home. The wife was scared that the chickens would wander into the street and get killed so she called animal control. They returned the chickens to the coop. She wanted to do it, but I’m not going to try to grab a friggin’ chicken unless I plan on cookin’ it. I talked to the guy about it after I got home, and he was sorry for the inconvenience. I wasn’t really that upset, but he explained that his son propped the door open because he likes to chase the chickens around. Whatever…as long as they don’t interfere with me I don’t really care. I found it funny that his wife said they have chickens because the kid loves scrambled eggs. Jeez, are eggs that friggin’ hard to come by lady? ---
**Author:** ![Jolly\_Roger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/91b2a8/32.png) [@Jolly\_Roger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jolly_Roger)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/45 "2009-07-12T16:43:04Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > Yes, I meant SHE should have installed a gate. And sorry, there is no Dog on the planet that is immune to gates. If your dog can get out of the fence then you don’t have the right fence or you’ve installed it improperly. It can jump a 6 foot fence you say? Well try an eight foot fence. It can dig under the fence you say? Well sink the fence two feet. It can break down the gate? Well use stronger hinges. > > I’m sorry, but every dog on the planet can be contained by a fence if the fence is installed correctly. Not Underdog. ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/46 "2009-07-12T16:58:14Z")
> [@Jolly\_Roger](#): > > Not Underdog. Ya just have to keep his pills away from him. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tao_s_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/47 "2009-07-12T17:09:49Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Many cities have ordinance that would not allow these actions. > > For example, here in Minneapolis the maximum height for a fence is 6 feet. So you couldn’t do an 8 foot one. > > And if you are digging more than 6 inches into he ground, you have to have the state underground utility location service come out to survey the area. And you may need to request an excavation permit, depending on the amount of soil you are moving. That’s a silly law. You could run afoul of it just planting tulips. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/48 "2009-07-12T18:37:28Z")
> [@jasonh300](#): > > Not to mention Skald’s gate was closed yet the dog still got into the yard. Sounds like a gate on the neighbor’s yard might not have worked either. My gate wasn’t closed, or at least the door wasn’t shut properly. Obviously. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/49 "2009-07-12T18:57:42Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > And if you are digging more than 6 inches into he ground, you have to have the state underground utility location service come out to survey the area. And you may need to request an excavation permit, depending on the amount of soil you are moving. All you need to do is bury chicken wire about three inches deep and hold it down with landscape staples. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/50 "2009-07-12T19:00:34Z")
FWIW, the signs I’ve seen here say the Underground Service Alert people need to be called when trenching more than 12 inches; not six. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/51 "2009-07-12T19:03:17Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > Fair enough. Most dogs can’t jump a 6 foot fence. [Some dogs are sneaky though.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n058ZFNQosg) ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/52 "2009-07-12T19:14:18Z")
> [@](#): > > They were cool, they knew I didn’t normally allow Niko to roam unsupervised or unleashed I think that’s the key. Your dog was not aggressive, and you did not make a habit of letting him roam. **Skald’s** neighbor was in the habit of letting her dog roam, and it’s aggressive. What’s more, the neighbor didn’t seem to be inclined to change her ways. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/53 "2009-07-12T19:31:25Z")
I used to be quite scared of dogs so I know what it’s like when some barking hound is terrorising you and all the owner does is tell you that “Tyson wouldn’t \*hurt \*you”. Living with my lodgers two unruly but nice alsatians cured me of my fear. I’ll never forget the look on this teenage lad’s face after one of them, barking like a hellhound, cornered him in the woods – because instead of saying something stupid like "She’s never actually bitten anyone (true) I so thoroughly told the dog off that she rolled over in submission and then apologised to him. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Violaceous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2bfe46/32.png) [@Miss\_Violaceous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Violaceous)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2009, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/54 "2009-07-12T22:13:23Z")
> [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](#): > > I’ll never forget the look on this teenage lad’s face after one of them, barking like a hellhound, cornered him in the woods – because instead of saying something stupid like "She’s never actually bitten anyone (true) I so thoroughly told the dog off that she rolled over in submission and then apologised to him. Yeah, one of our german shepherds was starting to chase a friend’s six-year-old (not to bite, to play, because the kid was running, but I still didn’t want him tackled) and with a single harsh word I made the dog stop in his tracks, turn and walk back to me with his ears down and his tail wagging. Then the friend scolded the kid for running around big dogs after she’d told him not to. Because he’d get chased and knocked down. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Snnipe\_70E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@Snnipe\_70E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snnipe_70E)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2009, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/55 "2009-07-13T03:03:20Z")
> [@Cazzle](#): > > _My baby will be murdered._ > You alone bear sole responsibility for that - not the people who were attacked by the dog, not the court that ordered you to keep it locked up, not the animal control people who had to take a perfectly healthy animal and destroy it. You alone are responsible for the death of your baby. > > What a half-wit. How sad that the dog has to pay the price for the owner’s stupidity, but she made the choices that have put her dog on death’s row and no one else is to blame for that. Good you got the point I was making. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2009, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/56 "2009-07-13T03:22:05Z")
I would point out to the owner that the dog will not be murdered. Murder is an _unlawful_ killing. Rather, the dog will be _executed_, according to established law and procedure. Of course the mutt will still be dead. And it will be her fault, for not keeping it in line. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2009, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/57 "2009-07-13T03:50:39Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > And if you can’t legally install a fence more then 6 feet high AND your dogs regularly jump a 6 foot fence and bite people…you need to look at other options. Dog on leash ANY TIME it’s outside, move somewhere else, train the dog better or give it up to a rescue that can properly place it. > And while you’re right, most dogs can’t jump a 6 foot fence, remember that after a long cold winter with no above freezing temps, that 6 foot fence can turn into a 3 foot fence if the snow drifts back into a corner. For sure, but bottom line here is that the lady didn’t even have a gate installed. You make excuses for the poor utility of the fence AFTER you have tried to setup the fence. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2009, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/58 "2009-07-13T03:58:04Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > [Some dogs are sneaky though.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n058ZFNQosg) That’s one badass pup. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2009, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/59 "2009-07-13T04:52:12Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > Some years back, I had a doofus of a Dalmatian who just \*lurved \*everyone, to the point of being a pest. So when I hired some chimney cleaners, before they showed up, I put the dog on a run, confining her to a section of the yard away from the driveway and the house. > > One of the work guys asked if he could pet her, and I assented, warning him that she liked to jump on people. But as he approached her, still out of her reach, she suddenly showed a side I’d never seen before. My doofus dog wanted blood! :eek: Needless to say, the guy turned around and decided he’d rather clean the chimney after all. And I’ve since taken to confining all our dogs, including the geriatric throw rug, whenever strangers come to the house. You just never know… I’m not surprised that a dalmation went after someone. One of my high school English teachers was also a dog trainer, and she had a fit when they revived 101 Dalmations. She told us to warn our parents not to buy one for our younger siblings since she’d trained dozens of them and they were the dog breed most likely to end up in obedience class for snapping at a family member. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2009, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704/60 "2009-07-13T05:12:25Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > [Some dogs are sneaky though.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n058ZFNQosg) Whoa. :eek: I love the looks on the faces of the other dogs afterwards. “Hey, where’re you going? You were supposed to unlock the door from the outside! Don’t leave us!” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-may-have-just-gotten-my-neighbors-dog-killed-and-i-dont-feel-even-a-little-guilty/502704.md?page=4)