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Old 04-29-2007, 04:08 PM
 
Location: Between Here and There
3,684 posts, read 11,790,907 times
Reputation: 1688

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We have a neighbor who used to have two little jack russels that would bark and almost howl (which I didn't know they could do) all hours of the day and night...I never complained, even though their barking made my dogs bark. Well to say the least this neighbor if fondly referred to as the "nazi neighbor" because he's just a big PITA! on all matters, the guy who goes to every associtation meeting to object to any change you may want to make to your house or yard.

Well his wife suddenly is gone and so are his dogs...don't know why but they are. Since she left he has reported us to Animal Control for barking dogs, once and then tried to get all the other neighbors to sign a complaint regarding our dogs (another neighbor clued us in to this). Luckily the other neighbors did not sign but he still put in another complaint.

Our yard backs to "open space" where there is a bike/walking path so there is a lot of stimulation there and the dogs bark. Now once the dogs are acclimated to the situation the barking calms down and is way less (unless someone actually comes up on the fence or let's their dogs do it). Since I foster though we always have new dogs coming and going so we almost always have a barker or two. We only let the dogs out for short periods of time to go potty (15 or 20 minutes a few times a day) if we aren't out there with them and never before 8am or after 10pm. When we are out there with them they still bark, but we tell them to stop and sometimes they do...*sigh*

I called and explained the situation to Animal Control and although they think it's not fair, they love that I am fostering (I've pulled dogs from them in the past) there is nothing I can do about it. They said if they keep getting complaints I will get fined. So other than bark collars (which I know work but think is mean) how would you go about getting this neighbor to leave you alone? We have talked to him and he denies it's him, even when we explained the the other neighbors have indicated it is. Shooting him is not an option.
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Old 04-29-2007, 04:19 PM
 
Location: Tompkins County
282 posts, read 1,261,018 times
Reputation: 228
Quote:
Originally Posted by irishmom View Post
Shooting him is not an option.
Well now I don't have any ideas!

Wish I knew what to tell you.
Those barking collars are cruel and i'm glad you don't like them. Too bad that animal control has to take that stance. I mean I guess I understand the postion that they're in but when the rest of the neighborhood goes against what he says, you'd think that would pull some weight.
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Old 04-29-2007, 04:32 PM
 
5,322 posts, read 18,201,633 times
Reputation: 3850
For starters, sounds like his wife was smarter than thought... left him and took the dogs

Secondly, bark collars are not at all mean. No meaner than a leash, it's a means of control when nothing else is accepted or will work. My male wears one periodically so as not to upset my neighbors.... once he begins to bark he winds up and keeps a going. No, he does not wear it 24/7 and my dogs are only out when I am home and then again not out that much. We're all allowed our opinion and well, that's mine

Options:
a) shoot him... oops you said that was out.
b) petition to close the path behind your home
c) move?
d) give up fostering dogs and switch to cats?
e) check to see what law you're violating; is it actually a barking dog law or a disturbing the peace? most areas have a set time for noise control.
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Old 04-29-2007, 04:54 PM
 
1,501 posts, read 5,667,278 times
Reputation: 1164
File a charge yourself against him if you can. It's unnecessary distress to you, with all the frivilous complaints.
You don't let them bark for long durations, nor at unreasonable hours. This creep needs to cease wasting animal control's, as well as, your time.
He should need proof anyway, Other posters couldn't get anyone to do anything about stray cats, or neighbors littering on her property.
So file a complaint or sue the sucker for unnecessary harassment -- especially if you get fined (which would not be right!). Perhaps a local politician, or committee-man could asvise.
Good luck with the cretin.

PS Good watchdogs just doing their jobs!! :>) :>)
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Old 04-29-2007, 05:46 PM
 
Location: Missouri
6,044 posts, read 24,020,451 times
Reputation: 5182
I think your only options are: pay the fines you are sure to get, move, or stop taking dogs in. You can't change your neighbor.

Maybe if you put a big fence up, the dogs wouldn't see the trail and would therefore bark less?
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Old 04-29-2007, 06:47 PM
 
Location: Between Here and There
3,684 posts, read 11,790,907 times
Reputation: 1688
Quote:
Originally Posted by cleosmom View Post
For starters, sounds like his wife was smarter than thought... left him and took the dogs

Secondly, bark collars are not at all mean. No meaner than a leash, it's a means of control when nothing else is accepted or will work. My male wears one periodically so as not to upset my neighbors.... once he begins to bark he winds up and keeps a going. No, he does not wear it 24/7 and my dogs are only out when I am home and then again not out that much. We're all allowed our opinion and well, that's mine

Options:
a) shoot him... oops you said that was out.
b) petition to close the path behind your home
c) move?
d) give up fostering dogs and switch to cats?
e) check to see what law you're violating; is it actually a barking dog law or a disturbing the peace? most areas have a set time for noise control
.

a) wish I could!
b) the town is built around all these protected open spaces and no it can't be closed...there are 70 miles of them running all through..which is really nice except for the dog barking thing.
c) we are trying to get out as soon as possible, waiting for the house to sell.
d) allergic to cats, and can't say no to the dogs..
e) "Quiet enjoyment"...which is vague and means anything that causes a disturbance to the homeowner...I think loud kids can be complained about under this as well...*sigh*

Someone asked me why I thought that bark collars were mean but I had no problem putting in an electric fence around my wooden fence to keep dogs from digging out (they get zapped if they go to dig up under the fence). I explained that the dogs could still dig, just not out the yard and if they didn't dig under the fence they didn't get zapped. Also it was to protect them from getting lost and hit by a car. So I didn't think it was mean...maybe I'm wrong about that too. Usually after only two or three zaps they stop digging and we can take the collars off in a few days.

The reason why I think the bark collars are mean is because dogs are supposed to bark...I mean they aren't just barking and barking for no reason...they start barking as someone passes my fence and stop when they are done passing...problem is on a nice day people/dogs/bikes etc are passing by constantly. So I may have to start using them because if I don't take them in and find them homes they get euthanized, which of course would be much more cruel.

Travl'r - File a charge yourself against him if you can. It's unnecessary distress to you, with all the frivilous complaints.

I am going to look into this...thanks for that suggestion. Even if I can't get him off my back I may be able to give him a dose of his own medicine, which would at least give me some satisfaction (you know the whole an eye for an eye thing and all ).
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Old 04-29-2007, 08:03 PM
 
4,948 posts, read 18,633,403 times
Reputation: 2907
Quote:
Originally Posted by irishmom View Post
We have a neighbor who used to have two little jack russels that would bark and almost howl (which I didn't know they could do) all hours of the day and night...I never complained, even though their barking made my dogs bark. Well to say the least this neighbor if fondly referred to as the "nazi neighbor" because he's just a big PITA! on all matters, the guy who goes to every associtation meeting to object to any change you may want to make to your house or yard.

Well his wife suddenly is gone and so are his dogs...don't know why but they are. Since she left he has reported us to Animal Control for barking dogs, once and then tried to get all the other neighbors to sign a complaint regarding our dogs (another neighbor clued us in to this). Luckily the other neighbors did not sign but he still put in another complaint.

Our yard backs to "open space" where there is a bike/walking path so there is a lot of stimulation there and the dogs bark. Now once the dogs are acclimated to the situation the barking calms down and is way less (unless someone actually comes up on the fence or let's their dogs do it). Since I foster though we always have new dogs coming and going so we almost always have a barker or two. We only let the dogs out for short periods of time to go potty (15 or 20 minutes a few times a day) if we aren't out there with them and never before 8am or after 10pm. When we are out there with them they still bark, but we tell them to stop and sometimes they do...*sigh*

I called and explained the situation to Animal Control and although they think it's not fair, they love that I am fostering (I've pulled dogs from them in the past) there is nothing I can do about it. They said if they keep getting complaints I will get fined. So other than bark collars (which I know work but think is mean) how would you go about getting this neighbor to leave you alone? We have talked to him and he denies it's him, even when we explained the the other neighbors have indicated it is. Shooting him is not an option.
keep them in, and frankly get them trained. have a room in the home with water, etc., dogs need company. bark collars are not nice.
maybe you have too many to cope with. and yes, if they drive people crazy, you will be fined. Shoot a dog, hello? that is a crime, and jail time.
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Old 04-29-2007, 08:32 PM
 
Location: Between Here and There
3,684 posts, read 11,790,907 times
Reputation: 1688
Quote:
Originally Posted by maggiekate View Post
keep them in, and frankly get them trained. have a room in the home with water, etc., dogs need company. bark collars are not nice.
maybe you have too many to cope with. and yes, if they drive people crazy, you will be fined. Shoot a dog, hello? that is a crime, and jail time.
Did you actually read what I wrote? I do keep them in except for several times a day when it is necessary to let them out to go potty. Get them trained? Well we do train them the best we can but these dogs usually come from bad situations and have never been trained before so it takes time. I only have 2 or 3 fosters at a time...so I have plenty of room to handle them as well as time and patience but can not control how many people pass by my house all day long. And no was said anything about shooting a dog, geez I was talking about the neighbor...ever heard of a joke?

Next time read the whole post or please don't reply, it's not very helpful.
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Old 04-29-2007, 09:30 PM
 
284 posts, read 1,677,832 times
Reputation: 204
irishmom, I don't know if my suggestion is possible for you, but I can tell you what has worked for me in the past. I spent many years on the board of my neighborhood association, and during the years that I was in a "position of power", an angry gentleman (who was actually very unhappy with his own life) called my home repeatedly to complain about his neighbors who happened to live right behind my house. They were having a virtual war with him, and the neighbors really were problematic. I recommended many, many ways that he could try to befriend them or at least make peace. I told him that we would see the neighbors taking out their trash, and we would go out of our way to be friendly. When we changed dog food brands, we offered them the remaining old brand. We looked for every possible opportunity to show kindness. They were shocked at first because they really are almost at war with the angry man, so I guess they expected everyone to act that way. It worked for us, and the angry man's way still isn't working for him.

I have gotten the impression from your other posts that you are the kind of person who has probably already tried to find common ground and to befriend him, but if you can possibly find that one area that you can use to win him over, perhaps he will start to soften. It sounds like he is taking out his misery about his own situation on anyone he can, but if you can find some way to show him that you care about him, maybe he will direct his anger in a different direction -- or maybe even start to heal his heart.

Two other things that I have seen work with neighborhood problems are neighborhood meetings and media attention. Educating others and gaining sympathy and support can be very helpful. People are more forgiving and understanding when they are involved, and they often love to rally around a good cause. Perhaps you could start out by apologizing for any inconvenience that the barking has caused. Explain your situation, and even ask for suggestions. Let your neighbors know that they are doing their part in helping needy animals by being patient with the barking. Afterall, if this starts to cost you money, how can you continue to save so many dogs? And then, what will happen to the dogs if people like you can't help them? Really appeal to their hearts! I am sorry you are having to go through this, especially when you are doing such a wonderful thing, and I hope you find peace soon! Please keep us updated!
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Old 04-29-2007, 11:19 PM
 
Location: Between Here and There
3,684 posts, read 11,790,907 times
Reputation: 1688
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scholar View Post
irishmom, I don't know if my suggestion is possible for you, but I can tell you what has worked for me in the past. I spent many years on the board of my neighborhood association, and during the years that I was in a "position of power", an angry gentleman (who was actually very unhappy with his own life) called my home repeatedly to complain about his neighbors who happened to live right behind my house. They were having a virtual war with him, and the neighbors really were problematic. I recommended many, many ways that he could try to befriend them or at least make peace. I told him that we would see the neighbors taking out their trash, and we would go out of our way to be friendly. When we changed dog food brands, we offered them the remaining old brand. We looked for every possible opportunity to show kindness. They were shocked at first because they really are almost at war with the angry man, so I guess they expected everyone to act that way. It worked for us, and the angry man's way still isn't working for him.

I have gotten the impression from your other posts that you are the kind of person who has probably already tried to find common ground and to befriend him, but if you can possibly find that one area that you can use to win him over, perhaps he will start to soften. It sounds like he is taking out his misery about his own situation on anyone he can, but if you can find some way to show him that you care about him, maybe he will direct his anger in a different direction -- or maybe even start to heal his heart.

Two other things that I have seen work with neighborhood problems are neighborhood meetings and media attention. Educating others and gaining sympathy and support can be very helpful. People are more forgiving and understanding when they are involved, and they often love to rally around a good cause. Perhaps you could start out by apologizing for any inconvenience that the barking has caused. Explain your situation, and even ask for suggestions. Let your neighbors know that they are doing their part in helping needy animals by being patient with the barking. Afterall, if this starts to cost you money, how can you continue to save so many dogs? And then, what will happen to the dogs if people like you can't help them? Really appeal to their hearts! I am sorry you are having to go through this, especially when you are doing such a wonderful thing, and I hope you find peace soon! Please keep us updated!
You are a very smart person! I have approached this neighbor and so has my husband and he acts as if it isn't him...so I don't think that will work so well. As I said he isn't singling us out, he does this to everyone for any reason he can come up with.

I did send out a letter to all my neighbors, including this man, explaining what we are doing with the dogs and thanking them for their patience. Aslo requesting that if they were having a problem to let me know so I could address it. One week later he tried to get multiple signatures from everyone to complain about barking and then when he couldn't just made the second complaint on his own again. So I don't think that worked either.

The neighborhood meeting thing may be a good idea, at least maybe he would see that the other neighbors do support the work we are doing and may make him back off a bit. I doubt it will change his mind, as I said he is denying it. But he is well known for this type of thing, he has tried to get signatures against many of the neighbors here for stuff ranging from installing a fence, building a garage, changing landscape to painting the shutters on a house....so no one else is going to support him. But if he continues to put complaints in I will be fined.

Thanks for your suggestions they were really helpful!
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