Barking Dogs Thread (San Antonio, Anton: HOA, purchasing, pitbull)

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

Back when I lived in Texas we had a neighbor that had dogs that barked constantly, it was AWFUL. One time when I was a teenager (thats my excuse and I'm sticking too it) my friend and I tossed a whole sheet of black cat fire crackers in their backyard to give the dog something REAL to bark at. That was hysterical.

The incessant barking would drive me nuts especially if I had to work from home and hear it. I would go with the note on the door thing. If that doesn't make a difference, I would leave a second slightly more serious note speaking of going around and getting back up from other neighbors and then call in authorities.

Another thing I did while living in Texas, I had a neighbor who had a HUGE dog that he let run wild. It used to steal things from peoples front and back yard. I asked them to please keep their dog at home, he even brought something back too me that his dog had stolen off my back porch. The dog dug up my flower beds, the owner still did nothing. Eventually I took the dog to a no kill shelter and never said a word about it. I know it was wrong but frankly I was at my wits end. Anytime I opened the door to my house that dog was likely to be standing there, trying to knock me over. When I did lawn work I couldn't leave my dirty shoes out there or he would steal them.

[tony78201]

I'm in the same boat, there are 5 dogs next door, and only one of them decides to bark all night long. his doggy friends are all passed out, yet there he his, just barking like some idiot.

[texasdreamin]

The only thing about leaving notes on people's front doors is you don't know how they are going to respond to it. They could be really resentful and the resentment could be dangerous or it could be dangerous with you approaching their private property. It also could provoke a neighbor against neighbor situation. Bad blood between neighbors opens up all kinds of cans of worms and it never gets better. Even if you tried to sneak and leave notes, they may see you. Best to let the authorities handle it and you be kept anonymous. They would never know who made the complaint and thus no problems between the two of you.

[rd2007]

hopefully those that are throwing numbers like 9 and 45 around are talking about using them on the neighbor and not the dog.. this is 100% a neighbor problem, not a dog problem. I realize personal responsibility is something too many people don't comprehend these days, but dogs come with a lot of it and people really need to realize that BEFORE they get their brilliant idea to pick one up..

sorry, but crappy dog owners are a seriously big pet peeve to me...

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by sapphire

I would just approach your neighbor like a grownup, and try to have a civil conversation about it. It's not like you are taking away their birthday. I really think people try so hard these days to tiptoe around. No, don't barge over there and be a jerk, but you have a legitimate complaint regarding all the noise coming out of their backyard. I don't think it's fair to you or the dog. But they might just see the light if you come at them right. I mean, you're trying to work. And the poor puppy! I'd bark all day too.

Well stated, and the best thing to do. Politely discuss it with the dog's owner, but also be firm and inform them that this is the one and only opportunity they will have to correct the situation before you bring it up to the authorities. If they are smart enough to understand and take care of it, then great. If they are jerks about it, then you should have no guilt in reporting them. Anonymous notes, calling the authorities without even giving your neighbor a chance to correct the problem, or doing something to the animal should not be options. As sapphire said, handle this like adults; and if things prove that one of the parties involved can't live up to that, then take it to the authorities.

Good luck! M2

[Trainwreck20]

This is a little long, but related (and kind of funny):
We were on the other side of this issues some years back. I had a roomate who had a boxer that stayed in the backyard during the day and in the house at night (so no night barking). A stay at home neighbor complained via a note on the door that our dog was barking. Personally, we were more than happy to be informed of this (since we had no idea), and called the guy (he had left his number, but no name or address) to talk about when this was happening, etc. It went downhill from there...he told us to move, we were just renters or to lock the dog in the garage all day, and used some very foul language. That pretty much ended the dialogue . He also threaten to hurt the dog and, indirectly, the owner (my roommate). She called the police just in case something did happen to the dog.

A policeman came out and told us the following:

• During the day, 45 minutes of pretty much continuous barking was their rule of thumb for disturbing the peace.
• During the night, there was a much shorter period, but this didn't apply to us, and I can't remember the time.
• Because of the threatening nature of the complaintant (he had left a subsequent nearly incoherent voicemail), the officer told us not to have any further contact with the guy.

This was in Austin, so it doesn't directly relate .

My advice would be to contact the individual and let them know there is an issue with barking and try to work something out. If they are non-receptive, then go to homeowners assoc. (if any) or police (if not). If possible, document the times and ~lengths that the dog barks (I know, a pain). Also, inquire if the SAPD has guidelines on what constitutes disturbing the peace. In Austin, it is illegal to chain a dog and leave them (not sure on the exact wording), is there any similar ordinance in SA?

Now the funny part -
We set up a video camera in our upstairs window pointing down into the backyard, put in an extra long tape (I actually came home at lunch to change it out) and taped the dog for a few days. We were trying to find out if the dog barked for 45 mintes or not. The tape showed the entire backyard (except by the house) as well as the sidewalk along our fence and part of the street. We fast forwarded through the tape with the sound on an kept track of when the dog barked and for how long. Our findings:

The dog typically barked for about 5 minutes every hour or two when the mailman went down that street or someone walked by. She stopped soon after they left.

The complaintant began trying to get other people to complain, but most had never noticed the dog, so the man would go stand right by our fence (we were on a corner) and stare at the dog through the fence for 10 or 15 minutes, sending it into a barking frenzy. Other times he would ride his bike back and forth on the sidewalk. After getting the dog worked up, he would then go knock on the neighbors doors, trying to find someone to complain.

We told the man about our tape, and the problem was solved...

[dtj]

Call 311, make report and contact Code Compliance for Animal Nuisance (Barking) 1st fine $100- $1000.00
You can even go to City of SA, Department of Code Compliance
and register your complaint online

[majormadmax]

Any ideas for those of us who live outside of the city limits on who to call? This isn't a problem at the moment, but it has been in the past...and I don't really feel it is necessary to call the Bexar County Sherriff's Department over a barking dog...

Cheers! M2

[Steel Man]

Try technology!

How to stop your neighbor's dog from barking

[kevcrawford]

Originally Posted by martinez4

I think the "311" service is more for service issues not barking dogs in a neighborhood.

Maybe a sleeping pill in a hamburger

Nope. They handle that too and it usually does the trick. They handle all types of service issues. If it persists, you can call your local substation and they'll call the owners for you too.