Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
well yes, i could understand the concern about what was fed to their dogs-they may have health problems or allergies.
but ya know what? they should have told me that they were going away and that the other neighbors would be tending to the dog.
they have only been here a month, but they can tell how much i spend time with my dogs outside, and once in a while say "hi" to their dogs through the fence, calling them by name...and that i would have noticed that all of the sudden, the dogs are outside 24/7 instead of being kept inside at nite etc.
and besides, there is no way i could see if there was food and water back there, from my backyard.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Katie1
When people are Not nice to animals How do you expect them to be nice to people.
And it would have been nice if they had returned them directly to you.
Now me I would have returned them to you & asked you what you had fed my dogs!
OMG YALL. YALL WILL NOT BELIEVE THIS UPDATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am in tears........
I just walked to the very back corner of my backyard, the part closest to the privacy fence of my neighbors..and guess what I found?
All three bowls that I used to fill up with food and water to their dogs, were THROWN INTO MY BACKYARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not brought to my house, but THROWN OVER THE FENCE!!!
Please keep in mind, I am a very quiet 43 year old Registered Nurse-I do nothing but work and stay at home with my dogs, and go to cowboy church on sunday and go to team ropin' once or twice a week. I don't have many visitors, never blast any kind of music, keep the house and yard kept up. I have never said one ill word to these people-heck I have only spoke to them a few times, to introduce myself and to learn the names of their dogs. There is NO reason for this spiteful behavior. I am a nice person. There is nothing to DISLIKE about me, because heck, they dont even know me!!!! And I have done nothing that would be cause to be angry with me, unless they are angry that I was concerned with their dogs welfare.
NOW I AM FUMING MAD. I CANT BELIEVE THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!
Please, I want yalls feedback. I am not assertive and cant really bring myself to say anything to them personally. I know I will let them know in writing when I move in end of Sept.
I AM SHOCKED BEYOND WORDS and crying.
Like my good friend always told me, "no good deed goes unpunished" I guess he was right.
Unfortunately, Belle, by demonstrating that you cared for their dogs more than they did, they now may feel small, deficient, incompetent, uncaring, diminished---you name it. People don't like their shortcomings to be noticed by others. It makes them defensive and angry. And kindness is hard to accept when you know you are wrong. It's easier to be hostile than accept kindness. Also, hostility is a type of denial. When people can't accept that their actions were wrong, they become hostile to the person they harmed. Perhaps that's why the felt they couldn't face you.
I do believe that lovingkindness has transformative power, and you have shown them nothing but kindness. Hopefully they will come around.
if anything, they should be mad at the neighbors with whom they entrusted to take care of their dogs!!!!!!!!!!!
the obvious fact that the dogs had broken down a fence post and were allowed to be loose in the neighborhood, and possibly get run over by a car, or get lost forever, or GET PICKED UP BY ANIMAL CONTROL AND THEN GET FINED...............
if ANYTHING they should be mad at THEM, not me!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i dont understand at all why they are obiously upset with me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i just dont get it. please help me understand. i am so upset
What if you tried the good-ole-Southern "kill them with kindness" approach. You know: "Thanks soooooo much for returning my bowls! I'd just love to dog-sit for you any time!!! Please let me know if you are going to be away - I'd love to spend some time with your adorable dogs! I agree that they are probably embarrassed and ashamed and aren't owning up to their irresponsibility.
Even though they may be creeps, you want to keep the door open enough that they might call on you for a favor if they need you. They probably figured out that the former dog-sitter wasn't doing a good job.
Stay friendly (even if it isn't really sincere) and hopefully they'll make appropriate arrangements next time - As we say in the south (often with tongue biting sarcasm) "Bless their hearts"
Belle, you cared for their dogs more than they did, plain and simple. Your kindness made them look like failures and their ego and self-esteem can't handle it. Yes, they should be mad at the neighbors, and maybe they are, but it's much easier for them to be mad at you than to look at their own behavior. Your behavior set a high standard and they came up short.
You're thinking logically and they are behaving emotionally and rebelliously, like children who were chastised for misbehaving. They need to grow up.
I am NOT NOT NOT trying to make excuses for these people, but where are they from again? They may not be familiar with the brutal Texas sun and its effects on humans and animals and they may stupidly believe that the igloo doghouses are "enough". Heck, I know people who DO live here and HAVE lived here all their lives that still don't understand why a dog needs shelter from the Texas sun.
I feel your frustration. My mom once "liberated" a Chow that was chained constantly outside and left w/o water. Animal Control wouldn't help. Humane Society wouldn't help. My mom had enough and snuck over one night and let the poor thing loose, then took it herself to the shelter.
As for safety ideas; I just wanted to mention that my Grandma, as long as I can remember, has always had a decal on the doors and windows of her house that has a picture of dogs and cats and says "In case of fire, please save my animals!" just to let firefighters know that she has animals inside.
I was raised with dogs and cats, my grandma always had dogs and cats, I cannot understand people at all that can be so horrible regarding the care of their pets. I just don't get it, because it's not how I was raised. My neighborhood is the worst. My whole city for that matter, lots of problems with people chaining dogs, letting them roam, etc.
I don't know how it is in your city but I do know that here (San Antonio) it IS against the law to chain a dog if there is no access to shelter, food, and water. I was able to actually get something done once with a pit bull puppy the neighbors had chained out front in the full sun with no water... it's rare to get results but in my case it worked (I just called the city direct info line, here it is 311)...
i'm not sure where they are from, but their last duty station was Ft Knox KY. i know that the soldier's mom and dad live in Wichita Falls, TX so if he grew up there, he sure does know Texas heat.
even if they aint from here, it dont take a rocket scientist to figure out it's dadgum hot.
pinetreelover-to kill em with kindness with the good ole Southern approach, good idea but i basically did that in the letters that i left them-made it very clear that i would be more than happy to take care of their dogs anytime, and left all my contact numbers and email address....what more can i do.
i just cant believe that they dont get it-that they are lucky animal control didnt take their dogs when they were not contained during their vacation.
i will have to spell this all out in my letter when i move. i dont want any confrontation with them.
i dont understand why they would be so spiteful. i am almost getting to the point where i am trying to second-guess myself and maybe i was too much the meddling neighbor, sticking my nose where it didnt belong......but then when i start to think that way, then i stop and say "whoa...there aint nothing wrong with caring about a dogs' welfare!"
Don't second-guess yourself, it's a sad situation and you did the right thing, what any caring neighbor would do. I sort of agree w/ pinetreelover in killing 'em with kindness but you've been more than nice about it. I have to wonder (and I may have missed some of this) if maybe they just said the other neighbor was taking care of the dogs and there was really no such arrangement. Would just grit my teeth and would be very sweet to them and ignore them as best you can the short time remaining that you'll be neighbors, hopefully they'll take better care of their dogs next time they take off. Poor dogs...
In the end they do not care about their dogs, or for that matter anything else. They are not good people. You are the better person for caring. Write them a letter after you move and give them a piece of your mind in a somewhat nice way!
If nothing else comes out of this...At least, they will know YOU are watching. They may think twice next time they decide to go away and leave the animals unattended too...or with the neighbor kid as a caretaker. I think you did all that you could possibly do.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
