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Parenting
joseysbride
member
I really need advice re neighbor's dogs
joseysbride
member
in Parenting
This may be long, but please bare with me because we, my dh especially, are at our wits end with this.
We live out of the city on a 2.5 acre lot. Most of the lots in the neighborhood are about that size, so it is somewhat a rural setting. There are no sidewalks or anything.
For just about a year now, we have been dealing with two of our neighbors' dogs (they each have two dogs) coming in our yard multiple times a day and peeing and pooping all over the place. The neighbors let their dogs out unsupervised and allow them to run free because they stay in the area and will come if they are called. The first stop is pretty much always our yard.
It wouldn't be such a huge deal if they were going out to the back of our lot and doing their business, but they are both peeing and pooping right in our front yard and many times right ON things in our yard...on our house, on my plants, on the pumpkins we had out this fall, on the solar lights in the landscaping, on some wood scraps my dh had in the driveway while he was working on the basement, on Rory's sand and water table, the list goes on.
We have caught the dogs in our yard numerous times on the weekends, but for the most part, we are at work when all of this is going on. They work different schedules than we do, so we rarely see them. They are home during the day.
When it started last year, my dh went to both houses and very nicely told them the situation and asked that they keep a better eye on their animals. It got better for a couple months, and then started again. Again, he went over and nicely let them know what was going on. Same thing, it didn't stop. So one day when he caught one of them in our yard, he called animal control and he was told that since we aren't in city limits they can't do anything because there are no leash laws in our county. We resorted to just trying to tell the dogs to go home whenever we'd catch them, and cleaning up the mess.
The last straw last year was when Rory and I went to walk out and get the mail and one of the dogs was in our yard, and it came at us and was growling. It scared me, so we went back in. When my dh got home, he went back to the neighbor's house and not so nicely talked to them for the thrid time. He was not happy. They apologized profusely, of course, but nothing has ever changed.
So here we are a year later and the dogs are still being let out unsupervised and are crapping all over stuff in our yard. This weekend, I caught one of them on our back deck, urinating right on our grill. My dh is furious. He called the county Sheriff and was told that they can't do anything but come and talk to the neighbors and "hopefully we can come to some sort of an agreement." As if we haven't already talked to them.
Seriously, what do we do? I really don't know anymore, and this needs to stop. My dh is really upset about this, and now that it is warming up outside, we can't hardly even go out in our yard because the smell is awful and there is poop everywhere that needs to be cleaned up.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: I really need advice re neighbor's dogs
I'd be mad as hell! That's awful! Why not pick up the poo and dump it on their doorstep/grill etc? Seriously...Its at a ridiculous stage now, so show them how horrible it is. Or show them photos of what they've done.
That's just not on.
L-R: Liam (7), Eimhin (6) and Fionn (4)! (Irish names)
Too busy to update the pics for now ...
Tell the neighbors you will shoot the damn_dogs if you find them on your property again
(there's no redneck face so the angry devil will have to do!)
I would be super pissed too. Honestly I would tell the people that you have asked them enough and if they keep letting their animals out you will do what you see fit to their animals. I would also let them know that if their animal attacked you our Rory that they are legally liable and you will be going after them since you have talked to them many times. Maybe if they are on your property again you get the dog in the car and take the dog to the pound and then tell the neighbor.
Sorry it's a hard situation b/c ultimatly the animal is the one that suffers, however if the owner actually cared about the animal then they wouldn't be doing this.
maybe get a run out in your back yard and when the dog comes put the dog on YOUR run and make the owner come find their dog?
Yes, animal control has no jurisdiction in our area because we are out of city limits. It is ridiculous.
We have thought about picking up all the poop and leaving it on their driveway, but the fact that everything is frozen to the ground right now makes that difficult, and plus we really thought we could handle this in a "be the bigger person" manner, but at this point...I don't know anymore.
I have no idea but I would be so pissed. Esp if one of the dogs growled at you. Im not a dog fan (large dogs esp, little 5-10lb dogs I can handle) and this would have me terrified to go out. I would tell your neighbors that you are getting a lawyer and that if they cant keep their dogs from trespassing and urinating on your things that you will have a lawsuit against them. What if one of the dogs attacks you or your dd, or if she starts picking up the poo? So not cool.
You have tried being nice. I would try being a little more firm.
Have your husband urinate on their yard/grill/flowers?!?!
I don't have any advice and I have no idea how I would handle this. I think I would be tempted to pick up the shitand put it on their front stoop. Every time!
?
Plus, YOU are the one picking up someone else's dog's poop, and that's not right. ?We have a dog, we are animal lovers, and it ticks me off to no end to see people not clean up after their animals.?
I agree. Start picking up the poo and keeping it in a large trash can. After it gets pretty full take it and dump it on their front porch, in their yard, on their grill etc. Whatever their dogs have pood or peed on of yours I would scatter it around on their things. Being the bigger person doesnt always show the seriousness of the situation.
I also agree to try and capture the dog and take it to the pound. Tell the pound that they neighbors neglect the dog and that it needs to be placed in a better home. I would not tell the neighbors either. They dont seem to care where their dogs are anyways.
Can you start having the neighbors come over and pick up the poop/clean the pee themselves? If you go over every day and ask them to do this it will get old for them REALLY fast and they may be more inclined to do something. I think saving the poop and leaving it for them is too passive/aggressive. I say you need to be a bigger squeaky wheel. Go over every day until they do something. Call the sherrif every day. Call animal conrol every time you see a dog in your yard.
It is a PITA - I am so sorry you are dealing with it.
Have the neighbors tried an invisible fence? That's what our neighbors have for their dogs and it keeps them in their yard. They attach a sensor on the dog's collar and when it gets to close to the border of the fence it shocks the dog, so they know their boundaries.
Thanks everyone for your advice.
Like I said, the hardest part is a) it is mostly happening when we aren't home and can't catch which animal it is and b) it is not just one neighbor, so we never know which animal is to blame.
I think I'm going to talk to my dh and tell him maybe we need to talk to them once again and tell them that if it doesn't stop immediately we will be contacting a lawyer because their animals are damaging our property.
We are in the middle of getting our house ready to put on the market, and after this weekend, I cannot tell you how badly we are hoping it sells and we can get away from these people.
Thanks again.
They don't care one bit that their dogs are running around.
L-R: Liam (7), Eimhin (6) and Fionn (4)! (Irish names)
Too busy to update the pics for now ...
Thank you! I do, too. And God bless any future owners.
I am sorry. This is awful. I grew up outside of the city limits and our dog roamed the neighborhood too. That was in the 70's and 80's. I can't imagine not having leash laws today. So sorry you are going through this. I would do the poop thing on their porch and/or take the dogs to the pound. We have two large dogs and this is sooo inconsiderate.
GL!
That is awful! And this is coming from someone who loves her dog like another child. Our dog has an invisible fence, and I always watch her, pick up after her if she's outside our yard, and get her inside immediately if she starts barking. Your neighbors are being incredibly rude.
I would NOT do the putting the poop on their driveway thing. It's passive aggressive, it means you are picking up poop you shouldn't be, and you never know what kind of reaction it will prompt. I WOULD, however, go to BOTH neighbors every single day and ask that they come to your house to pick up the poop. Take pictures of the dogs when you DO see them to document the problem. Tell them that if it doesn't stop, you'll be contacting a lawyer.
I am so sorry you are dealing with this. Your neighbors are really being horrible.
I vote for CALL ANIMAL CONTROL when the dog is in your yard.
Most towns have a law on leashes...call animal control.
They will give them a warning the first time.
I own a dog..and dogs wandering around pisses me off. I can understand fluffy escaping once in awhile..some dogs are escape artists..but other than that..they need to make some attempt to contain their dog..which they aren't doing.
I would call animal control to come and pick up the dogs. If they have a collar, they owner will get a phone call to pick them up. That should be a awake up call for them.
I have no patience for people who don't contain or control their animals. They are lucky their dogs haven't been hit by a car or attacked by coyotes.
Don't get a lawyer..this is a matter of law...that police..or specifically animal control can enforce. You don't even really have to get involved. Animal Control generally doesn't even say who called in the complaint.
Hi joseys- this just plain sucks and you've handled it better than i would. It would be nice if YOU could get an invisible fence to keep them away from your house/yard. Don't know if there is such a thing.
Our neighbor's dog kept peeing in the same spot on our yard and we thought we had a gas leak. Nope, the urine was just killing our grass. We told them about it and they made sure it didn't happen anymore.
I hope you sell your home QUICKLY!
"
Ethan {1.11.10} & Malia {12.28.06}
She said Animal Control can't do anything because there aren't any leash laws where she lives. So unless one of the dogs bites her or or kid, AC won't do anything just for them coming onto her property.
That's why I said you should talk about the lawyer (not that you have to actually get one) and do it from a property damage angle, because it seems like an off leash dog on your property, annoying as it is, is not breaking the law where you live. Or am I misunderstanding?
I had the SAME problem with my assclown neighbors - only with roosters (yeah, I'm THAT rural).
Day after day these suckers came into my property - along with a mass of chickens. They ***-a-doodle-dooed from sunrise to sundown right under my windows. DH went over there and said something and he said, "We're zoned agrictultural and I can have them." He's a REAL piece of work, this guy.
I looked into having a fence installed and it would be about $11,000. I just have that to pull out of my butt, you know. Meanwhile, as I'm getting the fencing estimate, chickens are chasing me and the fence guy. Did I mention how they shovel the horse crap onto my property??
Anyway, we called EVERYONE in my crappy Town and nobody wants to do anything. Typical small town people who think that because it's a tiny town there is no work to be done.
Finally, I resorted to carrying a camera around my house with me 24/7 and snapping pictures....with dates. I always made sure to get some landmark in my picture so it could identify how far into my property they were. I did that for about a month - every day, I had pics of these things under my window, in my driveway, near my well, etc.
I marched up to the Town hall and refused to leave until someone did something about it. The Animal Control guy - who is also the Building Inspector - came out and spoke with him. He basically said he won't do anything about it and he'll just pay the fines.
On and on it went. Finally, I called the State Rep from my Town and got him involved. I also called an attorney who dealt with this stuff and HE called the Town.
Next thing I know, Animal Control is at my door asking for copies of the pictures. They also determined he built the barn without a permit and made him tear it down - he built another one. The roosters and chickens were also removed.
So, I no longer have the roosters. But, this guy is a REAL thorn in my side now. I have almost 5 acres. He has 3 acres. He's done everything he can to make my life miserable out of spite. So, there has been some retaliation. But, the roosters are gone, so I can't complain too much.
You really have to stick with it. Be the person who shows up at the Town Hall with pictures documenting how this happens every single day. Take pictures of the pee and the poop. Call the Rep from your town. It really takes a lot to get through to these people.
Good luck! I'm a Realtor in my town and if I thought my house would sell (there are over 50 homes for sale in my town!), I'd have that sign out there tomorrow.
I used to be sort of anti-HOA, but, now, I see they serve a real purpose - no matter how many acres you have, there WILL be a jackass near you making your life hell and, without rules (the stricter, the better, I say, at this point), they will just take over and you'll suffer.
Hang in there!