What do you think about neighbors who complain about other people's pets?

[beebella]

If you've been following me long enough, then you may or may not remember that my Dad's dog was killed last year by a truck driver. Prior to that, one of our neighbors had complained about the dog's "loud" barking. So we started bringing her inside more (particularly at night). At least half the people on my street have either dogs or cats (these particular neighbors also have a dog of their own) and there's a separate garage between both of our houses — it's not like we're right next to each other, so I don't know why we were being singled out.

Fast forward to now: My mom has a new little puppy that we also probably keep inside way too much just to try to keep the peace. 🙄

I think something

I think nothing

I am those neighbors

Updates

+1 y

As far as I know, they have never complained about my other two dogs. So I don't know if they just didn't like my Dad's dog or what? 🤔

[FunkyMonkee]

I love dogs, I've had one all my life until about 10 years ago when Murphy died. I'm not sure about Zippy, the dog we had in the `60's and `70's but, with every dog we've had since then, we could open the front door (in a residential area!) and just let her go out onto the front porch by herself, no leash or tether, and she would either just sit on the porch or wander around in the yard a bit and THEN go sit on the porch, and we knew she'd never run away, chase anything but a squirrel up a tree or bark at anyone!! The only time she DID bark is BECAUSE there was a squirrel!! I don't even think she would bark at other dogs walking by! She might walk off the porch to go smell them, but that's as far as it went. We could leave her out front for hours!! When she wanted in, all she had to do was come to the door and bark once or twice.
Well, the neighbors up here, where I live, now, all have dogs and every one of them barks every time ANYTHING goes by!! The one on my right screams its head off at NOTHING!!! The old woman that lives next door let's it out and, as soon as she opens the door it runs to the end of the yard and screams its head off for 20:00!!! She does NOTHING to stop it!!! This happens at all hours of the day or night!!! The guy across the street has two little yappers that bark at EVERYTHING but, his solution for this is to chase after them and loudly whisper at them to shut up! Sometimes he'll shoot them with a squirt gun. 5:00 later, they're at it again!! The woman on my left at least puts SOME effort into stopping her dog and, for the most part, it only starts barking when those other two start!!
Dad had a very simple solution! When they're young and start doing something (like barking) that you don't want them to do, keep a loosely rolled up newspaper handy. If they do something "bad' slap your leg or your hand with the paper and tell them, "NO!", or whatever stern phrase you want to use. They don't like the sound that paper makes. You never HAVE to hit them! So, after you get them trained, they should be okay and you won't even need the paper anymore if they DO act up. I'm not sure if this works on smaller dogs, though. They have a smaller heart, which means their blood pumps a lot faster, which tends to MAKE them high-strung by nature!

[Twalli]

Small dogs bark more often because they are scared. My dog is a large breed and rarely barks because she is aware of her size and generally uses it to get attention.

[FunkyMonkee]

@Twalli Seems to me the little ones bark like they're daring you to come any further. Like they're bullies. If they were scared, they'd most likely run away from you than run up TO you and bark at you when you could easily use them as a stepping stone! If you saw someone much bigger than you as a threat, would YOU be prone to go after them and start shit, risking death, when all you had to do was stay where you are and keep quiet?

[Twalli]

It's an attempt to scare the bigger thing away

[FunkyMonkee]

@Twalli Why? When the bigger trying wasn't an immediate threat to begin with? Might as well just jump out in front of it and say, "Kill me, please!'

[Twalli]

They're animals, they don't possess logic

[Red_Arrow]

Mixed feelings. Our neighbor has two dogs that will bark at sounds that disturb them. They are being protective. There are townhomes close to us, so lots of kids playing, loud talking, lawn maintenance, etc. Every time I move the garbage and recycling bins behind the house, they start barking. I just speak to them (close fence boards so hard to see) and they quiet down. Sometimes they are where I can see them between the boards and they will start wagging their tails like crazy when I talk to them. But I would not like it during the night. They stay inside at night, outside most of the day. If someone is thoughtless enough to leave pets out at night disturbing other people, I will complain,

[Red_Arrow]

Thank you for MHGuy. :-)

[Anonymous]

I live in a nice secluded neighborhood, and on top of that, in a cul de sac with few neighbors. Then we got new neighbors who had a dog who barked consistently without interruption for HOURS at a time each day. Most of my neighbors have dogs but they only bark occasionally like if the mailman or strangers are walking by but not HOURS. How does one expect to ignore that? Even before the pandemic, I worked from home. It was extremely disruptive and I could never get any peace and quiet after the neighbors moved in. This lasted for 3 solid months before thank god they got rid of the dog. I KNOW I am lucky. For others, not so much. A neighborhood does not just belong to you and your pet. I would feel the same way if I had neighbors who played loud music or had loud parties everyday. As long as you are respectful in your approach to a complaint with your neighbor, I think they should make some attempts to rectify the situation either with training, removal, or getting a dog sitter because that's not normal for dogs and it's annoying for everyone else.

[beebella]

Our dogs don't consistently bark, so I don't know what the hell they were complaining about. I guess lucky for them the dog got hit by a car. 🤷‍♀️

[Opinion Owner]

I mean each situation and problem is different and your specific one may have been dealing with a neighbor directing their anger about other dogs towards you, but for some people to say it's rude to complain to a neighbor is ridiculous. Let me play a loud consistent annoying sound piped into your house for hours on end and see how happy you are to be living next door to that.

[ChefPapiChulo]

You’re being trolled lol @beebella

[beebella]

@Chefpapichulo I think pink anon doesn't think I've ever had noisy neighbors before.

[ChefPapiChulo]

I think pink anon is having a go at you

[beebella]

@chefpapichulo The let's have a go.

[beebella]

Then*

[ChefPapiChulo]

You’re not supposed to feed the troll.

[beebella]

I feed you, don't I?

[Opinion Owner]

What about any of my comments even suggests trolling? I have literally answered the question that was asked and have said nothing rude or inflammatory.

[JosyJosy]

I honestly don't care much. Like my parents' neighbours have a dog who will bark at everyone who passes by, and they complain that it's being loud, but honestly I feel safe with a dog like that nearby. Keeping the neighbourhood burglar free, one bark at a time

[BlueBex]

Okay, to start off, for the record I love dogs and I have two of them. One of them is definitely more “barky” than the other one.

That said, I think if the neighbour is complaining about barking in the middle of the night or in the early hours of the morning (and your dog is actually barking at those times) then it’s a valid complaint. Hell, I find it annoying when my dogs (or other peoples dogs) bark at those times and I signed up to have dogs, someone who didn’t sign up to deal with a dog has a valid reason to be irritated by it.

If the barking is happening during normal daylight hours and isn’t constant then they should be able to deal. But yes, even during daylight hours, constant yapping is annoying (and again, one of my dogs has a tendency to be yappy). If it’s a consistent issue and your dog is actually continuously barking then it’s up to you as the owner to train the dog to stop or reduce the barking. It’s totally doable (I’ve done it) and there is plenty of information available on the internet on how to do so.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, people that hates dogs shouldn't live in a neighborhood where 90% of b dog owners live there. I think that there's always going to be someone who complains about everything. wether it's dogs or not. Sometimes I believe that if they're not complaining, they'll explode.

I'm so sorry about your dog. It's really sad. I wish there were laws against people who purposely kill pets. <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 Your dog is now watching over you in dog heaven. She's thankful for having a very good family.

In my neighborhood, the ones who complain the most about dogs are old people. They've started throwing broken glass on grass (especially places where dogs go to play or do their business). I've also been followed by neighbors, watching if I pick up my dog's poop and constantly being shouted to pick my dog's poop when my dog is peeing. I mean, picking poop is a law, as well as not leaving trash yet they leave trash on the streets most of the time.

I've also seen a video where a woman tried to shoot a dog, but instead shot her son. I don't want to be mean but I felt a little happy for her mistake. OF COURSE POOR CHILD, I don't mean anything bad for him... but still...

[Apple1996]

I am one of those people that complain. So many people dont properly watch/take care of their dogs. I've had many many issues like their dog won't quit barking, the dog isn't on a leash and runs up on my kids and worst was when my neighbors in the duplex let their 4 dogs shit and piss all over the house and the smell came through the walls. If peoples dogs are doing those things I'm gonna say something, if they seem controlled then they dont bug me. But neighbors do have a valid reason to complain if the dog is being annoying.

[hahahmm]

You can train pets to do anything you want. Most people are too lazy/busy to bother but if you wan to have an animal that would be happiest in a huge forest, living in the suburbs it'd be a good idea to teach it some manners that work better with neighbors.

By the way, when I was a kid there were no leash laws. People let their dogs roam by themselves all the time and you never even heard of people getting attacked because the dogs had been taught manners from a young age. The only time I ever had a problem with a strange dog was somebody else's very young puppy but their bite won't even break the skin so not a big deal. Today, a lot of people's dogs are barely trained at all. They're practically rabid zombies. It's ridiculous.

[hahahmm]

I should add, some dog breeds shouldn't even be in houses tho. Some are meant to be outdoors only or hunting.

[ImSparkly]

We have two dogs that are well behaved and don’t bark at blowing leaves. Conversely, our neighbors back home have three small dogs (terriers and smaller) that bark at the wind, bark at us sitting outside having dinner, and snarl at our dogs. They leave for hours at a time (work or recreation) and leave the dogs alone outside. We haven’t complained to the city yet as we have been gone for almost a year now, but don’t have any problems doing so if we go back. It’s bad owners who are irresponsible, and not training their dogs.

[nolabels]

I just lost my favorite dog to cancer two weeks ago at the age of 12 years.
I'm still heartbroken.

He was an extremely yappy little guy when he was younger, but settled into a somewhat quieter later life.
I would have neighbors mention it occasionally. I was always extremely apologetic and would curtail his outdoor excursions somewhat until he seemed to quiet down.

On the flip side, I've had neighbor dogs who bark incessantly, but I never said a word about it. I want to, but I just don't want to be "that guy".

[GoodGuyBreakingBad]

I've lived in a neighborhood and this neighbor who lived across the street
claimed to be a Christian person but she would turn us in for everything
for dogs we had, for cats, we had ducks for my little niece, and she
called the City on them, she would call the City for us to clean up
our backyard up and there wasn't much wrong with the yard
Our leaves from our Tree went over to her side of the street and
she handed my mom ( late) a rake and garbage bags to pick
them up on her side of the street, yes this woman was a
royal biatch on wheels so people are assholes and sorry
for your dad's dog , people are vindictive (( Hugs ))

[Slartybartfast]

The neighbors have several large dogs, unfortunately they don't clean up the yard and just let them use it as a toilet.

I can't even open my windows because of the smell of dog poop and the flies are terrible.

They also leave for work at 4am and put the dogs out , who immediately start barking and don't stop till they get home.

I like dogs, I hate irresponsible dog owners.

[pjf1958]

I live in San Bernardino Ca. We have a predominantly latino population. Many of the families that live here have dogs. Many times I have felt threatened by their dogs, because they won't ensure that they are properly fenced up. Im not talking about chihuahua's, Im talking pit bulls. I have had confrontations with some of these homeowners. We couldn't communicate because of the language barrier. Is their a lack of understanding American laws concerning the proper fencing of dogs? Are the same laws in Mexico different?

[fallen_wings]

Have the dogs barked at you or what?

[pjf1958]

No, twice the families were having a party and, their dog was left unchained and, unsupervised. They came at me ready to attack

[Twalli]

Pit bulls are violent by nature

[sawno]

I am that neighboor. Next to me is a retarded dog that will bark and howl nonstop if my neighboor isn't home and i need to be able to rest to recover from an injury. I don't mind my other neighboors dog, it barks occationally. But 2 hours of nonstop barking and howling when she's not home, and regular barking outside anytime the dog hears anything is not ok.

[fallen_wings]

Have you talked to your neighbor? In a well manner I mean

[sawno]

@fallen_wings Yup, she's doing everything she can to try and get that dog under control. Its just an absolutely dumb dog thats hard to control.

[Leavesbound]

As cute as your dog may be, barking is unacceptable. If your dog barks loud enough for your neighbor to hear you are either too close to your neighbor or should not have a dog in that neighborhood. Also, as a general rule of thumb, dogs need lots of outdoor space to run around and that should be approximately one acre for ever hundred pounds of dog. Your dog should be no less than 200 feet per hundred pounds away from your nearest neighbor as well.

[beebella]

Most of the houses on my street are pretty spaced out and a lot of my neighbors have dogs (including these people) and nobody else has ever complained about any of our dogs. 🤷‍♀️

[Leavesbound]

Can you hear their dogs barking from your place?

[beebella]

I can hear whenever any of the neighbors' dogs bark.

[MasseurDeMojo]

It sounds like they did not like your dad's dog. I would of gone to the authorities, and told them what is going on, and then asked them for help. If your dog is not being loud, and you are following State regulations, then the neighbors have no right to complain; and that becomes a case of harassment.

You really need to look into this legally; then file against the neighbors!! They cannot dictate to you where you house your pets. They are in the wrong!!!

[MasseurDeMojo]

Also!!! Make sure you set up cameras to record if your neighbors are harassing your pets when they ar outside. The police will love the evidence.

[InfobotLives]

I think that they should shut the fuck up. People think that they have some kind of right to silence. I would look for anything and everything to complain about them. Building regulations, public health violations, anything. I'd say that they keep their kids in a dungeon 😏

[NYCQuestions1976]

I agree with your sentiment in theory, but one needs to be careful before opening that Pandora's Box. Something about glass houses and pet rocks or whatever...

[Ninjazzed]

I say that if I pay my own bills and live in a secluded area, I have a right to my own silence. I don’t need the peace being disturbed by a shit-assed bark machine.

If you move in and bring your dog into the neighborhood then have the human decency to shut it up or neighbors will always give you shit for it.

Do you justify bringing a screaming child into the library or a fucking movie theater?

[InfobotLives]

@Ninjazzed I justify anything that I want. My world, my rules 💪😎

[Ninjazzed]

You couldn’t be more wrong, but whatever helps you cope.

[InfobotLives]

@Ninjazzed I'm never wrong and I cope amazingly well 😌

[kkirk4442]

If a dog is barking at night, or barking a lot during the day, it can be very annoying to neighbors. We've owned dogs, and were always careful to keep them from barking when it could be bothersome to others.

[Still-alive]

Thats pretty fucked up that your dog was killed. I think complaining is ok as long as its done tactfully and respectfully. I also have a yappingg dog near by who thankfully shits up at night lol. But if it didn't i would go over there and just calmly explain that i need to sleep and the dog yapping through the night needs to stop.

anyways im happy for your new puppy. Hope this time it lives much longer

[Ninjazzed]

My neighbor’s dog barks every morning near my window.

Don’t leave your pets outside all-day and fucking everyday.

If this problem persists, and you receive plenty of complaints from everyone in the neighborhood, then don’t be surprised if you wake up and end up with a dead dog.

This tends to happen more often than not.

[beebella]

They're the only neighbors who've ever complained. Everyone else minds their damn business.
Maybe that shit happens a lot where you live, but not here.

[Ninjazzed]

It happens everywhere, especially with pitbulls. Most people here kill them on sight. It’s illegal in some areas to even own one.

Most insurance companies will charge you astronomically for having one.

[collie22]

i wouldn't try to judge probably two sides to every story. I'm sorry that happened to your doggy i would be so sad if anything happened to our Rex he's such a good dog. We don't complain about our neighbors dog barking even though its quite annoying. i figure the neighbors sheepdog its neglected

[Twalli]

Pets are not like humans. They make noise to communicate. For example my dog has distinct barks for different things. Fear, joy, play, let me in, etc. Most people here though have, or had dogs. They're generally understanding, because when they had a dog it was the same way. I once had a neighbor's dog follow me a decent way down the sidewalk because it smelled my Subway sandwich and I didn't mind at all.

[Slim57]

Its not as bad when they're your pets but to other people who dont know your pets the barking is insane with some dogs where it will drive anyone crazy when they're trying to sleep

[beebella]

We wouldn't even leave her out late at night, tho. She also didn't bark that often, which is why this is so confusing to me.

[Slim57]

Maybe its the other neighbors dogs? And they thinks its yours or like you said they are just being annoying for no reason to disliking your dogs

[beebella]

Yeah, I don't know. They just seem like weirdos to me.

[Éhmîë]

🤔🤔🤔I think that maybe they didn't like the way ur dog barked not mainly the dog in general. Sry 4 the loss of it by the way. Wish u get to have more of them😊

[loves2learn]

Sometimes dogs barking can be really annoying. Just saying. But I would never wish a pup death.

[AmandaYVR]

I think the pet owners who have noisy pets and don't keep them calm and happy are the problem.

[Curmudgeon]

When I was a kid and it was still a free country, dogs barked, cats prowled, and people dealt with it. Now we have "neighbors" who are stool pigeons.

[hahahmm]

This is true too... people were less about calling 911 and running to the media back in the day. Neighbors actually talked to each other too tho. Like when I was a kid I knew maybe half the neighborhood (everyone in all of the houses within 5 houses for sure). Today people don't even know their next door neighbor.

[lovedejj_xo]

I have a shiba inu she is very vocal at times……I attached what a shiba scream sounds like.

https://youtube.com/shorts/4pFmmfxhxyk?feature=share

[Jenngirl00]

I have a dog but I keep him inside mostly. My neighbors all have dogs and we keep an eye on all of our pets. I Actually got lucky

[spartan55]

Anyone who let's their dog bark all night in their backyard, or let it take dumps in my front yard are never on my Neighbor of the Year list.

[beebella]

Our dogs don't do that.

[spartan55]

Then I would bring you fresh baked cookies.
The dumping in my front yard is a true story by the way.

[beebella]

Sorry about that. 😂

[spartan55]

They were easily the worst neighbors I've ever had, for a litany of reasons.

[ChefPapiChulo]

i think i would end up in the 6 o clock news if my neighbor's dog shit on my yard.

[pleasestopthis]

I complain when the neighbors are irresponsible and let their pets roam around and poop all over our front yards.

[questionsforguys]

It's none of their business, also complaining isn't going to do anything

[Kelly6]

I gave up my pet to shelter because my neighbor kept complaining at night time at am, and kept calling police

[AmeerX]

Same experience

[ThoughtfulSoul]

Way more annoying than the one they're trying to complain about.

[Wise4myage]

I gotta be honest, barking dogs during the day or night can be very annoying, but if your neighbors dogs bark like that, than you were singled out.

[Anonymous]

Dogs that bark a lot are a PITA. I sympathize with your neighbors. I have two dogs and they don't bark. If they did, I would either find a way to stop it or get rid of them.

[beebella]

All dogs bark. If you don't want something that barks, then don't get a dog.

[Opinion Owner]

All dogs bark at times, but not all bark in a problematic way. I have had dogs all my life and have never had one who barked more than occasionally. If I did, I would not have kept it, because I'm a responsible dog owner and neighbor.

I have however had neighbors whose dogs barked incessantly and it was tortuous to me, my family and all the neighbors. I never made an official complaint but several of the other neighbors did and the problem disappeared. I don't know whether they got rid of the dog voluntarily or it was officially enforced. Either way, it was the right thing to do. Most neighborhoods have codes that prohibit noisy dogs, and for good reason.

[DudeDiligence]

Amen to this. Irresponsible dog owners are a pet (pardon the pun) peeve of mine.

[pjf1958]

While it's true that all dogs bark, some breeds rarely bark. Doberman pinchers are a prime example

[Opinion Owner]

@pjf1958 That's true. I had a neighbor once who had a beagle and it barked all the time. I Google it and beagles are generally really bad barkers.

I have had four field bred English springer spaniels (NOT American springer spaniels... totally different breed) and none of them have been barkers.

[Paris13]

My fiance is Going through this Right Now with Barking dogs!!! He should Go OVER and Slam Dunk them!!! xxoo

[UnknownGagsUser]

I dislike this type of neighbor and wish i never met one..

[Den1971]

Seriously people need to monitor on fucking business they don't pay your bills they don't live in your house they don't take care of your dog nobody complains about their fucking dog tell me to see the fuck away from you

[COMMODOREII]

Some people try to cause problems so the dogs are considered the problem.

[douride2]

How did your dads dog get killed by a truck driver?

[beebella]

She was hit by a truck driver.

[douride2]

So how is that the drivers fault. The dog must have been running free on the street.

[douride2]

As for dogs barking most cities & towns have bylaws against just that thing. I would never let my dog bark excessively. Especially in the evening or night.

[beebella]

She ran out of the yard when my Dad was leaving for work.

I don't know, man. I've been a pet owner for more than half of my life at this point and I understand that our pets are our babies. I've also lost pets before, so I wouldn't want to do something that could possibly get someone's pet taken away. Although, there are some people who really shouldn't have pets either. 🤷‍♀️

[douride2]

I'm sorry your dad lost his dog that way. As for some people not having pets your right. If your work or life takes you away from home for long periods of time it's not fair to the animal. This is why I haven't had a dog in quite some time now.

[Minahh]

I do complain about my neighbor's dog's loud barking. Especially when I want to sit peacefully in the garden. Super annoying.

[he-takes-a-part]

Who is pet over here coz there are two pics
one of german shepherd and another of you.

[beebella]

Me. I'm the pet.

[he-takes-a-part]

Cute pet. Lets make offsprings and spread love

[EnglishEuropean]

If your dog poops in my garden you are gonna hear about it.

[smahala1991]

Some people are dickheads

[Anonymous]

I've asked a few neighbors to keep their dog's barking under control. Listening to dogs bark all day or night is SOOOOO fucking annoying.

[NYCQuestions1976]

This is why pet rocks are so popular.

[Iron_Man]

I don’t like that and I support you

[Fuentes]

I'll come and put the beat down on them. for you

[ChefPapiChulo]

i think they can suck deez nuts

[moejoeloli]

My freedom stops where urs beging and vice versa

[KrakenAttackin]

A dog barking all night is annoying AF.

[beebella]

It didn't bark all night.

[JesseJayNeak]

Nosy neighbors