PSA for your barking dogs

[AntleredRuin]

This is one of those things where I would have liked to not be proven right, but there you go.

Pretty much, for the past year, we've had a neighbor with a little barking dog. A little Pomeranian, I think. They'd leave it outside day and night and it'd bark the entire time. Annoying as hell, as I could hear it through my entire house, and obviously, the dog was very unhappy.

They'd bring it in during the worst of the worst storms and weather, so it technically didn't fall under 'animal cruelty', but it sure as hell was cruel.
It'd be raining, or close to freezing temps, or there'd be fireworks or other loud neighborhood noises, and it'd bark at all that. It was terrified and worked up constantly.

I tried speaking to them literally over a dozen times, I'd spoken to other neighbors who'd spoken with them, I'd left several notes, I'd even called the non-emergency constable a few times. They technically weren't breaking any laws other than noise ordinances, so the worst they ever got was a slap on the wrist and maybe a fine.

I had tried to tell the husband (who seemed more reasonable than the woman. I had reason to believe that it was 'her' dog and that he did not like it at all) that the dog was not happy. The fact that it was barking all the time meant that it was feeling ignored, scared, etc. He was 'trying to tell them something' and they were ignoring it.


Well anyways, 2 days ago, the dog was found dead by another neighbor in front of her house mid-morning. Cops were called, etc, etc, and it looks like it was killed by a coyote and dragged over the fence. Large bite marks and signs of a scuffle at the fence. The neighbors said they heard it barking, but did not think anything of it. Of course, right? It barked so much and they ignored it so much that when something actually worth barking at (like being mauled and eaten by a coyote) happened, they didn't even pay attention.

I really didn't want to be proven right in that way.


So yeah, PSA.
Pay attention to your ****ing dogs. When they bark, see what they're barking at. If they're barking at nothing, train them to stop.
Or, if you don't have the time/energy/basic sense of responsibility to own a dog, then don't own a dog. Don't buy your wife and kids a cute little toy and then ignore it after a few days. It is a commitment, lasting either the life of the dog, or until such a time as you need to give it to a shelter. Not to be all tree-hugger and whatnot, but it is an animal that depends on you for survival. Treat it well, and if that's outside your abilities, then don't own one.

 

[jordanrb81]

I couldn't agree with you more! We have this issue in our neighborhood only it's a German Shepherd it's a few houses away from mine but I have been told by parents that some children are so afraid of it they won't play outside within like three houses of it. it has broken it's leash a couple times and chased people, no bites... yet. Just like your story, out in the snow, unbelievable heat in the summer and it barks non stop. the thing that bothers me most is when they chain it up outside and then just leave for hours at a time. Meanwhile I have a dog, never barks. even when I am walking my dog and we pass other dogs and they bark, which is common, my dog just perks it's ears up. I have had other neighbors ask me, "how come your dog is so calm and doesn't bark" I sort of just look at them blankly and say "training" like why do even have to ask me, like it's a mystery. My dog lives inside, on a dog bed... ok so two dog beds one in the living room and one in the master bedroom. we exercise her daily, bathe her monthly, take her to the vet every 6 months and she is the most popular animal in the neighborhood. Seriously, when I walk her every kid comes running for pets, because they know she's super well behaved. it's not difficult, but it does take a time commitment. One that should be seriously considered before adopting another living creature... wow, I guess I had a lot to get off my chest.

 

[AntleredRuin]

Exactly.
That's why I have cats. I like dogs just fine, but I'm not willing to put up with the added responsibility. Cats pretty much take care of themselves. Just make sure there's food and water and do the litter box a few times a week, and they're good. They don't try to escape, they don't make loud noises that get the neighbors upset, they don't scare children, they don't piss all over the house, they don't get bored and chew up my furniture, etc, etc, etc.
I do have them trained to an extent, but the training was not NECESSARY to get a well behaved cat. It was just an added bonus for the fun of it. My cats don't feel mistreated because I leave them alone sometimes.


What's worse, the owners of the dog apparently actually tried to accuse me of killing it, because they know that I've complained about it multiple time. Luckily, I'm friendly with the officer who was called out, and he shut that down quick. It was obviously an animal attack, so he didn't even take their accusations seriously. Otherwise, I might have a bit of a problem on my hands.

****ing pathetic.

 

[philsey]

Yeah, major pet peeve with me. Got two across the street - caged. I tried talking with the lady (nicely) but she got defensive and irate. Fortunately we have city ordinances, so I just keep calling the animal control officer every time. Eventually, they get a ticket requiring a court appearance. Still starts over every summer. They hate me. Tough shit.

 

[jordanrb81]

I have called the cops on my neighbor for a dog at large, one of the times they weren't home and they had to "capture" the dog. apparently the wife lit me up on facebook, not me specifically because she didn't know exactly who called the cops. thing is, I'm not on facebook so I heard about it from another neighbor that is. I love when people get mad at others for their negligence, instead of I don't know taking responsibility for their own actions, or in this case lack of action.

Oh and my dog doesn't chew furniture or go to the bathroom in the house. We crate trained for... maybe 6-9 months, I am not a fan but it had the desired conditioning effect, also just like with children most dogs go through a chewing phase when they're puppies, our dog is 11 now hasn't seen the inside of a crate in years.

 

[AntleredRuin]

On an unrelated note....the ads on the bottom of the T4R page. They're spying on us...spooky...

 

[LandCruiser]

Don't leave your dogs unattended in coyote country.

 

[AntleredRuin]

Don't leave your dogs unattended in coyote country.

Correction:
Don't leave your dog unattended outside anywhere. Makes for an uphappy/unsafe dog and pissed off neighbors.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[00Sebby]

This must happen in every neighborhood. Two houses down, guy puts his dachshund outside at 8am and for the longest time would not take her in until 9 or 10 pm. The thing literally barks a loud, shrill bark once a second almost all day other than the occasional naps. I can hear it in our house with windows closed. I always said if it ever showed up in my yard I would lure it into the house and take it somewhere over in the mountains of NC and let it loose. Lots of coyotes there. But I finally talked to him about it. At first he was pissed, then he came over to apologize. He puts her in about 5pm now because that's usually the time we are outside grilling and enjoying the evening. Of course, now that I have my own dog (that only barks when I tell her to) I feel differently about even the misbehaving and neglected ones.

 

[John7M7]

I'll stay soft, but having two rescue dogs who have been abused in the past by their previous owners makes me very... sensitive to this kind of issues. We live in a country of lawyers and pussies. No offenses but it's true.

In Europe, where I'm from, we often have a different way to handle problems like, let's say, a scumbag who leave his dog in the yard all the time. We don't call the non urgent emergency line so that nothing ever happen but we did "what we could". We can act.

Good job for doing the right thing and not giving up. Too bad nothing changed. The dog is dead, these POS are not. I call that a tragedy.

 

[jordanrb81]

I'll stay soft, but having two rescue dogs who have been abused in the past by their previous owners makes me very... sensitive to this kind of issues. We live in a country of lawyers and pussies. No offenses but it's true.

In Europe, where I'm from, we often have a different way to handle problems like, let's say, a scumbag who leave his dog in the yard all the time. We don't call the non urgent emergency line so that nothing ever happen but we did "what we could". We can act.

Good job for doing the right thing and not giving up. Too bad nothing changed. The dog is dead, these POS are not. I call that a tragedy.

what exactly are you suggesting we do?

 

[John7M7]

Nothing bro, you just stay on your couch and keep feeling good about yourself while doggies die and are abused.

You're the man bro!

And if one day you see a guy raping a girl, or abusing a kid, don't you panic man, just walk away and go grab a Starbucks drink. Don't let it ruin your day.

 

[jordanrb81]

oh ok cool thanks, way to answer a serious question with passive aggressive sarcasm, that's super helpful. I get it though you're just a little punk ***** who likes to sound tough on the internet but you actually have no idea at all what to do when confronted or challenged. Makes all the sense in the world now really. :llama:

 

[wallytoo]

Nothing bro, you just stay on your couch and keep feeling good about yourself while doggies die and are abused.

You're the man bro!

And if one day you see a guy raping a girl, or abusing a kid, don't you panic man, just walk away and go grab a Starbucks drink. Don't let it ruin your day.

GFY, euro. dog is still a dog, not a human. i'd happily help incarcerate the animal abusers, but i'm not going to kill the SOBs because of it.

 

[John7M7]

A: you don't know anything about me yet you ***** about what I said, trying to read between the lines when clearly your capacities don't allow you to do so. Don't get me wrong, there's a big gap between being a couch potato who doesn't step up for abused animals like you and being an internet tough guy. I support local rescue shelters, adopted two dogs, and try to help whenever I can. So, you know, shut up.

B: who talked about killing someone? There's a gap between calling the non emergency police line because the noise bothers you and killing someone. It's called acting, stepping up.
In my country, you would take the dog away, bring him to the vet, and then to a rescue. The owner would basically have no ground to sue you. Here, its a different story. Plus we would be willing to confront him should he try to stop us. But I know, for you saying anything other than "I'm a big ***** and don't stand up for animals" over the internet is "playing tough guy"....

C: "an animal is just an animal". Well, the country next to mine used to think a Jew/Disabled/Gipsy/etc wasn't our equal, based on some pseudo science. It made a lot of sense to a lot of people 70 years ago.
I try not to think of myself as some superior entity, but I guess you guys don't relate to that one. As long as someone just beats or kills a dog, it's fine by you, because a scumbag human is more important than an innocent dog.

 

[wallytoo]

yeah, that's it, supercilious euro.

 

[wallytoo]

We live in a country of lawyers and pussies. No offenses but it's true.

In Europe, where I'm from, we often have a different way to handle problems like, let's say, a scumbag who leave his dog in the yard all the time. We don't call the non urgent emergency line so that nothing ever happen but we did "what we could". We can act.

Good job for doing the right thing and not giving up. Too bad nothing changed. The dog is dead, these POS are not. I call that a tragedy.

Nothing bro, you just stay on your couch and keep feeling good about yourself while doggies die and are abused.

You're the man bro!

And if one day you see a guy raping a girl, or abusing a kid, don't you panic man, just walk away and go grab a Starbucks drink. Don't let it ruin your day.

A: you don't know anything about me yet you ***** about what I said, trying to read between the lines when clearly your capacities don't allow you to do so. Don't get me wrong, there's a big gap between being a couch potato who doesn't step up for abused animals like you and being an internet tough guy. I support local rescue shelters, adopted two dogs, and try to help whenever I can. So, you know, shut up.

B: who talked about killing someone? There's a gap between calling the non emergency police line because the noise bothers you and killing someone. It's called acting, stepping up.
In my country, you would take the dog away, bring him to the vet, and then to a rescue. The owner would basically have no ground to sue you. Here, its a different story. Plus we would be willing to confront him should he try to stop us. But I know, for you saying anything other than "I'm a big ***** and don't stand up for animals" over the internet is "playing tough guy"....

C: "an animal is just an animal". Well, the country next to mine used to think a Jew/Disabled/Gipsy/etc wasn't our equal, based on some pseudo science. It made a lot of sense to a lot of people 70 years ago.
I try not to think of myself as some superior entity, but I guess you guys don't relate to that one. As long as someone just beats or kills a dog, it's fine by you, because a scumbag human is more important than an innocent dog.

fyi, europe isn't a country.

you brought up that you wish the abusers were dead, so no inference was needed by anyone "to read between the lines".

funny, but this "soft" country is the primary reason that "the country next to mine" was defeated in wwII. the defeat of the germans most certainly was not due to the herculean efforts of "your" euro kingdom, sorry to disabuse you of that notion. feel free to escape from this terrible soft nation, and return to your paradise, where you can save some more dogs, otters, and cats.