Have you had a problem with a neighbor over a pet, either yours or theirs?

Question

Do you no longer speak to your neighbor because of a problem over a pet? Did your neighbor get angry at you because of your pet?

I havent talked to my neighbor in over a year because she let her dogs poop in my yard EVERY DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK between 7 and 730 EVERY MORNING, and then usually again in the afternoon. Once she stood there laughing while the dog did it.One day I lost it, I told her to get her sh*tting dogs off my property and keep them off after asking her nicely at least 10 times not to let them do that.

Answer 1

That happened to us once. I told the woman " Do you realize that this is my backyard and not a public park? I don't allow my pets to use the bathroom in front of your house ; I would appreciate it if you didn't allow yours to do it in mine." She actually got pissed off because she said that I had people that take care of my lawn so she figured it was okay. I proceeded to ask her if she cared to split the bill for the outrageous fees they charged.
She didn't come back for a couple of weeks and then started all over again. So, I had the worker's put her dog's crap in a bag for one week and then took it over to her house and dropped it on her front lawn out of the bag. I told her that she forgot her belongings in my yard. Then she called the police it got all ugly and she finally stopped walking her dog in my yard.
Don't worry if she doesn't talk to you anymore. You are better off without such an inconsiderate person in your life.

Answer 2

I haven't personally had any major problems, but I work with animal rescue, and we get calls all the time about angry neighbors. It can get nasty, for sure! There are many ways to help with the problems, but most of them take either a considerable amount of time, a good bit of money, or someone conceding the argument and simply saying "I'm sorry" and stopping what's causing the problem. Very often, if a third party is willing to mediate and get both neighbors together in a non-hostile environment (in one's home, over coffee or brunch, if you do that, is great) to simply talk about it, a resolution may be reached. But if it's escalated already into angry neighbors, or if one is just an a**, then other measures have to be taken. The most reliable way to keep other dogs out of the yard is a fence -- and in some states (or by town code) a fence put up on the property line MUST be shared in cost by both parties, so sometimes a letter from a lawyer promising a court date will work. Also, if the dog is not on leash, buy, rent or borrow a humane trap, bait it with food, and catch the dog in the trap. Then call animal control to come get it, tell them it belongs to the neighbor so they can notify him and possibly cite him, and he can go to the trouble of going to pick up his dog from doggy jail. Keep in mind, though, that sometimes ugly neighbors will just get uglier and retaliate. I hope you can work it out! Good neighbors are hard to find.... that's why we have none! :-)

Answer 3

I had issues with a neighbor's dogs years ago as a youth, and I was not the only one. There was this little brown poodle dog and a black Lab(mix?) that would circle and even make attempts at nipping me while on my way to the school bus stop- without provocation of any kind on my part. The owner would tell me not to tease her dogs whenever my parents and/or I confronted her. After the problems persisted and several neighbors had complained, the town was notified. The dogs were confiscated and eventually destroyed due to behavior problems. To this day, she will not say a peep to anyone on her street.

Answer 4

I have a similar situation except in every other respect my dog owning neighbors are perfect neighbors! I took the coward's way out, went to the hardware store, bought the crystals that repel dogs, and put them on my lawn after dark. It was a small price to pay to keep the friendship with my otherwise perfect neighbors. (Of course I still have to buy the stuff every couple of months...)

Answer 5

No, but if you have a neighborhood association I suggest you take it up with them. Otherwise, take the poop each day and leave it on her front doorstep with a note that says "I believe this is yours. Sincerely, your fed up next-door neighbor." But I'm sure you can find a more mature way to deal with it.

Answer 6

I have a friend who had the same problem. She got a shovel and heaved the excrement back over the fence into the yard of the perpetrator! Eventually they get the hint.