Can the Police make me keep my dog from barking?

Question

seriously, the cops came to my house at 2am this morning to tell me that one of the neighbors complained that my dog is too loud at night and they asked me to keep her quiet, to put a mussle(spelling?) on her face to keep her from barking. he said "i really don't want to come back here because your dog is barking in the middle of the night" is that right? is it a law that dogs can't bark at night? and why does it only have to be my dog that gets silenced? there's dogs all over the neighborhood that bark at night!

Question: is there really a way for the cops to make me put a mussle (sp?) on my dog so she can't bark at night?

Answer 1

you can be fined for it if there is a continuous problem. most places have noise ordinances at night and dogs are included. Im actually in favor of these ordinances. Our neighborhood has several dogs which bark all night and keep the neighborhood up. I have had pets/dogs in the past and have nothing against pets. But i do feel it is the owners responsibility to keep the dog quiet at night...

Answer 2

Keep the dog in the house or take it to the vet and have vocal cords separated. Take Rover back to mom and dads house.... If you don't pick up the poo the health department might visit....The cop gave you a warning... Next time is gona cost about $100 for disturbing the peace. .. You have no right to leave your dog outside and let him bark...Don't you hear the little guy barking??? You have run out of patience with the neighbors.. By the way if he does that in the daytime you can get a another ticket...People do not have to listen to your dog bark..... I used to work at night and the neighbor got tapped for $100...
Mussle does not keep the dog from barking--just biting...
The police officer was at your place it is the LAW...

Answer 3

That depends on the state laws. But yes and yes are the short answers. There are noise limits that you and your animals have to obey and if there is a problem then the police can most certainly take some action against you. What that action is is debatable, generally it's a fine that increases incrementally if you take no action. It could be to force you to somehow silence the dog or something else.
If the dog is a problem though it would seem to me that you
should as a nieghbor have enough respect for your
neighbors to do something about it. Waking people up in the middle of the night is not cool, even if it is just a dog.
It's not just your dog that has to be quiet but all the dogs in the neighborhood. You have the right to complain about other dogs too and they (the owner) have to do something or face the same consequences as you.

Answer 4

Yes! My brother has two dogs and one of them wouldn't stop barking during the night. Their neighbors got fed up and wouldn't stop complaining, so the city made the cops come out and have my brother place a bark collar on the dog. It doesn't hurt the dog, just catches them off guard with a light impulse. If the dog keeps barking the impulse gets stronger. But it really works, it took he two barks to understand. I think that it sounds a lot worse than it really is. It worked, the dog doesn't bark, and if he does, all my brother has to do is show him the bark collar and he shuts right up. In the end everyone is happy. The neighbors don't complain, and the dog doesn't bark.

Answer 5

Sorry but I have neighbors who never control their dogs and let them bark all day and night. My husband and I have not had a full night's sleep since we moved in. These neighbors can't hear their own dog's barking but they complain about everyone else being too loud. If your dog barks at night, why not bring it into the house so it won't bother the whole neighborhood? If you had a burglar, the dog would still hear it. Yes, it's not fair that the cops came to your house and not to all the other houses but if your neighbors were bothered enough to car the police at 2:00 AM, your dog is a problem and he is bothering people.

By the way, the word you're looking for is muzzle.

Answer 6

They can suggest a muzzle for your dog, but how you silence the dog is your business.

If you town is like mine, there is a noise ordinance, that addresses different types of noise and the times they may occur.

The cops don't care about the other dogs in the neighborhood, they were called about your dog.

My town will issue a couple of verbal warnings, then they go to written warnings, after that it's $50.00 fines for each occurrence. It doesn't take too many visits by the cops, before you start racking up some hefty fines.

Find a way to control the dog's barking, before you start writing some big checks.

Answer 7

That sounds like a horrible neighborhood. Dogs barking all over the place. Don't the owners hear the dogs barking? Does anyone realize how annoying it is? I hope the cops can make someone muzzle a dog (I think they can b/c of noise ordinances) because the owner is just terribly inconsiderate or deaf and dumb. Now if only the cops can make people muzzle their children and put them on leashes (if every kid was on a leash, there would be no more Amber alerts!)

Answer 8

Yes, its called disturbing the peace. Cops will allow most noises to go on till 10 or 11pm. But once that time hits, any loud sounds, dogs, car stereos, parties will be shut down.

If the cops come back for a 2nd complaint, and since its already documented that they arrived the 1st time. They can take your dog and have him put down at the SPCA by law.

You have a few choices. Either muzzle the dog or put him inside at night. Or find out the neighbor that complained and talk to them RATIONALLY on what you can do to come to an agreement. Most likely the dog is keeping them away and its effecting the job and performance.

Answer 9

Some areas have noise laws, and this would probably be what barking dogs would fall under. To keep peace with the neighbors, I would make every effort to teach the dogs not to bark. You can do this by correcting them immediately when they bark - and I don't mean beating them. You can use whatever correction you would normally use - we use a shock collar turned down really low and it usually takes about twice and the dogs stop barking. Just a thought.

Answer 10

I want to say no, that the cops can't make you put a muzzle on her, but in all honesty, she is a nuisance at night, and they probably can. They probably singled you out because they know where you live and you're guilty by location. I don't agree with muzzles personally, but I think a more humane way to silence her is either keep her inside or invest in a bark collar. I have one for my dog when she is outside and even though the batteries are dead and it no longer has the capability to shock her, she knows it's there and doesn't bark. Try that and see if it works. Good luck!