So I just had a conversation with my neighbor since the girls and I went out in our backyard for the first time in months. That was actually the first time I've ever taken Katie out in our yard. Anyway, to give a little bit of background, there is a little, yappy dog that lives about 10 feet from our duplex (in an identical duplex). I hate this dog with a passion. I will do nothing more than dare to step out onto MY driveway, and it comes tearing across multiple lawns to stand two feet away from me and bark its head off, yipping and growling at me. The last time this happened (it's happened like eight times now), I was only trying to unload my groceries from the van. I had to yell across the lot to the group of kids there for one of them to do anything about it. I yelled twice, "Hey, can you come get your dog???", and the response was, "Oh, he won't hurt you." I don't give a crap if he will hurt me or not, I don't want him barking at me, all up in my space!! I am afraid of dogs, besides the fact that I just don't like them. They are unpredictable and tend to jump up on you and sometimes bite you for no reason. I've had a bunch of bad experiences with dogs that have led to me feeling this way. This is a little dog, sure, and I could take it on, but I'm of course not going to start kicking it unless it attacks me or my children. Anyway, one of the kids started chasing it to try to get it away from me, but it wasn't very effective. Oh, and my response to what the kid said, was "I really don't like dogs", which elicited a somewhat of a glare from the kid trying to corral the dog. That made me even more mad, because, I'm sorry if you are annoyed that your dog is annoying to other people, but it is!! I can't stand it when people don't take responsibility for their pets. This dog has zero training whatsoever; it runs on people's lawns, and apparently makes a beeline for my neighbor's front lawn to defecate.
So....I asked my neighbor if the dog had bothered them, and she said yes, and about the pooping on their lawn, which no one but the mother of the boy actually will pick up. It's apparently the grandma who lets the dog out to poop on their lawn, and she couldn't care less about the consequences, since apparently there are none. The situation just really upsets me, because I feel like I can't take my kids out in the front for fear of this dog accosting us. The dog would scare the poop out of Jenna, and I'd be carrying Katie probably, and Jenna would be walking, so she'd be way close to it. I hate confrontation, so I don't know what to do about this. But something needs to be done...I just don't know if saying something will do anything. The way our little neighborhood is set up, there's a long lane and a lot of us share driveways because we're all duplexes. The boundary lines are very nebulous, so it's hard to say, "This is my driveway starting HERE." The kids all ride their bikes on everyone's driveways b/c there isn't a lot of room to play, which is fine, EXCEPT when this dog thinks it's king of the entire duplex territory. Just a few minutes ago, I heard it barking again and looked out the window. It ran onto my other neighbor's lawn to bark at her (she's handicapped) because she dared to sweep her own driveway. Her response was to hold out her hand to it, and I thought, "wow, she's way more nice than I would be!!"
Katie is screaming. Sorry this post is so disjointed, but I've been trying to type it quickly. Anyway, another post to come about what my neighbor said to me in the backyard.
Braden, Kerry, Jenna, Katie, and Tyler. Love it.
8 comments:
OH Kerry...I feel your pain. What a tough situation. If I were you, I'd be looking for a solution too. Obviously you want to avoid getting all your neighbors upset. It's no fun living next to folks that you know hate you. And yet, they aren't doing a very good job of being kind neighbors either.
It seems that you'll have to try talking to them first. Perhaps some prayer that the situation will be peacefully resolved. And if not, then a call to the police might be warranted. It's never fun to call the police on your own neighbors. (We did once when our neighbors where playing really loud music past midnight in our apartment building.) Does the dog wear a tag? Is it frequently out running around? Maybe you could get an animal control place to pick it up.
We hate our neighbor's dog as well. Another annoying dog with no training. We joke that maybe he'll die soon. Isn't it sad that we feel that way? If that dog was trained and stayed in its own yard, I wouldn't be such a dog hater. Good luck.
Two thoughts:
1. Animals can sense fear. He probably makes a beeline for you because he knows you're afraid, and that means he's in control. Dogs are notorious for always trying to figure out who's the alpha. Try your best not to be afraid. Also, try carrying pepper spray. A couple of squirts in the eye should deter the dog from coming near you, and there's no harm to the animal.
2. We had some neighbors whose dogs would poop on our lawn. We would wait until it got dark, then scoop up the previously steaming pile with our handy designated poop-shovel and hurl it over onto their lawn. I am not above giving poop back to its rightful owner.
Hope these tips are helpful.
Hey Gina,
I know that animals can sense fear, but that's not really the issue here, because it did the same thing to the other lady, and she held out her hand to it and was obviously not afraid. In this case, I pretty much know the dog's not really going to do much other than bark at me, but I just have an instinctive reaction that is very hard to control. This dog makes a beeline for *everyone*. It thinks everyone is on his territory.
Haha, I don't know about the pepper spray. It'd be better to at least talk to the owner first before pulling out the big guns, even if it doesn't harm the animal.
LOVE the poop idea. That is so you, Gina. ;) I'll have to tell my neighbor about that one.
Are their leash laws in Washington?
Leash laws only apply to walking the dog. And, you only have to have the leash with you--not necessarily have the dog on the leash.
well that's just dumb. Hey, look, I have a leash in my hand as their dog attacks you.
Dan suggested that you secretly poison their dog. :-)
Haha, nice. I'm not that mean.
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