The dog next door is barking AGAIN

[MoseyWalker]

he is a pit bull, very unfriendly to begin with, but now very annoying.

The owners have him, at all times, on a chain that is about 6 feet long, and they don't clean up his poop.

He has turned into a very angry dog.

bark bark bark. all night long.

I have thought about turning the owners in, but it wouldn't do anything. This is a small, rural, in the middle of nowhere place, so............

I guess I'm just bitching.

Can you hear that? I could swear the damn dog just said "let me go".

Maybe I need more sleep.

[Seabiscuit]

1. You may continue to "need more sleep" until you do something about it.

That is incredibly rude of your neighbors. If talking to them doesn't work, file a complaint. If that doesn't work, sue them for nuisance.

[flvegan]

2. If the owners don't care

[havocmom]

3. Pissed off pitt bull will require much longer handles

OP should SERIOUSLY consider contacting animal control. Leaving ANY dog in that situation is setting the stage for trouble. Doing it to such a powerful animal is assuring the trouble will be disastrous.

Mosey, do consider contacting the proper authorities. Rage in that strong a dog could be horrible should he get loose.

I deal with barking dogs next door too, but at least they are in a run and not on a 6 foot chain.

Someone should be in jail for that stunt.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

4. flvegan runs a pit bull rescue. nt

[susanna]

14. havocmom is right...

...that is asking for trouble in a big, bad way. I've seen an Irish Springer Spaniel get crazy aggressive when treated that way. It ended up euthanized for its natural reaction to a bad situation. Contact whatever animal authorities you can in your area. They may be able to help the animal, or educate the owners as to proper treatment.

That said, some people's children should never own pets. Just saying. :-(

[graywarrior]

5. We have neighbors with 3 German shepards who bark all the time.

We ended up calling Animal Control who came down and "lectured" the owners, which worked. The owners are idiots who have no idea how to walk their dogs. I want to beat the crap out of them and take rescue their dogs, poor bastids.

[susanna]

15. Sometimes the lecture does work.

It is amazing to me how many people do not understand the responsibilities of pet ownership. Sometimes the authorities can turn it all around with just a half-hour of education. That's a good thing.

[murielm99]

23. Right you are.

We have a little old lady in our community who is amazing. She watches out for animals here.

She drives around, and if she sees an animal tied outside without adequate food, water or shelter, she has a standard letter she leaves for people. The letter gives very basic information about caring for a pet, even an outside pet. If the letter does not work, she calls the pet owners, then the authorities. If that is not enough, she calls animal control.

Actually, she does not drive around by herself any more. She lost her license, and walks with a quad cane. Her husband drives her, or a friend drives her. She works with animal shelters in the area, and she always has a rescue dog as a pet.

She is amazingly effective, perhaps because she looks so unlikely as an animal protector. There are people here who are afraid to confront their stupid neighbors, so they call her. It sounds odd, but she gets things done. I don't know what the animals will do when she is gone. She is in her upper eighties.

Small towns are wonderful. We have so many colorful characters.

[MonkeyFunk]

6. That's a shame...

for you and the dog.

You really should contact animal control or the local police.

[MoseyWalker]

7. The method for contacting the animal control here

is to call the police, and they decide when, or even if, they will contact the guy that sometimes drives the truck around. They think it is hilarious if someone calls in with my type of concerns. They have the animal guy on call just to pick up the stray, bloated, dead cow. Not to deal with a dog who is barking all night long for whatever reasons.

That's the way it is.

[Name removed]

8. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[graywarrior]

10. This is considered animal abuse in some places.

There must be a humane society in your area. Call them.

[Rhythm]

19. Rural 'law enforcement' is a pain in the rump like that...

however, if the dog is being kept so restrained, and not being cleaned up after either, i would think, a least, that the owners should be investigated for neglecting him.

[idgiehkt]

9. it might not be a bad idea to call

Perhaps animal control might convince them to give the dog a longer tether. Sometimes people treat their animals better when they know they are being watched.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

13. I second that suggestion...

It sounds like their negligence is making a mean dog out of him... :-(

[MoseyWalker]

11. He is still barking (no surprise)

but there really isn't anything I can do about it. I can't call anyone, because they would just laugh into the phone, and we are a small, rural community, so I wouldn't want that. I could try to set him free, but he would eat my face off before I had the opportunity to say hello.

No options.

I have to listen and get used to it, just as I have gotten used to the chickens and roosters waking us all up at 5:15am, and the goats that make noises that seem to indicate that they don't like it.

Yep. I'm goin' nuts. No real sleep for weeks because of other reasons, and then I come home and can't sleep for these reasons.

oh, well.

[susanna]

16. Is there a Humane Society within miles of you?

Please - I hope you can find a way.

My neighbors behind me treated their dog poorly. I called on it one night during an ice storm when the dog, tethered, had climbed their children's slide. He slipped on it and fell, almost hanging himself in the process. I called the cops and I have never regretted it. The dog lived on and we all (the dog's owner, me and my husband) eventually became friends. Sometimes it really is a lack of awareness as to proper treatment.

[idgiehkt]

18. if you want a really dorky and possibly offensive suggestion

you might try praying for him. Hope I don't get lynched for saying that. I did some heavy meditation and prayer for a situation with animals once and there was some improvement. I also kind of cared for this enormous (150# plus) rottweiler that was locked in a pen in a trailer park I lived in once where I lived once. I always changed his water and I would rake up his leaves and throw them in the pen where he was so he would have something besides his own poop to walk on. I knew animal control would put him to sleep because he was agressive. I bought him those bones they have in the meat dept of grocery stores so he would have something to chew on; you could try tossing the dog that is disturbing you a few bones because that would probably keep him occupied and it would shut him up. It would definitely be worth the investment for a nights sleep. Wonder how his 'people' sleep on top of all that noise....maybe they are passed out drunk or something. Wonder if you contacted Dogs Deserve Better and see what they suggest, it might be worth a shot.
http://www.dogsdeservebetter.com/home.html

The rottweiler eventually got a new home, btw.

When some people behind me got a puppy and left him out at night I had to use earplugs. He was scared and that is why he barked all night but it made my life miserable without earplugs.

[susanna]

20. idgiehkt, you are my hero.

I honestly mean it. I love your story about the Rottie, and bless you for trying to make his life more bearable. You are a good person.

I rescued a rather aggressive and semi-evil female Akita/Golden mix back in '94. I don't think it was her fault; she was dropped on the side of the road at six weeks. Way too early, and it is lucky she was not killed and tht I found her quickly. She was pretty bad, aggression-wise. Seriously. She bit me, bit my husband, well, she just didn't like the whole idea of "man's best friend" if you get my drift.

She lit a fire in me, though - she was beautiful, she had a stout heart, and I respected that. So we worked. And we worked. And we worked some more. Then we worked again.

She was never the sort of dog I would leave alone with anyone but me or DH, but eventually, she became a tolerable, then happy, and then fiercely loyal pet. She was the light of my life for many years until I lost her in January '06. I miss her every day. I plant a new plant in my garden every year in her memory, and will do so as long as I can.

I think that nine times out of ten, the fact is people are not willing to work with their dogs to make them into the good canine citizens they could become. Most folks want perfect out of the gate; that is not a realistic attitude when you are working with dogs. "What you work for, you get" is my motto.

Bless you again. :-)

[Breeze54]

22. Do something!!!!

"Animal cruelty happens every day in America and people just sit by and do nothing."

The ASPCA is encouraging Americans to be vigilant for animal cruelty in their neighborhoods
and visit http://www.aspca.org to learn how to identify possible animal cruelty.
Resources are also available for people to learn what laws protect animals in their areas
and where animal cruelty can be reported where they live.
Animal cruelty can range from neglect (failure to provide food, water, shelter, or necessary
medical care) to intentional abuse, torture or death.

FIGHT CRUELTY!

Animal cruelty is not only wrong—it is against the law in every state in this country!
Animal abuse can also be part of a pattern of other violent acts within families and society.
Abuse of any kind should be reported to the appropriate authorities immediately.

WHERE DO I REPORT ANIMAL CRUELTY?

To find out what agencies are authorized to investigate and arrest instances
of animal cruelty in your state (i.e, does the enforcement of animal cruelty
laws fall under the authority of the police department or animal control officers?),
visit our state-by-state list of state anti-cruelty investigatory-arrest powers.
http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=cruelty_investigate

TIPS FOR REPORTING ANIMAL CRUELTY
Once you have found out which law enforcement agent you should speak to, it’s important to provide him or her with a concise, written, factual statement of what you observed, giving dates and approximate times whenever possible. If at all feasible, try to photograph the abusive situation and date your pictures. It would also be helpful to get short, factual written statements from other witnesses.

When you call to report animal cruelty, always make sure to keep a careful record of exactly whom you contact, the date of the contacts and the content and outcome of your discussion. Never give away a document without making a copy for your file! Make it clear to the agent that you are very interested in pursuing the case, and that you are willing to lend whatever assistance you can.

FOLLOW UP IF NECESSARY
If you don’t receive a response from the officer assigned to your case within a reasonable length of time, don’t be afraid to present your information to his or her supervisor and, if necessary,
to local government officials, such as the county commissioner, and ask them to act.

If you happen to know a sympathetic veterinarian, you may wish to seek his or her assistanc
and tell the officer that you have expert support lined up for your case.

Get neighbors to also give witness!

But do something! That dog is being mistreated by idiots!

[kedrys]

12. And here I thought the dog next door was loud...

He's been barking for hours, not for the first time. I went over there to talk sense into the neighbors - they don't speak english - and the dog was loose.

So I called the cops. Again.

[barb162]

17. I can suggest two things becasue this smacks of animal abuse

to me to have an animal chained on such a short leash. It would qualify as animal abuse where I live...that chain would not meet the minimum length. Plus the unsanitary condition they're forcing the dog to endure. Plus the animal is not getting any attention or socializing. You might as well lock him alone in a room the rest of his life the way these assholes are treating him.

1. have that dog taken silently by animal rescuers and put in a good home. Ask around quietly about animal rescuers.
2. call the nearest humane association even though you're in a rural area. I know that where I live they will pick up animals in rural areas dozens of miles away if they get a call. Of course, this is a wealthy area's shelter but if they get a call they will work their damnest to get these animals to stop suffering. Or they can give you advice because most likely they will be concedrned about this animal's needless suffering.

PS and you're not just bitching

[MrSlayer]

21. Throw a large ham at him.

It'll shut him up one way or the other.

[uppityperson]

24. hardware stores carry these for under a dollar.

These and a nice big bone may work wonders.