neighbor dog troubles

[harveyspecter]

Wow! It’s crazy for me to read all of this because I have always felt that some dogs didn’t really like frank. I just thought it was because he looks different. bulldogs don’t look like a ‘common’ dog... shepard or lab at all of course, so I attributed it to that. All frank does is stare. he’s a slow mover most of the time and when he sees something interesting he just stops and stares. that’s got to be what’s putting some dogs off to him.

I'm torn about introducing them. I don't have much practice with that, especially since the GSD already has me on edge and scared. Based on the way the GSD is acting now I’m certain he wants attention… maybe I can meet the dog first without frank.

Honestly I was just upset that the wife ran inside and let her dog keep lunging and barking at us, I would’ve immediately taken frank inside if he was doing something like that.

thank you for all the advice and for sharing similar stories. I’ve never had neighbor troubles before and wasn’t really sure how to handle it!

OMG, they are all the same aren't they. Harvey likes to stare, in a good way. He does this with peeps. If he see's you on the street, he will stare you down not in a bad way but he wants serious petting from you. Now from a dog's perspective, they might see this as a challenge when they are being stared down.

 

[Donnam]

Yes, it's considered bad manners to stare in "dog."

 

[TyTysmom]

Yes, it's considered bad manners to stare in "dog."

I think bulldogs are just nosey. Tyson is ALWAYS all up in peoples business - he will stop dead in his tracks to stare, wag his tail, look to see what someone is doing. No matter what. And he won't move or continue walking unless 1. he gets a pet 2. the people ignore him and leave or go inside or 3. I literally have to pull him! Thankfully everyone in the neighborhood knows him well so they do come pet him. LOL

 

[mzza111]

Just by the reaction of the neighbors, you can tell, they won't do anything about their dog. I would put up a 6 to 8 foot non-see through fence ASAP. I also would not introduce my dog to their dog.

That old saying "fences make good neighbors" is so true. I willingly and 100% at my expense, built a 30 foot long block wall fence along my driveway to keep from going all Hatfield & McCoys on my neighbors. Since I'm not planning on moving any time soon, was well worth it and it's been great on my stress level.

 

[nycbullymama]

I'm usually the voice of dissent so here goes nothing-

Personally, before building any fences I would talk with them and meet their dog. You are neighbors and I'm sure you'd like to keep the peace. No harm can come out of introducing yourself, meeting their dog and explaining what's going on.
If they're a$$e$, put up that fence- but they may surprise you.

 

[Donnam]

I think [MENTION=7457]nycbullymama[/MENTION] does make a good point about talking with the neighbors and meeting their dog. Bring them some cookies and a treat for the dog to welcome them to the neighborhood. Be very careful when you talk to them. You don't want some kind of feud to develop. Good luck Madie!

 

[Donnam]

I think bulldogs are just nosey. Tyson is ALWAYS all up in peoples business - he will stop dead in his tracks to stare, wag his tail, look to see what someone is doing. No matter what. And he won't move or continue walking unless 1. he gets a pet 2. the people ignore him and leave or go inside or 3. I literally have to pull him! Thankfully everyone in the neighborhood knows him well so they do come pet him. LOL

Every bulldog I've had has been terribly nosey and Winnie may be the worst! She has to examine the contents of any bag that comes in the house. When I cook, she stands on her back toes with her paws on the edge of the counter watching me. She follows me everywhere and tries to insert herself into everything I do. Love my little helper though, even though she slows me down.

 

[YHSublime]

I'm usually the voice of dissent so here goes nothing-

Personally, before building any fences I would talk with them and meet their dog. You are neighbors and I'm sure you'd like to keep the peace. No harm can come out of introducing yourself, meeting their dog and explaining what's going on.
If they're a$$e$, put up that fence- but they may surprise you.

I agree with this.

I'm a firm believer that it's a lot of how the dog is raised, then treated. I grew up with German shepherds and Rottweilers, and they have all been well behaved, and super obedient. Sounds to me like the problem is the owners. Leaving a dog unsupervised in a back yard is a huge red flag, who knows what other bad habits they have turned a blind eye to, and created.

Try and play nice first, explain your concerns, and if that doesn't work, reassess the situation. You catch more bee's with honey then you do vinegar, but you might find that you're not into bee catching


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Roseann]

My neighbor got a pit bull about 8 months ago. I could tell from the beginning that the wife was good with the dog, the hisband has no clue and the father in law is overly mean to him. I'm quite nervous about him so my theory is I'm gonna be the greatest friend to the dog. He loved to come to our yard at first but if I'd go outside he would be terrified and run away. So I stated out by leaving treats for him and going back inside. Finally he would let me pet him and take treats from me. He now comes over just for affection and gets along with 2 of my dogs. Rootbeer is a little nervous of him and don't like him in our yard most of the time but it's ok if I'm outside with them. I made sure that my daughter did the same thing so when he escaped the yard he runs to us and wants to be petted and hopes for a treat and a dog friend to play with. Possibly you should go out alone with some yummy treats and start to make friends without frank then slowly let them become friends on your terms, through the fence.

 

[madie4589]

thank you for all the suggestions!


A little update:
We are not in the position to put up a fence as we do not own the home. we are in the process of building our own home (which is a whole other beast!! haha) and are just renting this place. I contacted our landlord to see if he knew about neighborhood quiet hours. the barking has really become annoying. I know dogs bark and I would be fine with it, but I work long hours and I can’t keep getting woken up at 10pm because he’s outside barking his head off.


I have seen the wife outside with the dog once more and I called over to her to see if she would talk and she hurried inside. there’s been no change with the early/late hours they’re leaving the dog outside. and the dog is still getting up on its hind legs at the fence and barking/lunging at us. I really can’t tell if it’s a ‘pay attention to me’ thing or a ‘i want to wring your little bulldogs neck’ thing. I absolutely don’t want to go over to the fence and engage the dog without the owner present. still not sure what to do. I might go over and try to plea my case to the wife but it seems like the husband is always there, and if they’ve continued to let the dog bark at late/early hours, it seems like they ignored my first request for quiet time.

frank is doing okay, he still has not pooped when the dog is outside and has just been staring, but I try to redirect him as best I can. at least he will pee. but we do hear the dog barking when we’re inside and I see frank’s little ears go back when he hears it. I’m hoping he’ll get used to it or ignore it soon.

 

[madie4589]

Every bulldog I've had has been terribly nosey and Winnie may be the worst! She has to examine the contents of any bag that comes in the house. When I cook, she stands on her back toes with her paws on the edge of the counter watching me. She follows me everywhere and tries to insert herself into everything I do. Love my little helper though, even though she slows me down.

this is so frank! 100%. they really are so alike. I even have a funny little video on my instagram of frank on his hind legs watching me chop vegetables in the kitchen lol

 

[Bazza]

Good luck, it is such a tricky and annoying situation you are now in, I certainly wouldn't engage the dog on your own or in its yard at all. Hopefully you can talk to them as suggested maybe going around to the front of the house and try and talk to them again. Again good luck, as much as I love dogs, you certainly don't want one barking all the time and lunging, hopefully something can be worked out for you

 

[Donnam]

Well, Madie, at least you're building a house so this isn't a permanent situation!

 

[g8erjackie]

I think you're taking the right steps. These situations are tricky. I don't know that I'd introduce the dogs immediately, but it would be worth it for you to meet the GSD so maybe he'll feel more comfortable. GSD's are more protective my nature like others have said and even though you were there first technically, he might just be protecting his territory. If he's left outside so much, I doubt he has much training. This would worry me when introducing the dogs because if they do get into a scuffle it may be hard to separate them. Also, I know the GSD's owner (husband) said he's a teddy bear, and he may be with his family, but they aren't known for their teddy bear status with strangers. I sound harsh and I'm by trying to discriminate by breed, my parents have Great Pyrenes and they're sweet as can be to our family, but they don't take well to strangers in their yard or even walking by....and te male isn't good with other dogs, he tolerates Ruckus if my stepmom or Myself is around, but I wouldn't leave them unsupervised. Shame because the female loves Ruckus and they play great. And I've gone off on my normal tangent. Anyway, stay safe and I hope they bring the poor GSD inside!!!

 

[2BullyMama]

thank you for all the suggestions!


A little update:
We are not in the position to put up a fence as we do not own the home. we are in the process of building our own home (which is a whole other beast!! haha) and are just renting this place. I contacted our landlord to see if he knew about neighborhood quiet hours. the barking has really become annoying. I know dogs bark and I would be fine with it, but I work long hours and I can’t keep getting woken up at 10pm because he’s outside barking his head off.


I have seen the wife outside with the dog once more and I called over to her to see if she would talk and she hurried inside. there’s been no change with the early/late hours they’re leaving the dog outside. and the dog is still getting up on its hind legs at the fence and barking/lunging at us. I really can’t tell if it’s a ‘pay attention to me’ thing or a ‘i want to wring your little bulldogs neck’ thing. I absolutely don’t want to go over to the fence and engage the dog without the owner present. still not sure what to do. I might go over and try to plea my case to the wife but it seems like the husband is always there, and if they’ve continued to let the dog bark at late/early hours, it seems like they ignored my first request for quiet time.

frank is doing okay, he still has not pooped when the dog is outside and has just been staring, but I try to redirect him as best I can. at least he will pee. but we do hear the dog barking when we’re inside and I see frank’s little ears go back when he hears it. I’m hoping he’ll get used to it or ignore it soon.

how long will you be in this house? The wife seems to be disinterested so try the husband again, but overall, GSD's need a job and if they do not have one, they become anxious and uncontrollable, which appears to be the case here. A GSD need to interact and know they are performing a task, which it seems this family is not doing any of that with the pup (poor fella is screwed). If I were you, I'd stay away from the GSD unless the hubby is there, wife like I said seems disconnected