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February 5, 2008
Really scary dog
Can anyone offer some advice? Opposite my backyard and separated by a right of way (for utilities) my neighbor has a rotweiler/mixed breed dog. Besides barking incessantly it approaches my backyard fence and scares my 3 year old to the point of him not wanting to play by viciously growling through my fence. The neighbor does not have any kind of fencing thus his/her backyard which should be about six feet apart from mine abuts my property. What can I do?
Is there a law regarding mandating the construction of a fence to keep the dog away and respect the right of way for what it is, no one's property? Thanks.
Comments
A nice jucy dog bone laced with poison!
Posted by: guest at February 5, 2008 5:01 PM
It's your neighbor, why not try and convey your concerns in a friendly way? Once you go to the authorities, your neighbor will hate you forever.
Posted by: denton at February 5, 2008 5:14 PM
Can't you build your fence to prevent the dog from getting in? If you pick something opaque, your child won't even see the dog.
I would think going to the neighbor to tell him that his dog is scaring your 3 yr old and he needs to spend money to remedy that wont go over very well.
Posted by: Mrs. Limestone at February 5, 2008 5:54 PM
You can get bamboo fencing to tie onto your existing fence so your child can't see the "scary" dog.
Posted by: rh at February 5, 2008 6:14 PM
Try tossing it some mean without any poison. Dogs are very food focused. Make it like you more than its owner.
Posted by: guest at February 5, 2008 6:14 PM
As usual, I agree with the delicious Mrs. Limestone: I think you need to build a fence. Which is a drag, but you probably wanted to eventually, anyway, no? There's no way a dog owner is going to stop letting his pooch into the backyard because you ask him not to.
Posted by: Rehab at February 5, 2008 6:18 PM
You should go to the authorities ASAP, before something happens to your child.Your neighborg seems to be irresponsible enough to not realize that dog will scare the hell out of anyone.In any case they should spend the money in the fence not you.
But your first priority is your child forget about their frienship.
Posted by: guest at February 5, 2008 6:33 PM
MrsLS and Rehab, you guys can read can't you? I normally don't see either of you making this kind of error. The OP has a fence. The problem is that the neighbor with the dog does not and therefore the dog is a fence width away from a frightened 3 year old. If the neighbor had a fence, it would be six feet away on the other side of the city-owned space.
Posted by: guest at February 5, 2008 6:48 PM
Isn't it actually the city's responsibility to fence in this utility area? It would seem that having it open makes the city liable in the case of injury in that space. Call 311 or your local city official's office and advise them to get it closed off.
Posted by: guest at February 5, 2008 6:50 PM
Simple solution .. Boil water ,i mean let it bubble like crazy . Go outside and let the dog get really close . He will start barking and showing his teeth ,then you throw the scoulding water in his face .That will burn his head,eyes,teeth,gums, yada yada yada ..Simple !
Posted by: guest at February 5, 2008 7:36 PM
I think it would be best to build a new fence so you don't see the dog.
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Good luck
Posted by: Rick at February 5, 2008 8:19 PM
Mrs. Limestone is delicious?
Posted by: guest at February 5, 2008 9:08 PM
7:36, apparently you haven't followed recent news stories about people that abuse animals as you suggest. They seem to end up spending more time in jail than common criminals. The dog is just barking, he's not biting. A better solution can be devised.
Posted by: denton at February 5, 2008 9:17 PM
Don't let your kid in the yard till you build a dog-proof fence– they can jump and the love to dig, too– or till you poison it. Just don't get caught.
Posted by: bv706 at February 5, 2008 9:31 PM
I can't quite envision the "city-owned" space you are talking about. Is there some sort of alley between your property and the neighbor's? Kind of rare in Brownstone Brooklyn. Seems to me the best thing you can do is build a better fence on your side. And of course talk to the neighbor, altho short of him/her getting rid of dog not sure what s/he can do.
And ignore the poison talk. Major bad karma.
Posted by: Putnamdenizen at February 5, 2008 9:59 PM
Thanks for the suggestions. For your information , 9:59, there is an area that divides all the backyards on the block. Most homeowners, myself included, have fences, that mark their property lines. All of the fences go up to the beginning of this right of way. The result being a six foot wide buffer between the rear boundaries. The property owner whose dog is at issue never built a fence and so the animal is able to pace this area and growl menacingly at my child as he plays.
Posted by: ez at February 5, 2008 10:18 PM
I, too, don't understand what we're talking about, here, with this utility right-of-way-- but I also don't care. Whatever. When I suggested that the parent involved here might need to build a fence, what I meant was an opaque fence. As in, a fence through which her child could not see the big scary dog. And I still think that's what she ought to do.
Go, Obama!
Posted by: Rehab at February 6, 2008 12:14 AM
build your own solid fence. simple. there are really some stupid questions on this site.
Posted by: guest at February 6, 2008 8:25 AM
Dogs, especially those left in confined areas like fenced-in back yards, become territorial. It's one of the traits that humans have cultivated and exploited for years. Otherwise they'd have no reason to stop an intruder from walking into your house.
To suggest poisoning this animal or harming it in any way is unconscionable; it's only doing what comes naturally to it. Agreed that the best solution is for the OP to build a fence that has no openings through which one party can see the other, although if the dog is on 'high alert' it will likely make little difference. Dogs react more to smell than anything.
Posted by: guest at February 6, 2008 9:16 AM
Rehab, why don't you just admit you were wrong? A solid opaque fence is not going to stop a dog from hearing and smelling the child and it's not going to stop the child from hearing the barking/growling dog. In fact, a 3 year old is going to be more afraid of something it can hear, but not see. That's just when there capacity to imagine something worse begins to develop.
I agree that the city is responsible for the space and keeping it fenced.
Posted by: guest at February 6, 2008 9:49 AM
You don't say if you have ever attempted to speak to your neighbor but I'd give that a try first. I would think that since that buffer zone is meant to be fenced off on both sides, and your child is by your fence on your side of the buffer, your neighbor is 100% liable if the dog does anything along the fence. And if I am not mistaken, isn't there now a barking law?
But who knows? Maybe the neighbor will be willing to fix the fence problem and take better care of their animal. If they're not, I'd call 311 and also file a police report. I'd get one of those electronic repellers too, to be on the safe side. But poison? that's a horrible idea- It's not only terribly painful to the animal (whose fault this is not), but opens you too serious legal liability- and rightfully so. It's the owner whose at fault, not the dog.
Posted by: guest at February 6, 2008 10:41 AM
I would call 311, and possibly contact an expert on building codes/rules to learn if there is an actual obligation to have the passage way fenced on both sides. If so, you may want to offer your neighbour to cover the cost of building up his fence.
If that fails, i would definitely look into an 'electronic' fence. Apparently those things work very well - but I don't know if it will prevent the dog from barking to your child, or just from getting close to your fence.
About contacting your neighbour: in my experience, unless you are already really friendly with him/her, i would rather send them a letter to explain your situation. Make it a friendly but firm one - especially if the law is on your side. Don't make them mad, just make sure they understand your needs and position. Send it so that you get delivery confirmation, and that they know it too.
That will give them time to think, prevent over-reacting or taking it too personally. Hopefully they will respond in a civil way that will be aceptable both sides.
Good luck!
Posted by: guest at February 6, 2008 12:02 PM
You also might consider sharing the expense of putting up the neighbors fence. It's in your own interest and he otherwise would not be doing it. This would give you the 6 foot buffer zone you want and keep relations up.
Posted by: guest at February 6, 2008 12:53 PM
yeah, 12:02, I'd really get a warm friendly feeling about my neighbor if they sent me a certified letter that I had to stand on line for an hour in the post office to retrieve.
Better to speak face to face, then if the guy is an asshole, _then_ send a certified letter.
Posted by: denton at February 6, 2008 4:43 PM
Guest648: Yes I can read. Thanks for your geniune concern about my literacy.
Im making the assumption that OP doesn't feel there is any real danger posed to their child b/c I can't imagine any parent would continue to let their child play in a yard where an angry dog could get at him/her.
I understood that he had a fence. Im suggesting he reinforce and make it opaque as Rehab suggests. If OP doesn't feel that is suffcient to prevent the child being frightened, he can talk to the neighbor but Im guessing a nasty rottweiller owner who hasn't fenced his dog in isn't going to be worlds most courteous conversationalist. It sucks, yes. But thats life.
Provided you feel there is no way for the dog to get in and actually harm your child, the growling/barking will stop after the dog gets used to you. Speak softly to him and he'll get adjusted to you. Giving him some (not poisoned) snacks isn't a bad idea either.
Posted by: Mrs. Limestone at February 6, 2008 4:50 PM
Giving the dog treats makes the dog stay near you. It does not guarantee good behavior from the dog. This seems like a bad idea.
A solid fence that neither the dog nor the kid can see through is a great idea.
When you live in a city, it's important to figure out what you can change and what you can't change, and to be responsible for yourself. You can change your fence. You are the one who wants the situation to change, not your neighbor, who feels like he has a bigger backyard right now. Besides, the neighbor has a nasty dog, and dogs are sentient creatures, and this may be my own prejudice, but I think that anyone who lets a dog rot in a backyard has a tiny stone for a heart.
You build a fence, the dog has nothing to go look at, you're not afraid, life moves on.
Posted by: guest at February 7, 2008 7:07 PM
Talking to the neighbor is nice, in theory, but let's face it that people who leave their dog outside barking all day often don't care what people think. Call 311, file a complaint. Look at NYC.gov for any laws/ordinances/advice about unattended animals that disturb the peace. If you can't get the owner to change things, can you "tame" the dog? The treat tactic may work. Throw him many small snacks, like pieces of cat food to keep him busy for a while and shut him up. Or if you have a water hose, spray the dog with it when it comes near your fence. (Just be aware that your nabe might kick your arse if he sees this). The dog is probably bored and protective and this probably won't stop him from being mad and barking, but it might, and it won't hurt him! Also, lots of people don't use their yards. If nobody was in the yard before for a long time, the dog may not be used to having people back there. He may gradually get used to it.
Posted by: guest at February 8, 2008 12:03 PM
The total sicko who suggested throwing boiling water in the face of a poor animal made me sick.
The only reason thugs abuse dogs is because the thugs are so deeply insecure it's the only way they can feel manly.
It's not "tough" in the slightest. Try pathetic, weak and cowardly.
Posted by: guest at February 8, 2008 9:11 PM
I second (or third) the people who suggested an opaque fence, as well as the electronic devices that keep the dog from barking. We had to deal with a similiar situation, the electronic dog device helped solve the situation. And I think the dog owners ended up being grateful too, as they weren't aware such devices existed, and they were tired of being bothered by the dog's constant barking also. Good luck.
Posted by: guest at February 11, 2008 11:44 AM
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