To wonder if you can upset your neighbours by taking dogs on too many walks?

[gingerbreadsprinkle]

Sorry if this is a weird one, it's not about me personally but I just want to gage public opinion. Since my dad retired he has been bored and likes to take their 2 dogs for walks multiple times a day. He might go out for 5 walks a day in the neighbourhood. I never thought much of it but recently he is not been getting along with his neighbours. I'm not there so I don't really know what's going on. I'm wondering though could it be that people are upset that he is going for all these walks?

If your neighbour walked past your house like 5 times a day to walk his dogs would you think it's suspicious? It's honestly just because he's bored and the dogs love it.

For voting purposes

YABU = the neighbours will find it suspicious
YANBU = he's retired and walking a dog so it's fine to go for many walks a day

[Stefoscope]

Seems fine to me. Do his neighbours think he is spying on them or something? Struggling to understand how this could be UR.

[Pipandmum]

Have the neighbours said something? Or do you think they will? If I saw someone walking by five times a day but knew they were a neighbour I’d think they were just looking fit something to do and get their step count up! Maybe you could help find him something he might be interested in doing?

[BjornAgain81]

Wow, I'm surprised most people think YANBU.

I'd be like "bloody 'ell he's keen" but I'd consider it unreasonable to dislike somebody on that basis even if I got sick of seeing their face.

Are you sure the dog isn't regularly leaving a John Woo on the pavement?

[FixItUpChappie]

I can't imagine being bothered by this. It's a free world people can walk their dogs as much as they like. Are there other dog issues possibly? Does he let them bark in the yard or run off lead or not pick up their poo?

[gingerbreadsprinkle]

Seems fine to me. Do his neighbours think he is spying on them or something? Struggling to understand how this could be UR.

I'm not sure but one neighbour just had a go at him unprovoked yesterday. Saying that he didn't want my dad's dog to attack him and he was going to put weed killer out in his garden (kind of alluding that it would hurt the dogs). My dad's dog is a large doberman but she's older and really docile, she has never attacked anyone so it was a strange comment to hear about. The only thing I thought that may have set this neighbour off is that my dad was walking past his house too much.

[gingerbreadsprinkle]

Are you sure the dog isn't regularly leaving a John Woo on the pavement?

My dad follows the dogs with a bag for poo.

[Floralnomad]

When you say he takes the dog out does he keep it on a lead in the neighbourhood as the only reason I can see that it would bother people is if his dog is unleashed and wandering onto their property or has the potential to do so . If he’s got it on a lead I can’t see what the problem is .

[Expressedways]

I wouldn’t even notice because I have a life and don’t sit staring out of the windows all day. I might notice 2 out of 5 walks if they coincided with my commute but wouldn’t think anything of it as lots of people walk their dogs before/after work.

Assuming that he’s not doing anything strange like staring into people’s windows or loitering then is it possible he’s trying to stop them for a chat and they’re a bit short because they’re rushing to work, pick up the kids etc and don’t want to be bothered?

[raspberryk]

Your dad sounds crackers, can't he just go out for longer walks? Lol.
I must go and come back home more than that many times just going about my daily business and no one ever fell out with me over it. It has to be something else.

[NoSauce]

Did your dad ask why the neighbour said such a thing?

[WillLokireturn]

Your dad is fine...NDN or nwarnwct door Neighbour is being aggressive and weird. It sounds like she has an issue with her mental health rather than anything about your dad.

[RedHatsDoNotSuitMe]

Are the dogs weeing in their gardens?

[WillLokireturn]

*Near next door neighbour

my phone had a moment of gobbledegook 😆

[gingerbreadsprinkle]

Does he let them bark in the yard or run off lead or not pick up their poo?

They are never off lead and my dad collects the poo but the smaller dog has an issue with barking sometimes. My parents are able to get her to stop within a couple of minutes by calling for her.

[HeadintheiClouds]

I’ll bet they don’t even notice. Why would they care?

[HeadintheiClouds]

A “couple of minutes”barking is too long. Is this every time they leave the house, so the neighbour’s attention is in fact being drawn to their comings and goings?

[Expressedways]

Based on your updates it’s probably the barking. A couple of minutes is actually a pretty long time if it’s outside your house and 5 times a day.

[gingerbreadsprinkle]

A “couple of minutes”barking is too long. Is this every time they leave the house, so the neighbour’s attention is in fact being drawn to their comings and goings?

This happens when they go out for walks because she gets very excited and wants to tell the other dog (I don't know if that sounds weird lol) or she barks when the other dog goes because she gets jealous that it's not her turn. My parents always try to get her to stop quickly when she does it but she's not stopped this habit. I could see this definitely being an issue.

[madcatladyforever]

Sounds like suburban hell where everything someone does irritates someone else.

[WhereYouLeftIt]

"If your neighbour walked past your house like 5 times a day to walk his dogs would you think it's suspicious?"
I'm pretty sure I wouldn't even notice! Are his neighbours just sitting watching out their windows all day?

[powershowerforanhour]

Lots of shorter walks are better for old dogs' hearts and joints (and probably minds) than one or two really long ones so your dad is doing a good thing for the Doberman.
Re barking- if the little one wasn't exercised so often it would probably bark more!

[TanMateix]

Erm... it depend on the dogs or your dad. We have a person who has two nasty dogs who go bat shit crazy every time they see another dog, they growl and bark as if a fight was starting. The noise is not so much of a problem but it will be if we had the same 5 times a day. I can understand that many of us would not be able to walk our dogs in peace when those nasty dogs are around. I normally have to go into adyacente streets to avoid them waking the whole neighbourhood if they see my dog.

The other dog walker I hate is the one who insists in getting his dogs to give a good sniff to yours because they are friendly when you tell them one hundred times that your dog doesn’t want to be friendly and gets into panic mode if a big dog gets near to it.

[PinkBlossomInSummer]

Why does your dad not walk both dogs? It’s very odd to walk one dog without the other imo.

[sparkli]

The barking would annoy me, and I say that as a dog owner. You said it was a smaller dog. Does it yap, rather than bark? I could be driven to murder by that noise!

[gingerbreadsprinkle]

Why does your dad not walk both dogs? It’s very odd to walk one dog without the other imo.

The smaller one (she's a Yorkie mix) will bark at the doberman if they walk together if she's not in front but the doberman walks faster.