Neighbours have an XL Bully dog

[Mayxo]

Hello there,

I wanted some advice as I have a little concern.

My husband, our two children, and I are moving to our new home within two months. We went over to view it and we bumped into our soon-to-be next-door neighbors. They were very kind, told us about the street, parking and things but they did say they have an XL Bully. They said she's lovely and would lick you all over, etc.

Now, I am a strong believer that owners are the reason for badly behaved dogs. Judging by how they were with us, they seemed so lovely that I doubt they would treat their dog badly. But I can't help but worry about my children playing in the garden. What if she digs under or jumps over the fence? Not to mention we have a rescue cat. He's only two years old, so I fear he will jump over and get hurt or worse.

I know I may seem like I'm overreacting. It's just that you hear so many stories; it worries me.

Is there any way I can make my garden safer on a very low budget? It would be much appreciated if someone could help me and give me some ideas xx

Oh no, I share your concern about your cat

I've seen lots of dogs in my new neighbourhood including a reactive Doberman and XL bully, but my cat is an indoor/catio'd cat so I don't have concerns about him.

I'd be more worried about the cat wondering into the garden, do cats do this with gardens with dogs in?

I doubt the dog would jump the fence if this has never been a problem before, but I'm not sure, I didn't want to read and run

I'd certainly be afraid not for my cat, although I do understand you might be, but more for my child. What are they like the people? XL dogs seem to attract a certain type.

I'd be afraid for my child to be honest. Those dogs can't be trusted.

I'd build a catio or install fencing that prevented the cat from leaving the garden. No way would I allow my cat free range with one of those things next door. Cats can't be contained if they're used to wandering and I've seen some horrible footage of what an XL bully can do to a cat

I wouldn't trust one of these dogs with any owner. And as someone who has previously lived next door to a dangerous dog (which was ultimately put down) when I had young children, I can say it was stressful and terrifying every time I opened my door. We never used the garden at all.

I walked past a house yesterday that had an XL bully barking its head off in the window and I was put in mind of that poor man who was killed by the two which escaped through a window in an utterly unprovoked attack. This house was near a primary school and it gave me chills to think of it.

Any dog can turn, and if an XL bully turns then no one can stop it.

TBH there are a lot of dogs that cannot be trusted around a cat - I have a greyhound with a very high prey drive. Any cat wandering into our garden would be at risk. Unless the neighbour's dog has not been trained and socialised I don't think it will be any riskier than any other large dog, and i cannot for the life of me see why it might try to jump over the fence but if you're worried then just install some higher fully boarded fencing. Yes these dogs have acquired a reputation - they can be protective of their family and also have a ferociously strong jaw, However, it's all down to the training and socialisation and you will probably get an idea of that very quickly.

Outside cats wander so it will encounter many dogs, makes no difference if one is next door although puss will realise quickly there is a dog there a lot so should avoid that garden. Or try the soft plastic 'spike' things on that side?

Unlikely it can dig under fence, not without any signs anyway. How tall is the fence?

Too late to pull out? I'd worry about the children and I couldn't relax especially if your cat is used to going out :(

Ask them? You can’t be the only people with a cat?
Might be that the dog isn’t bothered.

With respect, my Labrador would rip a cat apart in a heart beat.

Install fencing and nails or what have you at the top so the cat doesn’t pass over to the other garden? Chicken wire at the bottom.

Unless their garden has 6ft fences all around and is completely secure I believe it has to be muzzled in the garden.

There's an XL bully who goes to the same bar we do. Her behaviour put the rest of the dogs that go there to shame. Our dog adores her. She's a lovely friendly dog, just big and powerful to look at.

They aren't all bad. Some people just like big dogs, it's a cliche that they're all owned by thugs/drug dealers who train them mean.

I would certainly ask how the dog is with cats, but I wouldn't be any more concerned than any other dog next door. Particularly if they seem like decent people and responsible dog owners

@oprahwindsock
They were lovely, husband very chatty with us his wife seemed shy she went in but thats ok I struggle with social aniexty so I get it.
They have a son who looks around my son's age, 11 years old. The dog must be fine around kids, which is what I like to think. My husband pointed out that it's a female XL bully, not a male, which is apparently better.

The trouble is they are fine around kids until they're not.
It's a really difficult one. Is there a big secure fence around the garden?

If they are responsible owners, the dog should be muzzled anyway.

You can make your own fences secure and quite high - I'd do this regardless of the dog anyway as it will be better for privacy and not having to talk to people while your in your dressing gown. I'd be more worried about your cat to be honest. I had a cat years ago who was killed by a neighbours dog. It was a perfectly well behaved German shepherd but unfortunately my cat went in to their garden and couldn't get back out. It was so sad, but too late to save her. I'd probably try and keep her in. Sometimes cats seem to like tormenting dogs, and then jumping up the fence, I suspect this might have happened with my cat, and really they can travel quite far and come across quite a lot of dogs on their travels.

Females will be smaller and gentler I'd have thought? I don't mind bull breeds, I think they normally seem quite intelligent and a good companion dog. I'd probably not want to live next to one myself, but it won't live forever, and once she's gone they'll not be able to have any more.

@RightOnTheEdge sorry suppose to attach your name I uploaded a picture of the gardens

I wouldn’t move there. My friend lives next door to someone who has one and every time the kids open the front door it rushes out ( probably because it’s not getting enough exercise) and jumps up on everyone. So far hasn’t bitten anyone but it’s a scary looking thing and you never know

As long as your garden has a proper fence around it I wouldn’t be worried about their dog getting into your garden. The only potential worry for me would be your cat but then as other posters have said that’s not specific to XL Bully’s there are loads of dogs who would go for a cat. You might find that your cat actually doesn’t go into gardens where there are dogs though, lots of our neighbours have cats and they run in and out of all gardens but NEVER come into ours, we have a Labrador and I can only assume they must be able to smell him? They all sit on top of our fence or sit just on the other side of the fence and bat him in the face through the fence slats instead🤣

I would be concerned about your child being a similar age to their child and becoming friends. Will you stop them going into the house? How will that work? Will he pop round there without parents when a bit older? I love dogs but would be cautious and pull out as there are too many variables which could create situations and problems you don't need

I wouldn't worry about the cat. As long as the dog is secure in its garden the cat will steer well clear. If it did manage to get over or under the fence the cat would be gone like a shot.
Your kid however isn't so agile, and I would want to make sure there was no chance the dog could get from their garden to yours before they went outside.

@Riverhousepuppy this does worry me massively, my son has adhd so as you can imagine he's always bouncing off the walls 24/7, I don't think I can allow it :/ I'm just hoping there dog is an old one

@Riverhousepuppy to be totally honest, we lost our business, which resulted in us losing our house so we went the council route and got given a social house, we are quite lucky it's a nice street and large 3 bed house. We could pull out but we would be at the bottom of the list and would have to wait over a year again, we cant afford the rent at the moment its too expensive, Buckinghamshire high demand sadly so its kinda not an option for us to pull out

I have protect a cat cat fencing brackets on my 6' wooden fence. My cats can't escape the garden and the only things which come into the garden are birds, toads and the odd cat which then can't escape and I have to let it out of the gate.

Get the highest fence and gate legally allowed in your area (it's usually 2 metres for the back). Reinforce the bottom so nothing can tunnel in or out.

Honestly, you can't control what any neighbour does. Or will do in the future. Definitely take the house but put up a nice big fence from day one then it won't matter if any of your neighbours are twats in the future. There's loads of big breeds other than XLs so at any time any neighbour could potentially get one.

The cat fencing @brytersky suggested sounds perfect so with that and the fence you'll have more peace of mind.