I just posted an anonymous letter to a neighbour. Oh God. Panicking.

[LetterPostie]

I live in a Victorian terrace with a back lane. There's a man who lives about 20 doors down from me who let's his dog shit in the back lane.

It's hard to confront him because he lets his dog out into the back lane, then he buggers off back into his house. So its not like he's stood there while the dog's shitting so you can say "Oi, mate, your dog just shit, pick it up".

Anyway, I'm sick of it.

So today I posted (like into the post box, not through his door) an anonymous letter which says the following:

"Dear [Man]

A group of neighours from [My Street] and [Next Street] have seen [Dog's Name] fouling in the back lane on multiple occasions.

It's selfish, it's a public health hazard, and we're sick of it.

We have gathered photo and video evidence that its [Dog's Name] doing this. If you don't start picking up after [Dog's Name], we will be sending the evidence to the dog warden team and environmental health at the Council.

Yours,
Neighbours"

I was feeling all brave and bold about it. But now I'm panicking that I actually went through with it. 😂

It is illegal to be out of control of a dog in a built up area. Eg a town centre. A park doesn't count.

I’m not pretending I’m an expert on the matter. But I would assume it’s like noise dispute where investigators ask you for the history of what has occurred? Given how strapped most LAs are I’d guess that can’t pursue every complaint without substance.

Yeah…I would have thought that the fact the dog pooh is actually a lesser problem that the dog is left unattended… what if a kid use that lane alone and something happens?

If it carries on after he receives the letter I’d be throwing it back over his wall.

Hopefully it will do the trick.

Good .. hope it makes this lazy so and so pick up his dogs shit !!!

Brilliant - well done! Hope it works!

Do you live on my street? I have a similarly disgusting neighbour who does exactly this!

A park is a public space. It is illegal for a dog to be out of control in any public space.

Good on you! We have a neighbour at the end of our street that let's their dog do it on the grass outside of our house and doesn't pick it up. It's a big dog too and despite being metres away from their own house, they don't bother to go in for a bag. My partner has challenged them a couple of times, including yesterday as they'd also lit a fire in the middle of the hot, sunny day when everyone's windows were open, washing was out and we had our baby daughter in the garden! Some neighbours have no courtesy for those around them!

A bit what?

I know he hunts and eats squirrels because one of the other neighbours (another dog shit grumbler like me) saw him coming home once with a bag of fluff. She asked him what was in the bag and he showed her it was squirrels and said he eats them.

He's got a lurcher type dog. I'm not sure if he uses the dog for hunting.

The dogs well looked after, just left to his own shitting-based devices in the back lane 🤔

Sorry for slow replies, I've been travelling with work.

You should send one too.

Well done @LetterPostie 👏

He goes out into the countryside to do his squirrel shooting, not in our suburb. I thought it was a shotgun but maybe I mean air rifle. I don't know anything about guns 🤣

It's two streets of Victorian terraces that run parallel to each other with the back lane in between them. There are about 45 houses on each street so about 90 houses that back on to the back lane.

It's a straight lane, you can see from one end to the other, my house is dead in the middle. Several times I've come out of my back gate into the back lane and seen his dog shiting in the back lane, him nowhere to be seen.

The fact he has a gun would be enough reason for me to protect my identity.

Think they meant villanelle.

@LetterPostie is the dog still 💩

No new turds appeared on Monday.

And then I went away with work. So I'm not sure if the dog's still at it.

Let’s face it

someone who allows his dog to go out off lead on its own and shit at will is unlikely to read a note and feel even the slightest bit sheepish.

He will crack open a tinny and have a laugh with his mates in the garden about it

that is the sad reality

Yeah. It stopped me from rehanging my neighbours bloody windchimes from our fence to their front garden in the tree outside their bedroom 😂

Where I live there's fixed penalty notices on lamp posts for dog fouling. Report this ignoramus to the local authority environmental health officer.

When my son was a teenager, his best mate's family had trouble with a neighbour's dog pooing in their garden. The boys got a brown paper bag, put one of the poos in it, sat it on the guy's doorstep and set the bag on fire, chapped his door and ran away. He opened the door, started screaming, stamped on the bag, got covered in poo. He didn't allow his dog to do it again but I gave my son a hell of a rollicking cos it could've turned really bad! I don't advise it peeps!

Direct action, whilst it may feel satisfying to dream up a revenge/internalised consequences scenario against bad behaviour, could put you in hospital or a coffin given the crazy people that exist in society these days so be careful. You never know who you are dealing with and potentially need to be prepared to finish what you started if you go down this route.