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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To ask neighbour to stop shouting?

55 replies

TryingToSleepHere · 24/10/2014 21:27

I don't think I am but here goes...
New neighbours moved in a few weeks ago, about 4 doors down and have got lots of cats. Literally every night we hear the lady shouting for her cats from her front door, REALLY loudly. The bedrooms in our house are 2 floors up so we are quite far away from her when she's at her door. Other neighbours have also noticed this and are annoyed about it.
To be fair I haven't said anything so far because each night we'd had our windows open so it's understandable that we'd hear more noise from outside. Tonight is totally different - it's raining hard and really cold so all windows are definitely closed! DSS has just come downstairs having been in bed for 1.5 hours already, really upset as he can hear her shouting. He has even quoted the exact names of a few of the cats and they are quite difficult to pronounce so he must have heard them a fair few times.
From past experience I know that she'll keep going every 10-15 mins or so until the cats are back in, it's been up until midnight before. She's really annoying me now. WIBU to go round and ask her please to either stop or call more quietly? I feel bad that if she doesn't call then her cats may not come in and it is horrible weather out there. But the volume is absolutely unbelievable to be so clear and audible through the closed window and over the noise of the rain...

OP posts:

mumwithanipad · 24/10/2014 23:09

I have similar prob and was thinking of posting but was too scared in case my neighbour recognised herself, so I'm gonna lurk here. ??
My neighbour moved in about four months ago, she had been doing a lot of DIY which usually starts at around 8pm, I'm not talking an odd bang here and there, it was so loud myself and DH had to shout to hear each other, it's died off now as she has is settled in I assume, but every night she leaves her house at midnight and it sounds like she is slamming the front door, if I'm asleep it wakes me up, there is no point trying to nod back off as she makes the same hullabaloo when she returns fifteen mins later (she's taking her dogs out I think) She will then go to bed and watch TV for a couple of hours. I know this because she has the volume so loud I can hear it and it keeps me awake. She seems nice and says hello, but I'm nervous of saying anything to her in case it turns into a feud, but it's been four months now of being woken almost every night, I'm gonna have to approach her. (Or move home )

livingzuid · 24/10/2014 23:19

Oh OP your posts made me laugh but truly it's a miserable position to be in. I think you need to catch her in the act again and start recording time and duration of shouting. It's actually a form of antisocial behaviour and noise pollution imo and I think the council's environmental health team can help you if she persists despite being told no. But hopefully it won't get that far.

KingJoffreysBloodshotEye · 24/10/2014 23:25

What are the cats names?

Perhaps you and your neighbours could all stand on your doorstep each night shouting the names??

honeysucklejasmine · 24/10/2014 23:26

Can't you lean out the window and tell her to shut the fuck up? She's VVVVU!

Honeezreturn · 24/10/2014 23:28

We have a neighbour who calls her cat in every night but we can't work out the name shes calling
DH is convinced its Ronald but im pretty sure shes shouting Bumhole
makes me chuckle every time.

KingJoffreysBloodshotEye · 24/10/2014 23:29

Or lean out and call for your pets.

Scrappy and Scooby.

Flopsy, Mopsy, Cottontail and Peter.

Or just shout random names. Algernon, Egbert, Hyacinth.

PixieofCatan · 24/10/2014 23:31

Isn't it after 11pm that environmental health or whoever are happy to issue a warning?

I must admit, I'd be tempted to shout out of the window to shut up I used to swing a massive bin full of lego at the adjoining wall to my house (when I was a kid/young teen) when the teen son was playing drums at 11 or so at night, my bedroom was right next to the parents and he was in the attic above, how they slept through it I don't know but it usually stopped after 5-10 minutes of whacking the wall.

PixieofCatan · 24/10/2014 23:33

I like Kingjoffs idea, start calling them yourself, confuse the poor bastards

Icimoi · 24/10/2014 23:33

She's daft. Cats are totally capable of looking after themselves and coming in when they need to, IF they have a cat door. When we had a cat, he could be out at all hours of the night and we never bothered to call him.

I'm glad the husband sympathised, but I really don't understand why he didn't work out for himself that his wife's shouting must be disturbing the neighbours. In fact, I don't understand why it isn't disturbing him. If DH was shouting outside our house at 11 p.m. I'd be be out there putting a gag on him.

KingJoffreysBloodshotEye · 24/10/2014 23:59

Some people have no awareness.

Or extreme arrogance.

Mouthfulofquiz · 25/10/2014 04:26

I'm a fan of leaning out of the window and having a little shout of SHUT UP NOW, ITS THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT.
Do this in a slightly weird voice so she doesn't know its you!
Some people were talking loudly in the street outside my house last week at 11:30pm. Half an hour discussed pedestrianisation of town centres. So I went outside and sat in my car next to them (in my pjs) until they felt so uncomfortable that they moved. (About 1 minute! )
I hadn't deployed the STFU window shout because I hadn't seen them before so were not repeat offenders.

Actually, I'd probably pop around in the morning saying you were so tired because she woke you up at nearly midnight again.

Notmeagain1 · 25/10/2014 04:52

Cunny

PUUUSSSSY, PUSS, PUSS, PUUSSSSY... ROFL...
sounds like someone desperate hollering for a hooker.

MokunMokun · 25/10/2014 05:05

I do call my cat in but we are renting and the LL said no to a cat flap. I only call his name softly twice and give up though. I worry about him being out all night as he had an accident once.

You know if her cat gets hit by a car she will blame you forever though!!

YNBU though

Reddottys12 · 25/10/2014 06:06

What odd behaviour!! And how rude and inconsiderate to shout down the street. I'm surprised none of your neighbours have said anything yet!

BMW6 · 25/10/2014 06:32

I'm probably a horrible bitch, but I think I'd open my back door and as she yells a cat's name I'd yell it too (like an echo)......and would do it every time till she got the message.

BMW6 · 25/10/2014 06:33

Better yet get other neighbours to join in too....

Longtalljosie · 25/10/2014 06:37

What kind of screwed up logic is that? Oh, I can start yelling my head off now, they've gone to bed.

Leela5 · 25/10/2014 07:52

Oh god I thought this was about me at first as I call my cats in, but I do it early evening so don't think I'm guilty! Mine don't go out at night coz it's busy area with traffic. They come in for dinner and stay in until morning.

I only call mine a couple of times though and it's around 6pm not late. Compared with next doors child who goes out on garden at 6:30am at the weekend and shouts a lot I think I'm probably not the worst neighbour.

I do find it so embarrassing though because my cat is named after an action hero (thanks to my dh!) and I have to call his name to get him in!

I would never do it loudly at night though, that's just annoying!

poolomoomon · 25/10/2014 08:03

No point doing this with cats. They know what they're doing, very savvy animals. If they want to come in they definitely will do, they're also very efficient at finding hiding places when it's raining. She either needs a cat flap or just to accept that the cats will meow at the door when THEY feel like it.

Yanbu btw, I'm surprised she has a voice left...

MyCarHasBrokenDownAgain · 25/10/2014 08:09

Slightly OT, but we had some bloke who used to chat - very loudly - on his mobile outside our bedroom window from about 11pm onwards EVERY FUCKING NIGHT. I used to ramp up the radio to drown him out - christ knows what he was doing, having an affair I should imagine, having to be on the phone outside at that time of night.

One morning he started at 1.30 am and woke me up. One thing you NEVER do is wake me up. I went ballistic, and much to DHs embarrassment shouted out the window 'It's one thirty am FFS, get a fucking room'. Yes the whole street must have heard, but he went very quiet and he's never been back since ha ha!

thegreylady · 25/10/2014 08:19

Oh Gosh I call my cat in at night. He is elderly and a bit deaf no one has complained so far. We have a catflap which we lock at 7 when we feed the two cats but sometimes Haggis sneaks out and I can't leave him overnight. Please say it isn't Haaaaaggggiiiisssssss!! It is only once every couple of weeks though.

cardibach · 25/10/2014 08:39

I don't get the logic of keeping a cat in aright because of traffic. Surely there is less traffic at night than in the day? And cats have good night vision, plus cars have lights at night? How is it safer in the day? As so
Done else said, they are nocturnal - night is when they want to be out!

Leela5 · 25/10/2014 08:58

Card there lies the beauty of individualism and choice!

My cats go out during the day and have always come in at night. They don't seem to be fussed about it and have always come in when called. I work in animal welfare science and studies show most cat fatalies occur on roads at night, plus it cuts risk to wildlife and reduces fighting with other cats.

thegreylady · 25/10/2014 09:03

My 16 year old Orientals would not cope outside all night in the cold they need their furry bed and their radiator.

Methe · 25/10/2014 09:06

My cats not nocturnal. She comes in about 9, has a bite to eat and goes and gets in bed with Dd where she stays until 7am.

We started keeping her in with she was a kitten as I don't want her decimating the local wildlife. She doesn't seem the slightest but bothered.

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