Untrained neighbour dog. WWYD?

[ERest]

Hello, thought I would get some opinions on the below scenario but not enabling voting as a twofold question. I live a few doors away from a family with one of those small cutey dogs, not sure what breed. It is however very fierce and frequently gets away from its owners to harass people. It has stopped me from getting down from my car before, after appearing from no where and running round my car while barking continously till the lady eventually emerged 5 minutes later to get it. That was not the first time either. This week however, it has chased my sibling twice on their way to work (she lives with me at the moment). We were all standing by the door as she left, 3 adults and my little one, so saw the entire scene unfold. The lady was walking the dog with her two kids. The older child, probably 6 or 7 was holding the dog. As soon as my sister got to street level and the dog sighted her, it tore after her and dragged the child down till she tripped. My sister had to take refuge on a car further down the street to get away from the dog! The owner just said: "the dog is just a baby, it won't bite" in a dismissive manner. This was really annoying to hear as this is a repetitive issue! To make things worse, the car owner has just come round to check if my sister was alright, but also to say her car has a scratch and it is due to be collected on Monday as it has been sold. She is planning to come back later with her husband as she is worried the buyer would not want it now. So for my AIBU which is twofold:

1. What can be done about neighbours dog, especially if the same happens again? Can we report a dog for terrorising neighbours?
2. If the car owner presents a bill for car scratches, who should pay it, my sister or would she be unreasonable to pass it on to the dog owner?

I'd be pretty freaked out if a dog ran after me barking and could well imagine panicking and climbing something. It's a dangerous situation and it doesn't sound like they are cut out to be dog owners.

the car owner should claim from their insurers

And lose their no claims bonus through no fault.of their own and pay the excess? I wouldn't want to do that for a scratch.

It's not clear if the dog was just barking or barking aggressively, snarling etc. My friend has a little fluffy toy dog which barks when it sees new people but it's just excited and then rolls.onto its back for tummy strokes, very different to barking and snarling

@Nobranothanks

Tbh, in response to posters saying OP is over reacting - I would say that many owners of small dogs seem to find their behaviour funny instead of concerning! If my (large oaf) dog behaved like many small dogs do I would be accuse of owning a dangerous dog and have the police called...the works! Yet I encounter many, many people out and about whose toy/small dogs bark, chase, snap and snarl at both people and my dog whilst owners stand there laughing!

My young large dog (walked on lead) is frequently growled/snarled at/followed/snapped at by small dogs - he doesn't react because I've take extra care to socialise him well however if he were to one day get the hump with a dog snapping at him etc he will be blamed, not the instigator!

Surely you understand that an aggressive big dog is genuinely more dangerous than an aggressive small dog. It’s not rocket science.

In any case, it sounds like this is puppy enthusiasm and poor training rather than any danger. Jumping on a car is somebody being a drama queen and of course she should pay.

I no longer see a friend at her house due to her genuinely terrifying very small bitey little shit of a dog. So yes, small dogs can be dangerous.

And yes a kick would sort it out but I’m not going to kick a pet.

Climbing on a car is odd though.

I’d go over to the dog owners house and say it’s out of control.

Report the dog owner. Your sister should pay up. Technically she committed criminal damage to someone else’s property it doesn’t matter why she did it, she did it and the owner of the car would need to likely report to the police to claim off their insurance anyway thus your sister having a nice little visit. Not that they should have to claim off their insurance for your sister silly idea of an escape plan.

She had to know jumping on someone’s car was likely to scratch or maybe even dent parts.

Surely you understand that an aggressive big dog is genuinely more dangerous than an aggressive small dog. It’s not rocket science.

Nobody is saying otherwise.

But small dogs do seem to get away with aggressive behaviour when large dogs wouldn't. An aggressive dog is aggressive whether it's a chihuahua or a Rottweiler.

@Waspsarearseholes

Bloody hell, what's it like inside some of these posters' heads?

Very empty I assume.

Your sister should pay the repairs as it's not up to the car owners to chase payment but your sister should then go to yappy dog house and say tgeyve got 28 days to reimburse you or you'll file a dangerous dog complaint/small claims.

Small dogs can still inflict nasty bites, infection etc.

Fucking hate some dog owners.

You and the dogowner handle this situation in the worst possible way.it appears,you are frightened of dogs and the little dog is anxious too.this combination always leads to problems.I suggest the following: make contact with the dogowner in a friendly understanding manner(you both want a happy outcome).explain your fears,but want to get to know the dog.A responsible dogowner will help with this(because she wants a positive outcome too).Once you familiarise yourself with the dog,it will stop "attacking" you.This all will take time,but leads to happy you and happy sister,happy dog/owner.

Or you and your neighbour make no effort and keep the situation as it is and feel angry and waste possibly police time.I wish you all the best!

I second the recommendation to walk around with a big stick. Or metal pole.

It is absurd to jump on a car- wasn't there a bin she could jump in?

She should pay for the damage, and be trained.

Report the dog owner to the police, you can do it online. It’s illegal to have an untrained dog that chases people and tries to attack them. What if the next person it chases and bites is a small child? To own a dog you must train it to be socialised. Otherwise you are an irresponsible owner and you risk someone getting seriously hurt. Report it now.

I don't think your sister was unreasonable , I know lots of people who are terrified of spiders and although they can bite , they never chase you . I would take photos and get a few quotes , so you know you are not totally being ripped off , I think people can even come to the house and repair . A deep scratch to the metal is more expensive .

Your sister should offer to pay for the damage to the car. Jumping onto someone's car is not a normal reaction to this situation! Especially a small dog I think she had a massive overreaction tbh.

As for the dog, have a serious talk with your neighbour about controlling it and keeping it on a lead. If it carries on then report to the council. Even a small dog can be reported as a dangerous dog, doesn't matter that your neighbour thinks its a "baby" if it is chasing and biting people that's not OK.

Taking an umbrella is probably easier than taking a stick (and looks less odd if you're going to work!).

Your sister needs to pay for any damage to the car if asked and would then probably need to go through small claims court if she wanted to claim it off the dog owner. The "fix on your doorstep" companies like Chips Away are very good and cheaper than a body shop.

Small dogs can be very aggressive. A JRT can be cutesy but watch them go after a rat. You shouldnt have to be chased by dog. However, jumping on a car is OTT and your sister needs to pay for that damage. If a small dog is that aggressive and is moving to bite you'd be justified in pushing it away firmly with your foot, which is what I'd have done.

If the dog keeps running at you off lead, I would report the neighbour to a dog warden who can maybe apply a bit of pressure, train the dog/keep it on a lead/use a muzzle or lose it.

@DinkyDiggies

I’m a dog owner and lover, but don’t necessarily think your sister was unreasonable to jump on a car. While I’d confidently take on a small dog, if you’d said ‘whacking great Alsatian/Doberman/Rottweiler’ then I’d definitely be jumping on a car to get away. I think some people are more naturally frightened of dogs, and even a small one is scary. Cultural sensitivity seems to be lacking in some of the comments as I’ve found people who may not be of White European heritage don’t have a culture of pet owning, and view our ‘cute little pups’ as dirty disease carrying beasts with the potential to savage one on sight. I lived in Wembley for a while, and a crowded street would part like the Red Sea when I took my little King Charles Spaniel (who was the kindest sweetest looking little dog you could ever wish to see) down the road. A great tall youth jumped out of my way shouting ‘get that thing away from me’ when she walked past on a lead and turned as though to sniff him. I googled this and read that dogs are considered impure in Islam, and that ritual washing may be required after contact. The dog has caused alarm and distress which is against the law. Report to police. If you receive bill for car, pass to dog owner. I would hope their pet is insured...?

This was what was in the back of my mind when I asked if the OP had any experience with dogs - a question she hasn't answered.

I live in an area that's similarly ethically diverse to Wembley. On one occasion little DDog wandered slowly in the direction of a park bench, because he wanted to sniff it (he has no interest whatsoever in strangers, it really was the bench he wanted to smell).

The four strapping young men all leaped on top of the bench. They were concerned he might attack them. It was very, very clear that none of them had even the slightest idea of how to read a dog's body language as DDog had done nothing to suggest he might attack.

Younger children in that park tend to be curious, and consider it a little daring to touch a dog. They often want to come and talk to me about him. I know DDog won't fling himself at them, but nor will he bite, so he's turned out to be quite good in that situation. I take the time to talk to children about letting a dog come to them / asking permission before touching a dog / gently stroking a dog on its back as being a good way to interact / dogs will sniff you because that's how they say hello. It invariably seems like brand new information to them.

It's pretty evident that lots of children from South Asian and middle Eastern backgrounds just aren't brought up with the sort of cultural knowledge about dogs that most others have.

In Germany this would be solved between sister and dog owner's third party insurance.

In this case I think your sister should cough up and try to recover costs from dog owner (or try to pass directly to dog owner). Either way car owner must be compensated from what I think I'd bizarre behaviour (although I do get sister was very frightened.

Report dog owner to relevant authority. Carry a stick or umbrella to fend it off in future. Report any and all subsequent attacks

Another dog owner here and this dog absolutely needs to be reported! It is completely unacceptable to have a dog that is out of control, in a public place. Shame on the (lazy) owner who has failed to train it and now has a feral dog on her hands! It doesn’t matter if it’s cute and fluffy, or big and surly, all dog owners need to take responsibility

Report dog owner to relevant authority. Carry a stick or umbrella to fend it off in future. Report any and all subsequent attacks

Hitting a dog with a stick is going to inflame the situation - a dog that would never actually have bitten otherwise, but is attacked with a stick or umbrella, will be quite justified in attacking back.

There's no evidence this was an attack. By the OPs admission it is a Pomeranian puppy who has run around barking, quite likely in excitement. They're a breed that pretty much barks for the sake of it.

Carry a water pistol or a big stick, get someone to try to video it then report .

@Nobranothanks

Tbh, in response to posters saying OP is over reacting - I would say that many owners of small dogs seem to find their behaviour funny instead of concerning! If my (large oaf) dog behaved like many small dogs do I would be accuse of owning a dangerous dog and have the police called...the works! Yet I encounter many, many people out and about whose toy/small dogs bark, chase, snap and snarl at both people and my dog whilst owners stand there laughing!

My young large dog (walked on lead) is frequently growled/snarled at/followed/snapped at by small dogs - he doesn't react because I've take extra care to socialise him well however if he were to one day get the hump with a dog snapping at him etc he will be blamed, not the instigator!

This is true!

However I think your sister will be responsible for the car damage .

This is what the dangerous dogs act is for.

This dog is dangerously out of control in a public place, repeatedly, and you have feared injury - it will be up to a court to decide if your fear of injury was reasonable or not.

Pay the car person.
Take evidence of that bill to dog person.
Inform dog person that they have x days to pay up and that their dog is dangerously out of control which is an offence.

I'd contact the dog warden first and then the police if that doesn't result in action being taken.

It does sound like they've no idea they are committing an offence or that anyone might have a legitimate complaint, if the dog IS actually over excited and has no intention of biting, that might be understandable (many people do not understand that the law doesn't need a dog to bite or even to intend to, a playful happy dog CAN fall foul of that law), so I'd give them one further chance but if they refuse to pay up... I'd shop em to the warden and the police, yep.

Do be warned if it is a small fluffy breed, theres a good chance you won't be taken very seriously if the owner IS already taking action.

@Blueuggboots

I think you need to get a grip, it's a dog, not a tiger!!!

Erm dogs have killed people!

OP do you have a dog warden at your local council? You can report it to them. Both on grounds of your own welfare (and your sister's) and the dog's, which isn't being trained.

Do be warned if it is a small fluffy breed, theres a good chance you won't be taken very seriously if the owner IS already taking action

Really? I find it's usually the smaller dogs that are yappy and snappy and the larger dogs just walk past you and show no interest whatsoever.

You need to report the dog owner doesn’t matter if it’s a puppy or only little she has no control over it.

As for the car unfortunately I think your sister needs to pay for the damage caused. There is no way the dog owner will pay for it even if you asked her to as it was your sister who caused the damage not her or her dog.
I won’t lie if someone damaged my car because they were getting away from a dog and there was damage then I would ask them to pay for it. The car owner is the innocent party in all this that your sister has now involved, she needs to take responsibility for the damage she caused and pay up.