Neighbours Dog

[Rustpail]

I'v name changed for this. But am at the end of my tether and need advice. I recently bought a flat, its lovely and I'm really happy with it, but my neighbour has an absolutely huge dog and I'm allergic. She insists on taking it out for a walk three times a day through the communal hallway and I find it quite intimidating and it is making me sneeze.

I wasnt told about the dog when I bought the flat, and it doesnt make any noise. Apparently she has permission for it and permission can only be removed if it is making a noise or fouling - but not for any other nuisance. What can I do?

Well you are definitely BU, there’s nothing you can do other than taking antihistamines as dogs need exercise and plenty of it and you can’t dictate how someone else lives.
I’m allergic to my cats (new allergy) I take Cetirizine (4 tablets a day when my allergies are very bad).
The only thing you can do is speak to your GP or purchase non drowsy antihistamines and maybe try a face mask as others suggested.

Found it

This is ridiculous. Your neighbour isn't the problem, you are

Not really liking how this thread progressing. not really in a positive way.

Opinions vary - Although I dont have a dog, I have a cat I am equally attached to. It doesnt sound fair either that the neighbour, who clearly loves her dog, needs to suddenly get rid of it all of a sudden, when someone new moves into the building ??

I really would look for another flat. Just out of self-protection, and for the sake of your happiness.

We bought a house, been there for almost 10 yrs, very nice and tranquil but then a new carwash moved in 3 doors further (very loud music and voices) Every day and very late into the evenings. It has stressed me out immensely. We cannot get away from this noise, can’t have the doors/windows open anymore, let along enjoying our garden.
I have tried talking to them, tried talking to the landlord, but nothing.
Opened a case with Neighbourhood watch. Two years on, and I am still in the same situ. It is really not helping that I have had a burnout, so have been home most of the time.
We are going to move, it is simply not healthy to a person to stay and fight it out, or wait it out.

Whether you’re right or not, this will give you stress.

I am just telling you this story, as I dont think that things will change - Moving is really your best option, if you ask me.

I am sorry to hear this; but if you are so allergic that a dog walking three times a day through the communal area (not your own flat) three times a day makes you sneeze, then I'm afraid it was really your responsibility to check whether there were dogs in the building before you bought the flat. Unless the agency actually lied to you, I don't think you have legal recourse.

What would be your solution @Rustpail ?

Jesus Fucking Wept!!! Just utterly unbelievable.

the lease just says that dogs are allowed with permission, and that permission will be revoked for noise nuisance or fouling,

Given that the lease makes it clear that residents can be allowed to have dogs, I think you should have thought twice about buying a flat there if your allergy is that bad. Caveat emptor and all that.

Your neighbour isn't doing anything wrong, and it's up to you to ask the question if it's that important to you.

It must be very difficult for you generally if your dog allergy is that severe that a dog merely walking through the common parts of the building triggers such a bad reaction. How do you manage when you encounter a dog on public transport, in a pub or a shop?

If a resident had an assistance dog you would have the same issues. You didn't read things thoroughly enough. I wonder how you cope with sniffer dogs at airports and other places.

I say she insists on taking it out, because the hallway is the only route

THE AUDACITY.

I think people are being unnecessarily harsh. I wonder how the responses would differ if it was a different allergen that the neighbour was regularly bringing into the communal areas, like peanuts?

Of course on MN, a labrador is sacrosanct. The neighbour should sort additional cleaning imo.

Why would the answers be any different?

You can't tell people what pets they're allowed just as you can't tell people what food they're allowed to buy and eat in their own homes.

If OP is that allergic, she should have checked before buying her flat 🙄

Of course YABU. You chose to live in a block of flats which is always going to open you up to the possibility of people moving in around you with pets. And just because you have an allergy, doesn’t mean you get to dictate how often your neighbour should walk their dog. The world doesn’t revolve around you.

Your allergy is not their problem and from the sounds of it, they are being a responsible pet owner, giving it the required amount of daily exercise for a large dog plus it never barks.

You sound like the problem here, not your neighbour so rather than trying to think of ways to get rid of the dog, the only logical solution is to move.

Why would it be different?

Would you expect the entire block of flats not to eat peanuts because one person was allergic?

What about banning shellfish? Latex?

You can’t ban something in an entire block of flats just because one person is allergic.

The person with the allergy has to find somewhere where they can live. Such as a house

Peanuts she'd sought and got permission to transport along the hallway, you mean?

Peanuts that were called out on the rental agreement as being allowed with permission, so long as they didn't soil the place or make a noise. The kind of peanuts that just make allergy sufferers sneeze (vs respiratory collapse and death).

Those kind of peanuts?

I was thinking St Bernard or Newfoundland: huge, slobbery and thick-coated.

Well, I guess, I'd be thinking that in an apartment building, people would quite possibly be going to go through the communal areas with peanuts. They may eat them out of the bag, then touch the wall, the lift buttons, drop a bag of them in the hall way, sneeze in my direction having eaten them. I'd think it was very unlikely peanuts would be prohibited, particularly if there were a clause in the lease that specifically allows peanuts.

So I'd most likely think that apartment building and me weren't likely to be long term besties. . .

I bet it's a chihuahua ! And I would like a diagram too, with the flats marked, and it needs to be to scale.

OP would have loved our bull mastiff.

Or our friends' great danes (two of 'em).

To be fair though, Puku, a choccy lab', was a BEAST. Certainly when he was sitting on lil' ol' five foot me's lap!

Not the entire building, but it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect them to limit eating nuts in the communal hallway.

A lot of privilege on this thread too. Maybe OP can’t afford to live in a house or move again so soon!

If a neighbour was taking a bag of peanuts out for a walk through a communal hallway three times a day I still don't think the OP would have a leg to stand on!

On another point, what about if a visitor had a dog?

You forgot intimidating peanuts though 🤣

Why should they?