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?

The neighbour sounds a good dog owner. The dog is well behaved and, as you stated, is allowed to live in the flat.

You have a severe allergic reaction to dogs. The only thing you can do is move out. What on earth to you expect the dog, it’s owner or the landlord to do because you have an allergy?

What a 🦇💩 post

I thought you said it went out 3 times? How is that in & out, in & out, in & out all the time?

For some reason I thought Id get more practical help on mumsnet or some ideas.

Hard to imagine what's more practical than the advice you've been given.

Antihistimines
Mask
Air Purifier
Move out

Also, my child's allergist highly recommends NeilMed Sinus rinse

my neighbour has an absolutely huge dog

Also worth noting is that taking the dog out multiple times a day could potentially be what keeps the dog at bay and stops it barking (and thus sticks to the agreed rules of having the dog). Would you prefer to listen to it all day instead? Surely taking it out with her is a far more decent alternative given she lives in close proximity with others. Doesn’t seem like this person can win with whatever she does with the exception of getting rid of the dog to appease you which just isn’t going to happen.

surely this is a made up thread???? someone is sat on the train commuting laughing their heads off. I refuse to believe this is serious

oops - sent too soon

my neighbour has an absolutely huge dog

Clearly a case of
Labs: body positivity gone too far?

I was hoping this was a reverse tbh but you could get an air purifier in your flat and use non drowsy antihistamines or a Nasal spray.

Your allergy is your problem, no one else's.

You could walk about in full scuba gear and she'd still keep walking the dog, because she's a sensible and responsible pet owner.

if it was only once then she should be reported to the RSPCA because dogs need walking and opportunities to wee etc more than once a day! She's being a responsible dog owner with what sounds like a well behaved dog and you're being weirdly obtuse and entitled.

What practical help is there that you couldn't think of yourself?

You are the one with the issue here, your allergy is the nuisance, not this dog. If you have such a severe allergy, then it was your responsibility to check there would not be exposure to your allergen in the communal areas - you failed to do that, DESPITE reading the details that made it clear pets were a possibility.

The dog needs to go for a walk and to the toilet outside multiple times per day, thats non-negotiable.

So - you can:

Take non-drowsy antihistamines
Wait and see if you improve as you get used to this dogs particular dander/hair
Hire, at your cost, extra hallway cleaning (if thats possible).
Move.

Thats it, that is really all there is.

Did you specifically ask the management company if there were any resident dogs and tell them you were asking because you have allergies? If you did and they lied, you may have a point. On the other hand if you didn't then why on earth would they volunteer such random information. I live in a flat, didn't actually have any contact with the management company before were moved in, but if I had and they had randomly told me there was a dog living in the block, I would have thought they were slightly barmy.

How often do you go in and out of your flat that you risk bumping into this dog also going in and out multiple times? There are several dogs that live in my block and I rarely see one, maybe once or twice a week and I'm fairly sure they are in and out several times a day!

You have had the perfect advice several times, buy several good quality masks with allergen filters and leave one hanging on your door handle and keep one in your handbag. It really is a very simple solution.

On the other hand, if you are hoping someone will tell you you can sue the management company or that the dog must be evicted then you are going to be waiting a while.

And the OP must be in and out too! Most dogs have a routine- OP clock the time the dog goes out and wait ten minutes or what have you.

Mask, split antihistamine tablet in half? You must have a severe allergy to be this allergic to a dog- are you petting the dog? Or are the hallways carpeted? It’s awful having allergies, but I’m not sure what you can do.

3 times a day isn’t a lot, I live in a flat and have a small dog (so needs less exercise than an lab) and I often take her out more than 3 times. 3 times is just a base for how often she needs to go out. She can cope with only 2 if needed, eg when it was too hot to go out for most of the day, but she would never cope with just 1 and even with just 2 she began to struggle the later in the day it got.

I can sympathise with you on the allergies but that’s where it ends I’m afraid. I lived with all manor of pets for 20 odd years and had my dog for almost a year when I developed quite bad allergies, it’s been a few years now and I get more than just a snotty nose, but I just suck it up and take an antihistamine. Most of them are non drowsy these days.

This dog is absolutely not being a nuisance and was there before you with no issues so you either have to suck it up or move if it genuinely is causing you that much of an issue.

Is there a lamp-post opposite your flat? How are you with heights? Perhaps you could rig up some kind of rope slide thing so you can exit you flat directly and avoid the corridor and the intimidating fur-spreading Labrador? If you got a secondhand ski lift, you could simply attach this to your rope slide thereby making re-entry to your flat simple and classy.

You've got a serious allergy, but didn't think to ask? Aye, so ye did.

The face masks are a good idea ….at least the owner might get the picture that I am unhappy.

what are you planning to do? Draw a upside down smiley on the mask like sad joker?

@Rustpail What are your expectations here? That the dog is only allowed out once a day?? That the neighbour gets rid of the dog? What accommodations are you prepared to make given your failure to assess the situation adequately before committing to the purchase?

The dog leaving and arriving AT ITS HOME does not constitute a nuisance. You are coming across as a potential nuisance neighbour though.

^ this is the only reasonable solution
Or you could get an old diving helmet to wear
HTH 😃

Your neighbour is doing NOTHING wrong and she was there first. You are being way too precious over this, the world does not revolve around you and your allergies. If you don't want to be around any dogs, it's on you to check that there are no dogs where you're buying a flat. You are being unreasonable in the extreme, and very passive aggressive to think about wearing a mask so your neighbour knows you're not happy. I have two dogs, and if you pulled any passive aggressive crap like that, I'd be quick to tell you to go buy a house with no shared communal areas because really, what else can you do? She has permission, the dog is not noisy or a nuisance, the only nuisance right now is you. You are going to have to take the practical suggestions on here and learn how to live with it because you cannot change this. You can only change your attitude and response to it.

Antihistamines make me drowsy I dont think I can take them long term. I'd feel whacked all the time

There are plenty of non-drowsy antihistamines you can buy from a chemist.
You can google which they are.

I also have a dog next door to me in my flat, and I’m allergic to it, and other dogs/cats in general. I am okay with being in the hallway, but I do 100% get that unexpected dogs are really annoying when you are allergic. People who aren’t allergic really don’t get it - just taking antihistamines is not an answer. So I feel you. I am also allergic to dust and have found wearing a face mask when I’m dusting/emptying the hoover really really helps. So that idea from someone else might be a good one. So sorry though, hope you aren’t affected too badly by it

This thread is so going to end up on the red top social media pages.

I wake up and the very first thing I do is go to the toilet, I then go again at least once during the day but usually more than once, then before I go to bed I use the bathroom again. I have full control over when I use the toilet, when I need to I get up and go pretty much straight away, no one will ever complain about that because it’s the most basic of human functions we do multiple times every day. Dogs do not have this same control over their toileting, especially ones in flat. When they need to wee they have to wait for their owner to decide it’s time or do it inside which is not acceptable unless poorly, old, or being neglected.

How would you like it if your neighbour/friend/employer/partner decided you peeing more than once a day was a nuisance and demanded you only do it once a day? You’d argue that that is completely unreasonable and if you was forced to stick to only once a day a lot of people would agree that you was being abused.

She lives in a flat with her dog. The dog will need to go out several times in order to go to the loo.
YabVu. If dogs are such an issue the onus should have been on you to ask if there were any in the building.
Not all antihistamines cause drowsiness so I'd try some different ones, and or wear a face mask when you leave your flat to get outside.
The dog owner sounds like they are doing all the right things with their dog and the strict rules about having on in the flat. Don't make their life harder.