Lost my temper with neighbour's dog

[IronTusk]

For a number of months my neighbour's dog is outside from 7:30pm to around 10:00pm (or later, sometimes) about 4 - 5 times a week and it regularly barks, howls, yelps throughout the evening. My living room / dining area is open plan leading out the the back and I live in a small development of terraced houses, so the space is quite tight. When the dog is being noisy it's almost like it's in my back garden.

This has been driving me increasingly mad and last night I just lost it, went out the back and yelled at the dog to shut up twice before slamming the back door. I had tried knocking on the door twice beforehand but there was no answer.

I feel a bit ashamed of myself this morning and I've knocked again this morning to try and apologise but emphasise that this is causing me some annoyance. The couple have three young children and the husband is often away leaving the wife with the children to look after but is it unreasonable to expect not to be consistently disturbed by a dog?

Entirley understandable that something that selfish would send you over the edge!

If the wife can’t cope with a dog, they shouldn’t have one in these circumstances.

It’s not the dogs fault!

YABVU to yell at the poor dog, because it's already trying everything it can to get the attention of it's owners fgs, and that is what is annoying you !

Better to report them to the RSPCA for cruelty if the poor animal is left outside in all weathers with no-one ever paying attention to it ?

You could also report them to the council for noise pollution ? If the 'noise' is above a certain decibel and goes on for long periods (especially early morning and evenings) then they can be fined etc and ordered to stop the noise ?

I know, that's why I feel like a tit!

I do feel sorry for the dog, it gets left in the house all day while they're out and then gets chucked outside at night. I don't think it ever gets taken for a walk.

Did it work?

I'll never understand why people like this have a dog

I am very petty and would be tempted to play either Youtube dog noise or loud music early in the morning until they take steps to shut the dog up.

I would be doing what you did every single night until the owner learned to look after their dog properly.

Can you report to the RSPCA in that case? They clearly aren’t looking after their dog properly.

I'm sick to the back teeth of selfish bastards, having dogs and not upholding their responsibilities. At least you care.

Oh that poor dog. Ring the RSPCA and report them.

You would be yelling at the dog. Every single night? 🙄

The RSPCA won’t do anything. I reported a neighbour for exactly the same reasons, except it wasn’t just the evenings, it was all night and day. Left in the garden the whole time, never walked, barked incessantly. The dog had access to water and was fed and had shelter (a shitty makeshift wooden box thing) so there was nothing they could do.

I’d do the same.

The RSPCA won’t be interested as it has food and shelter.
Start logging the noise and contact the council.
And no, it’s not the poor dog’s fault, what a shit life it has. Then it will die.

What do people think the RSPCA will do about a barking dog?? Is it fed and watered? If so, they won't care.

Speak to the neighbour and ask them to stop leaving the dog outside, and let it in if it barks. If nothing changes, report to the noise nuisance team at the council. Keep a record of days and times.

No way I’d be apologising too the neighbour. I’d avoid them like the plague so they don’t associate you with the dog because I’d go on to report to RSPCA. Tell them everything.

They don’t care about the dog. The way they are treating it is wrong. If they don’t walk it then it’s because it’s either too strong or too viscous. Because they got it as a puppy and didn’t properly socialise it. The poor creature has no life.

Youre doing a good thing by reporting. The dog is unhappy. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Report it to your local council .

Round my way it's reportable if dogs are barking more than 5 minutes per hour .

The owners of dogs seem to be deaf to their mutts barking and annoying everyone else

I voted YABU only because of yelling at the dog - it[s clearly unhappy or it wouldn't be barking all night long.

But YANBU to be annoyed at the noise (and the owners). I second contacting the council (you could start by putting a polite note through the door first, so that you have proof you have tried to resolve the issue amicably).

Not the dog's fault but I totally understand why you lost it. People three doors up have 2 dogs and they are usually kicked out between 9:30 and 10:30 at night. They bark for the entire hour they are out but at least it's only an hour. If I was in your position I'd have been going round to the neighbour every evening until they got it sorted.

Not the dog faults, but it is the owners. My dog calls out when goes outside, to other dogs, but if it goes on for more than 1 minute she is called back in. If it's barking for more than 5 minutes at a time, then it's a sign that the dog is bored and not walked enough. I pity both you and the dog, because the owners aren't being good to their dog.

Report the noise to the council.

Don’t apologise. Speak to them to demand that the dog is not left outside . Don’t be a wet blanket!

Did it work?
I’d have done the same tbh, I’d probably have gone out much earlier.
Your neighbour sounds very selfish
Will reporting them to the council make a difference? Or will it achieve nothing because it’s before 11pm.

The owner is probably shutting it out to get some peace but it’s their responsibility to train it. It sounds very annoying.

Phone the council dog warden.