Shared garden space with dog using it as toilet!

[NOTSUREWHATIMDOINHERE]

Hello

We have a shared back garden area, no front garden. Neighbours have a big dog, they let it use the shared garden area as a dog toilet, don't take it walks. I have a toddler that I now don't feel safe letting out to play. I have asked them nicely to not leave poo about but its doing wet poos and also peeing everywhere which is killing large patches of the grass. Oh I hate it! Now my children have no garden to use and theirs does.

Am I being unreasonable to not let my little ones out to the dog toilet? It makes me so angry to be honest.

Fence off a part of it, a strictly no dog area.

to add we have kids things on our side but toddler refuses to stay just on that side and so its not an option to keep them away from the dog bit. We do have our bit fenced off, toddler just wont stay in there without a massive melt down, obviously wants to run around the larger grassy bit.

What did they say? Did they agree but carry on regardless?

What is your housing situation? Rent/leasehold/share of freehold?

sorry just added that there, we have this, but toddler will melt down and wont stay in our bit.

we own, they rent council

Toddler needs to learn they keep to their side of the fence.

Thats a hell of a drip feed…

Report to the council every single time with photographic evidence.

I cannot stand people that do this. I don’t suppose it’s an xl bully type? Because they can’t be in shared spaces without a muzzle and a lead.

think toddler has asd its tough to make them do things, was not drip feed. I just added it straight away after the 1st one posted.

no its a bigger dog, don't want to be too specific though on here. Reporting would mean they know its us. Since we have brought the issue up directly.

I'm not sure it's reasonable to expect the dog not to use the garden at all, you can't be going out for a walk for every wee, but they definitely should be immediately picking up after it. I suppose it's a downside to a shared garden. I think your toddler needs to stay on the right bit of garden or be closely watched if runs about/hands washed etc.

Have you got a picture or a diagram? I can't work out how it's fully shared if your bit is fenced off?

What's the legal position of the shared space? Are you actually allowed to fence any of it off, and are there any rules about its use? That would be my first question.

What would you do or say to your toddler if they wanted to go in a neighbour's garden?

Tell him 'no Ronnie. That is Rex's garden for playing and this is Ronnie's garden for playing'. And take him inside if he can't manage.

That’s a You problem, I’m afraid. If you have an area free of dog and attendant mess, with toys for your child, your toddler is just going to have to learn that running around is a park thing, not a back garden thing.

It’s revolting of them not to clear up after their dog so the council might say something but I would not bet on it. They are notoriously slack chasing up antisocial behaviour of tenants.

I assume you have gone to to the council - they need to deal with their tennants, highly likely the tenancy has clauses that apply to massive piles of dog poop being left in shared areas. Can the garden be officially divided so not shared?

This is a diagram post…

Can you fence it off better so toddler can’t physically get over to ‘dog side’ ?

So your child is invading your neighbours garden, despite fencing.

And you want them to clean up their dog poo more regularly so when DC is trespassing, they won’t tread in poo?

OK, the dog poo garden is nasty, but this is a simple parenting issue. My DS has ADHD so I get it, but the whole world doesn’t revolve around us just because our children are ND.

I know, I used to live in an area that had signs up on the lampposts about dog poo can cause children blindness, I've never forgotten that. Guess we are just stuck in this annoying scenario until my child can understand things better. I really don't want to cause trouble for neighbours. Such a shame though. Its the wet poos , I don't think they can get the whole lot picked up effectively, and all the yellow patches of grass thanks to its peeing all over the place, mostly close to our side of the fence(just outside it)

no, its a shared garden, we are only ones with fence case of dog dirt! The garden is shared drying clothes green.

That's disgusting.

How formal is the garden sharing agreement?
Wouldn't they just think of it as :
Fenced off bit= theirs,
Rest = dog's.
Which makes it harder to do anything.

yes, I understand, and we do go to the park mostly now, the fenced play bit, because park is also disgusting with dog dirt.

Well you are going to have to keep child to fenced area.

How are they getting over? Are you lifting them?

Give your toddler the choice "your garden or play inside, what do you choose? You choose or mummy will choose" ... Even if they have ASD they need to learn to choose between the safe options (fenced area or house)... You wouldn't let them walk in a busy road, you'd say "hold mummy's hand or go in the pram" - it's the same type of scenario, just different choices.

yes they have taken over the whole place, except our small strip of fenced off land as we own it. its tiny strip of land though. The main area is a shared clothes drying green, that's the bit dog uses as well as their bit as its all not fenced off , apart from our bit. So apart from our little bit with fence, the majority of garden is just a dog toilet.

Make your part of the garden more attractive to your child? Bubble machine, try a treasure hunt ( hide any old tat they’ll enjoy finding) fairy doors, hang balloons up. Piñata ? Tell your child the other side is the dog’s garden and it’s the law he must stay there on his own ( the dog, not your dc. I fooled my kids with something being “ the law” for years)