If your dog was barking, would Environmental Health come round and tell you to muzzle the dog?

[LadyOfWaffle]

Because my mum seems to think so One of the dogs has started to bark (ie. going from never barking to starting to bark at birds, not at all more than the average dog BTW) and she rung this morning screaming EH had been there and told her to get a muzzle for him. I know for a fact he barks very little (he's a puppy and only just discovered how to bark properly), it's only ever during the day anyway so not a EH issue and would be very very suprised if they would suggest a muzzle, that to me would be an RSPCA issue itself! Please confirm my mum is making up a load of bullshit to wind me up (again). She did similar a few weeks ago - said the dog had gone but the gate was shut so was stolen, as soon as I mentioned "get off the phone, i'm calling the police" he was suddenly spotted hiding down the side of the house .

Hmmm - I have experience of people leaving dogs all day which howled and barked & I was told by the RSPCA that sometimes it was more effective to complain to EH about the noise as they had more powers than the RSPCA (unless actual cruelty is involved). Perhaps not what you want to hear..!

But for maybe max. of 5 barks at a bird and the very same day? and tell my mum to muzzle him? I know they get involved when it's really bad, but surely dogs are allowed to bark a little. Without being muzzled. It's so hard to know if mums winding me up or not.

Well, I suppose there could have been complaints about the barking? Noise nuisance is taken very seriously.

But maybe not, who knows? More important though, is why you mother is making stuff up? What does she get from it, or want to get from it, and why?

i worked for EH for a little. we never told anyone to muzzle their dog.

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She is just like that. In this instance it's her Hyacinth Bucket coming out - the dog barks once and she literally will start to tear her hair out for fear of what the neighbours will think, so, is basically wanting me to go "ok, we will get the dog a muzzle, DH will pop it over later" to stop it barking at all. As for the other stuff she makes up for no reason, I have no idea. She loves to see people wound up for some reason. No coincidence she picked today - my due date, it's typical mum. My dad says she has some mental syndrome (forgotten what) but she says he is X, Y and Z so just ignore it. Now i'm stuck in 'the game' of brush it off, call her bluff, believe her and get stressed myself about it. Sorry, turning into a moan!

no but to be fair there aren't a lot of those where we live. where as there are a lot of dogs.

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I reckon someone's barking - you just have to figure out if it's your mum or the dog

I might be wrong, but I think that the big basket muzzle wouldn't stop a dog barking anyway. And the tight-fitting fabric muzzle that would stop barking cis only to be used briefly, e.g. when a vet is examining a nippy dog. It can't be left on for long periods without causing suffering. So unlikely that EH would recommend muzzle.

Def. my mum! Grr, if she calls one more time today I am pulling the phone out. She is on a roll!

Get caller id.

you've complained to the cock man with the car, cod? has it increased to 20 minutes yet?

She is private number, but she calls literally 10/15 times in a row or until I answer.

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hmmmcan you contact the eh about barking

our neighbours have 3 rotweillers that bark all day and night so i may have to look into that

the only solace i get is every day when the icecream man comes they all start crying

what's that about

Oh yes, mustsleep - it's definitely an EH issue and, as I said, I've been told by the RSPCA that it's more likely for EH to get a result than them. I can't go into too much detail but I do know first hand that EH slapping a warning on the people concerned works pretty quickly!

There's something seriously adrift here. My mother is a loon, a complete and utter loon, but I've never known her lie.

Why is your mother making up malicious lies? Or more to the point, why do you believe that your mother is making up malicious lies?

You can train a dog to only bark two or three times at something...

or is this not an issue at all and she's fabricated the entire thing?

Our dog used to bark all the time and we knew the neighbours weren't amused. A squirty water bottle did the trick within a day.

Invest in an aboistop collar if the dog is truely barking...which obviously is a point in question at the moment of course. Designed to stop dogs barking and generally very effective though expensive. Google them and you will find them.

empty washing up bottle of water shot between the eyes works just as well; a fraction of the cost too with a hefty NO!

or an old cigar tin filled with a few nuts and bolts lobbed in the general direction of bark-ee with a hefty NO!

So your Mum was in your house when you weren't there and is claiming EH visited. Personally, I think it's bollocks. I wouldn't be concerned about EH, or the barking, but I'd be concerned about letting my Mum have that much access to my life if she had form for this kind of shit-stirring. Can you keep her at arms length a bit more?

Eh don't just visit anyway, they send letters first.

I've reported 2 of my neighbours for dog noise.

Oh and dogs barking during the day IS an EH issue, time is irrelevent.

No-one wants to listen to someone elses dog bark all day.