Advice on neighbours dog…neglected.

[DoodleSquad]

Neighbour has lived next door for 2 years. Had this dog for last 14 months.

I’m home all day and never seen him be walked or played with.

Living in outside wooden kennel which is covered in his poo and has hardly any water.

Desperate for attention when I walk by him but shaking on approach.

Thr dog warden is not interested - not her job as it’s not lost or causing a nuisance!

RSPCA say as long as he has shelter and water it’s ok.

He’s been outside all this time during all the heatwaves and winter.

I want to rescue him and give him a home and love and the life he deserves.

What can I do?

(edited for spelling)

The OP doesn't want to approach the neighbour themselves. They've had previous issues.

If rhere is a lot of dog doo-doo that hasnt been cleaned up try Environmental Health at the local council

There's ivy growing around his kennel. Ivy is toxic to dogs and can cause stomach upset and skin irritation. It might be worth pointing this out to the RSPCA.

You could report the accumulated faeces, which must smell in this weather, to the Environmental Health Dept of your local council. They are also responsible for animal welfare.

If you don't feel able to speak to the neighbours, could you write a letter? Offer to buy the dog off them if you do seriously want it.

Alternatively, could you contact a local breed specific rescue for their advice? They may visit the house and offer to take the dog/offer support to the owners to improve their care of the dog?

Poor think is not living a happy life, even if some of theit basic needs (shelter, food and water) are being met, thats just not enough for a dog

This post brought tears to my eyes, and blood boiling in my veins. I have worked in welfare for a large UK breed for quite a few years and we had to abide by the law. The RSPCA won't help if the animal is being fed and has water, however Environmental health may be worth a try to get them to clean up, but I doubt it will resolve the neglect issues. Now I'm out of the official world of dog rescue, if it were my neighbour, I'd probably get someone I know to free him/her and then rehome myself. I couldn't live next door to this and allow it to go on as it would massively affect my mental health. I'd probably break the law to rescue and happily do time for theft as now I'm not tied to a job or work. Saying that, I have never heard of anyone being imprisoned for one single act of theft that has kindness at its heart. Please can you update. You are a wonderful human being for caring so much. Please DM me and I can maybe take up the case for you.

PS: As others have suggested, offering to purchase the dog may have the desired effect, then you can get help from a rescue. I appreciate your complicated history, so respect you may not want to go down this route, so maybe someone else could do this on your behalf?

I’ve put a note through their door this evening - saying we’ve know dogs are hard work and they are busy with their family. We’ve said we can offer the dog long walks, a loving home and a warm bed. We’ve also said it’ll be at no cost to them - we’ll cover everything the dog needs.

I’ve asked them to reply if they are willing to discuss it.

However, based on their past actions, I’m expecting a letter full of hate or a mouthful of abuse. We can take it all - we just want the dog to live its best life, not locked in a kennel for the rest of it.

I’ll keep you all posted - thanks for all your help and advice so far.

Appreciated x

Well done #DoodleSquad. That couldn't have been easy! Was he a puppy or fully grown when he arrived?

I want to place mark to see the outcome. This has made me so sad! Well done OP. Any idea what you’ll do if they refuse?

I guess it’ll be an official report to Environmental Health due to the dog being in its own waste.

No matter what they say they are breaching The Animal Welfare Act 2006:

• Failure to provide a clean, suitable environment.

• Failure to provide exercise, social contact, or freedom from distress.

• Failure to inspect or maintain basic care.

Fingers crossed they do take up the offer.

Please for the love of god, use bolt cutters to release that dog. They clearly have no love or care for him. Set him free so he can get the love and care he so desperately deserves. Poor little thing. Gorgeous too. I feel sad seeing this image. I’d defo be cutting the wire if that and letting it out, screw your neighbours

Looks like a sweet little thing. 😍
Feel so bad for it.
That kennel is a disgrace 😤

This. She may even have gone to stay with a trusted friend until I moved a couple of months later then lived out her life very happily with me.
Seriously I couldn’t live with that. Can you talk to him, offer to buy the dog?

You've approached them in the right way. The letter sounds good and very polite
Poor dog needs a good home and good care.

Is it left out in all weathers?
Left out even when theyre home ?
Do you see thek bringing anything out to it?

The dog warden and nspcc are rubbish by the sounds of it

Oh @Coreiscorewhat a hero ❤️🏆

In my experience the bar seems very high for neglect. Theres a dog near us which barks co stantly, is never walked and just poos in the garden which us full of dog poo. Many neighbours have reported to council and rspa but they don't do anything because dog has water and food and access to outdoor garden.
It's no life for the dog which is clearly distressed and barks all the time.

OP well done!!! You lovely person!

Please keep us updated.

What a cutie. I wonder if a gap in a fence or something could suddenly appear

My boss at the time catnapped a small, neglected and heavily pregnant cat of around 8 months old, belonging to her next door neighbour. She brought her straight to work and I took her home. The neighbours had gone abroad for months while extensive building work was going on and just said to the builders to feed her. The builders were worried as they could see she was pregnant and that she was trying to find a place outside to give birth.
She gave birth a few days later, I found homes for the kittens. I had her all her life, beautiful cat.

Well done @DoodleSquad💐for caring about this poor neglected dog
and doing something about it.
Heartbreaking that its owners are so neglectful.
I do so hope you will get the right outcome and they react positively to your letter.

Whilst I agree it's an absolutely appalling situation, but other than the risking OP being prosecuted (as others have noted if she does just 'liberate' [steal] the dog) there's also the very high chance that this dog has a string of behavioural issues - some of which could manifest in reactivity/aggression to humans. Just simply going along and releasing it from the cage is a terrible idea. There's nothing to say the dog won't run away or lunge at OP if she tries to touch it or even worse. If it's never walked then chances are it's in a significant amount of pain from it's joints - which likely will manifest in aggression (based on experience).

It's utterly disgraceful a dog can be allowed to live in such conditions, and indeed there's a doodle farm near me that has dogs in very similar conditions, but for the reasons listed above all anyone should ever do is raise through the appropriate channels. These charities/relevant contacts are better equipped, better financed and better resourced than most people the street to handle cases of animal neglect.

And from the perspective of the owners, having received OP's letter...do we really think if the dog goes missing they won't put two and two together? Plus they already don't have a particularly good relationship.

OP has two choices: offer to buy the dog (people like this never turn down money, although chances are they'll just get another dog - this sort always do, so it's not actually solving the bigger issue), or continue reporting through appropriate channels.

Do not use bolt cutters, this is criminal damage and can result in a criminal record. If you can get photos and make a compaint to rspca and EH that would be helpful.

RSPCA are shit and do nothing!

Yes, they are.

But OP could be prosecuted - which could have serious impact on her life. Not just a criminal record but potentially a hefty fine and/or time served. If they decided to prosecute her for stealing a pet, that's potentially five years in prison.

And certainly, if they are the sort of people who abuse an animal and OP already has issues with, that will almost certainly make a more serious outcome for OP more likely. These types of people are the worst offenders for pushing the hardest penalty on people like OP (where people think they are being 'good' but the law is not in their favour). Even freeing a dog from a hot car, if it's life is in immediate danger, can result in fines for criminal damage. This would be far more serious than that - theft.

You might not like it, but the law is not in OPs favour.

And then there's the whole host of animal welfare challenges that OP is probably not equipped to effectively manage.