In a desperate measure to cope with my neighbor’s barking dog, one night I…um… Wait a minute. I believe it was sometime around 4am if my foggy memory serves me correctly. Anyway, I took out my frustrations on the keyboard by writing a post on barking dogs and how frustrating it was to be yet again, sleepless in the Springs.
And wow! Was I ever shocked and surprised to learn how many folks out there also struggle with barking dogs AND can’t seem to get much cooperation from their owners!
One good soul even sent me a joke about it all the way from the UK. It went something like this (I took some creative license with this story):
Husband and wife are laying in bed seething at the constant barking noise coming from their neighbor’s dog. It goes on for hours and hours until finally, the wife jumps up and says, “I’ve HAD IT!!” She throws on her robe and flies out of the house headed for the neighbor’s.
A short time later she returns to bed and says to her husband, “There, that should do the trick!” Her husband looks over and says, “Whaddya mean? The dog is still barking. I thought you said you took care of it.”
She said, “I DID take care of it. I moved their dog to OUR back yard. Now let’s see how THEY like it!”
So How Should We Deal with Difficult Dog Owners?
I’d like to hear from the dog owners. What should a sleep deprived, increasingly frustrated neighbor do if they’ve…
- had the polite, direct conversation
- complained to the homeowners association
- reported the situation to Animal Control
- called the Police
- purchased and targeted the Ultimate Bark Control gadget right at the neighbor’s house
- removed the dog owner from their Christmas card list with one fell swoop of the keyboard stroke
- uninvited them from the annual neighborhood picnic
…and all to no avail!
Please send us your comments. We’re dying to hear from you and won’t get a wink of sleep until then! I promise!
Laura, writing from warm, humid and ever-so-green Upstate NY!
I know what its like to be the victim of a barking dog and their irresponsible owners. Back in the 80s I moved next door to people who left Ebony out morning, noon and night. Rain, sleet, snow it didn’t matter The incessant barking practically drove me insane. I would actually dread going to bed. I would get almost asleep and then the barking would start. I would lay there and actually feel my heart pounding. I had 3 small children and worked full time. The neighbors (who incidentally were born again Christians) didn’t care that I had to be up at 5:30 a.m. I tried talking, no actually begging, the neighbors to bring her in to no avail. The homeowner actually told me that Ebony “didn’t like to be confined.” I don’t know how it didn’t bother them. I contacted the police, the dog officer, tried sleeping with a fan on in the wintertime, sleeping on the couch, crying, listening to my heart beating loudly at 4 a.m. When I called City Hall, I was told that it sounded like I had a “personal vendetta” against my neighbor?????????????????I’m on blood pressure medication to this day because of this nightmare. Ebony is now gone. After being hit by a car on more than one occasion she finally died. She was a decent dog, but I can’t say I was sorry. I live in fear every day that another dog will appear tied in the driveway. We haven’t spoken in over 20 years. Why are people so irresponsible? Why torture an animal? How fair is that to be tied out all day, sometimes left to run the streets to fend for herself?
Some people think its funny when I tell the story. Believe me, its not funny when its YOU. There’s nothing worse than sleep deprivation.
Last night it was 4 degrees yet some poor animal a few streets away was outside howling. For this reason, I was currently on line looking for earplugs to have on hand, just in case.
Thanks for letting me vent.
thanks for sharing your experience. i have suffered from irresponsible dog owner’s selfish action. they left the 3 dogs out 24×7. needless to say one of the 3 will bark without cause in the middle of the night. i wrote, talked, called police. nothing seems to work. we live in this house over 19 years. peace and quiet until these people moved in 2 years ago. i hate staying home. can’t move due to market condition. feel so stuck. it’s a relieve to share with others who are in the same situation. thank you.
More barking dog tips from readers:
“If all else fails, wear earplugs! It works for snoring spouses too!”
AND, from an ad posted on Craig’s List (and with permission from the author)
Reply to: sale-842529657@craigslist.org [?]
Date: 2008-09-15, 11:10PM MDT
“No, I’m not a musician but I fancy myself as a patron of the arts. My neighbor’s dog barks…LOUD, furiously, constantly, incessantly and his owner is apparently deaf because he doesn’t notice. I swear if dog barks were worth money this guy would be a billionaire.
I intend to do the following:when the dog barks, I’ll go outside and blow the friggen loud horn. So here’s the deal: I’m figuring that one of two things will happen either the dog will get scared by the noise and shut up, or the barking will escalate and the neighbor will notice the bizarre duet. Either way, it’s going to be fun. I’m REALLY hoping that the owner gets annoyed at my music, because barking is obviously more relaxing than a day at the spa, or getting a rubdown from your cabana boy.
For all you critter lovers out there be advised that I am considering only funny things to do, while the rest of my neighbors are WAY madder than I.
SO… dig through your garage and dig out that dusty trumpet, banged-up bugle or rusty trombone. I may need more than one instrument for this project (my other neighbors may want to get in on this) please provide offers in support of the arts and be a part of prankster history. Help me Obi-Wan, you’re my only hope. Alternatively, if anyone has a bark collar and a sedative blow dart, that might be more effective but not as much fun.
Follow-up: NiteVizun suggested “Just buy one of those cheap air horns in a can, at wal-mart.” My thoughts: What is this wal-mart you speak of?”
Thanks Edith! You’ve got a great point there about the dog wanting to be with the owner vs isolated.
We got another great suggestion from one of MY neighbors, coincidentally! Here’s what he had to say:
“Perhaps there’s strength in numbers. Other neighbors may be asking the same question … what can I do next? Maybe you can assemble a coalition with which to bombard the homeowners association and demand action. Generally they are elected positions excepting one or two being held by the developer. If there are enough folks, generating enough noise (2:00 am phone calls when the dog is barking) just maybe they will do something. If not, can they be recalled, do you have recourse to withhold dues??”
Sadly the dog is not barking at anything but its human idiot companions. Dogs are social creatures. If the human(s) responsible for the dog would simply put the dog on a back porch even, not necessarily in their house, the dog would likely stop barking. All the dog wants is to not be exiled from its ‘pack’. It is trying to get its companion humans to get this message and they are ignoring the dog. People like this should not be allowed to have a dog. There should be a question somewhere in the adoption/acquisition process where they must acknowledge this very important fact about a dog– that the dog needs complete access to wherever the humans have access. Period. This however does not alleviate the barking problem, but this is the reason the dog barks.