Neighbor's dog

[ShowGirlLola]

I can't take it anymore, my across the street neighbor is beyond irresponsible with his pit bull!!

This dog has gone after 3 people, attacked 1 dog, and has killed many small furry wild animals (including a skunk *gag*). It also tried to kill another neighbor's out door cats.
1 of the people was taking care of it while the owner was at work, one was talking to the first person while he was outside with it (on a leash), and the last was today, the owners next door neighbor was outside on his own lawn and the dog went after him for no reason, the first person he went after grabbed him.
The dog was just being walked past his house, it was a 10lb-er, never caused any problems.

When the pit bull isn't attacking he just lays on the lawn or casually walks around, I have no idea what triggers him with people. All furry animals trigger him.

That's just the stuff I know about for sure, I've also heard a rumor that the dog was part of the reason why his wife left.

Yet the idiot won't put it on a leash and frequently lets very small children pet it! He finally put up a fence around his back yard, but it's only 4ft, the dog could totally jump it. If anything the fence makes me more nervous, I'm afraid he'll leave the dog out there.
He's out front every night now that the weather's nice for at least a little bit, idk about the back yard.

There are 2 children next door to him, 2 in the next house (one is severely autistic), and 2 very small children across the street a few houses down. About 30 kids walk past his house twice every day for the bus stop and there are 2 parks nearby.

I can't handle the stress anymore. I have so much horrible stuff going on in my life I don't need to live in fear every time I go outside, especially when I have Lola with me. I don't take her outside with me if I know that dog is outside.
I felt so bad, one night I was going to take her out to pick up dinner, she had her harness on and we were ready to walk out the door, looked outside and the dog was there. Poor Lola had to stay home and I had to freak out the entire time I was outside.

My family won't let me call the police or animal control because they don't want to make the first person the dog attacked mad (he's good friends with the owner), he lives next door and helps us sometimes.
They insist he'll know who called and that when their friend had animal control called on them they were told who called (I think they just guessed).
My town does have leash laws.

I've already started parking in the driveway instead of on the street, which is really inconvenient.
I'm going to get a big black umbrella and I'm thinking of buying this spray
Amazon.com : SprayShield Animal Deterrent Spray...
If I can convince them to let me call, do you think they'd do anything? I'm trying to figure out what time he's usually outside and take pictures.

[Maximo]

How frustrating! Sounds like a preventable tragedy waiting to happen. What are your leash laws? In our county, dogs can be off leash in an unfenced front yard. They are not in violation until they leave their property, which usually means after an incident has occurred.

I can relate to your frustration. We cannot walk in our once nice neighborhood. We drive every day to places to take the boys walking.

[CouversMom]

That is so frustrating. I would definitely call. Khloe was almost attacked by an off leash dog that came over to my grandparents' driveway and chased her around the cul-de-sac while she screamed for her life. She was lucky that she was fast and ran into the house and hid. He followed her into the house, but was unable to get her. I still think about how lucky we were that night...

It is not worth living in stress. The animal control officers will probably give him a warning and tell him that his dog cannot be off leash like that, but hopefully he will get the idea.

[ShowGirlLola]

*forgot to add* another thing that adds to my fear is I experienced how quickly a dog attack can happen.

Another neighbor has an escape artist beagle, she's friendly but she scared the hell out of me one day. I was carrying Lola into my house and she ran up out of nowhere and jumped on me, she wanted to sniff Lola.
I'm only 5'2 so her nails were in my ribs and I was holding Lola above my head while the owner just stood there saying "she's friendly". That was the first time I met the dog.

At least I know to be aware of the pit bull.

Originally Posted by Maximo

How frustrating! Sounds like a preventable tragedy waiting to happen. What are your leash laws? In our county, dogs can be off leash in an unfenced front yard. They are not in violation until they leave their property, which usually means after an incident has occurred.

I can relate to your frustration. We cannot walk in our once nice neighborhood. We drive every day to places to take the boys walking.

It doesn't look like my state or county has a leash law and my township allows dogs off leash on their own property.

It shall be unlawful for any person owning, keeping, harboring or having the custody or possession of any dog to permit such dog at any time to be in or upon any public street or in or upon any public place or upon the lands of any person without the consent of the owner of such lands or to permit such dog at any time to run at large in the Township unless such dog shall be led by a leash in the hands of a person capable of leading and controlling such dog. Any such dog which shall be in violation of this subsection may be taken into custody and impounded and thereafter redeemed or destroyed in accordance with the procedure set forth in....

So if I call the best case scenario is they'll declare the dog "potentially dangerous" but I don't think there's enough evidence. Most likely the only good calling will do is having a complaint on record in case something else does happen.

How did you find a safe place to take the boys? It's horrible that so many responsible pet owners have to cater to irresponsible owners to keep our dogs safe.

The only places I've found where I can walk Lola are shopping centers. I go to ones with a few stores I can take her in and walk her between them. It's not ideal but better than nothing, and she enjoys greeting people.
I figured it's unlikely people will have dogs in the area and even less likely that they'll be off leash.

Originally Posted by CouversMom

That is so frustrating. I would definitely call. Khloe was almost attacked by an off leash dog that came over to my grandparents' driveway and chased her around the cul-de-sac while she screamed for her life. She was lucky that she was fast and ran into the house and hid. He followed her into the house, but was unable to get her. I still think about how lucky we were that night...

It is not worth living in stress. The animal control officers will probably give him a warning and tell him that his dog cannot be off leash like that, but hopefully he will get the idea.

I remember that thread, that was a horrifying situation, especially because of the way the owners reacted.

[Verbena]

Where are you in NJ? I have to tell you those spray do not always work. Especially with a Pit Bull. It is sad that the people made this dog the way it is.

[matese]

I know the feeling, I have walked my dogs and have had Belgium shepherds brake loose from their owners and come after my dogs, all the tome the owner is saying "she's friendly" mean while I have to babies I am trying to lift off the ground to protect them from this dog, all the time my pups were SCREAMING in fear. Friendly or not, with the reaction of my dogs panic screaming, this could trigger something in the Shepard. Pit Bulls as much as I love the breed, we have them escaping from their homes, they wind up at my house, again, even tho my dogs were inside the house they went into panic mode. I had reported them to animal control, just so it went on file. I fear walking my lil guy, I carry a can of Wasp Spray, it sprays 25 feet, just have to watch which way the wind is blowing. I was under the impression all states have the lease law in place, even if your dog is sitting on your front porch it must be on a leash, this is what I THOUGHT. I would file a complaint with animal control, even if it just goes on file. I know the feeling of fearing taking your dog out, yet fearing a dog will come up behind you. Where is your "quality" of life when you have to fear a simple walk with your dog can turn into your dog being traumatized, or even your self. Any one that owns a pit bull knows they have a bad reputation, you would think that neighbor of yours would take better precaution to prove all pit bulls are not dangerous, and put all his neighbors at ease. So sorry you have to live in such fear. I am extremely cautious when I walk my lil guy and always have my can of wasp spray ready to use if necessary.

[Cherie6446]

I ordered a can of "Muzzle" to carry with me. I have never had to use it thank goodness but I am glad I have it. You might buy some bear spray. That will work - I have seen it stop a bear in it's tracks. It is legal and I would not hesitate to use it if the pity came off his property. I certainly feel for you as I would be in fear of living across from any big aggressive dog.

[lynzy420]

I always get upset when people don't want to get involved and then complain...You can call from your phone dial *67 before you dial (your phone number will be blocked from caller ID) you can say:


I was just walking on such and such street and this dog came after me at this address he was not fenced leashed etc.......A neighbor told me that he bit someone before etc....


You can call SPCA or dog control and ask them to talk to that person about controlling the dog, you are a taxpayer and you have that right.


Or you can just send a "nice" letter to him and invite him over and discuss your concerns...beg, plead etc....


If your neighbors don't want to get involved well, that's a shame.


Or you can tell your husband you've had enough and your manning up and doing the right thing.....




argggggghhhhh.....I feel for ya hon, everyone against you here but YOU need to do the right thing.


Please keep us posted and let us know how it works out.

[ShowGirlLola]

Lynzy,
I have no legal standing. My state and county have no leash laws and my towns only applies to public property. He is not breaking the law by having the dog outside with no leash, it usually does stay on his lawn. I also have no proof that it tried to attack those people or the other dog.
I'm not going to lie and say it went after me, that'll only discredit me.

The first guy the dog went after has told him many times to leash it and he's the one who told us all the things the dog has done. The owner won't listen and if he won't listen to his friend he's not going to listen to someone who looks like they're 16.

My family is my mom and grandmom, not a husband. It would be much easier to go against a husband's wishes. It would also be easier if I had the law on my side.

[Lovetodream88]

I would call or email your animal control and just not give a name or address of who you are or if your the only one who knows certain info don't give that either. I wrote an email to our animal control before we moved about the dog next door he had no food, no water, and no shelter and was being left outside all the time. I am also about to do it again with my friends cousin because she got a Pitt puppy a few months ago let's it outside with no leash, let's it attack her smaller dog, and it has bitten her 1 year old many times. They will at least check shot and vet records which the puppy has none of. If you don't say or doing anything would you be able to live with it if someone else got attacked especially a child?

[ShowGirlLola]

Originally Posted by Verbena

Where are you in NJ? I have to tell you those spray do not always work. Especially with a Pit Bull. It is sad that the people made this dog the way it is.

Thanks, I know the sprays (and the umbrella) don't always work, but I don't know what else I can reasonably do.
I feel bad for the dog too, the owner is defiantly not the type of person who should have a high-needs dog like a pit bull. He works and goes out a lot, his house is tiny, front and back yards are tiny, he never walks the dog, and I rarely see him interact with it when they're out front. I think the dog is mostly a masculine status symbol to him.

Originally Posted by matese

I know the feeling, I have walked my dogs and have had Belgium shepherds brake loose from their owners and come after my dogs, all the tome the owner is saying "she's friendly" mean while I have to babies I am trying to lift off the ground to protect them from this dog, all the time my pups were SCREAMING in fear. Friendly or not, with the reaction of my dogs panic screaming, this could trigger something in the Shepard. Pit Bulls as much as I love the breed, we have them escaping from their homes, they wind up at my house, again, even tho my dogs were inside the house they went into panic mode. I had reported them to animal control, just so it went on file. I fear walking my lil guy, I carry a can of Wasp Spray, it sprays 25 feet, just have to watch which way the wind is blowing. I was under the impression all states have the lease law in place, even if your dog is sitting on your front porch it must be on a leash, this is what I THOUGHT. I would file a complaint with animal control, even if it just goes on file. I know the feeling of fearing taking your dog out, yet fearing a dog will come up behind you. Where is your "quality" of life when you have to fear a simple walk with your dog can turn into your dog being traumatized, or even your self. Any one that owns a pit bull knows they have a bad reputation, you would think that neighbor of yours would take better precaution to prove all pit bulls are not dangerous, and put all his neighbors at ease. So sorry you have to live in such fear. I am extremely cautious when I walk my lil guy and always have my can of wasp spray ready to use if necessary.

I'm sorry you have to leave in fear too, we should be able to enjoy our dogs without having to be paranoid all the time.
I thought all places had laws where dogs had to be on a leash or in a fenced in area too.
I'll look into the wasp spray, thanks for the suggestion.

Originally Posted by Cherie6446

I ordered a can of "Muzzle" to carry with me. I have never had to use it thank goodness but I am glad I have it. You might buy some bear spray. That will work - I have seen it stop a bear in it's tracks. It is legal and I would not hesitate to use it if the pity came off his property. I certainly feel for you as I would be in fear of living across from any big aggressive dog.

I'll look into the can of muzzle and bear spray too, thanks. It's hard to pick a spray product, there are quite a few and I have no idea which works best.

[theporkieyorkie]

I agree with Taylor. An anonymous complaint might help...and at the very least, at least something is on file so when there's an incident in the future, they know it isn't the first one. Animal Control may come out and talk to them and wake them up...although it doesn't sound like it since the dog has several strikes against it and they continue to let it run wild.

I have a can of the pet deterent spray...I assume it's pepper spray. I hope I never have to use it. It will probably get in both my eyes and my dogs eyes as well as the attacking dogs eyes, and it could just make the dog more mad. I am always worried about it accidentally going off too.

I AM thinking about getting one of those super loud canned air horns. I think those might be more effective and more safe to use...along with an umbrella or walking stick etc etc.


I feel for ya with the bad neighbors. I have some of my own. Last year, my neighbors next door didn't live at their house. Instead, they just kept their 2 dogs there and they came over ONCE a day to feed them and let them out, so you know those dogs were pooping and peeing everywhere in that house. They didn't keep any windows open in the sweltering heat of the summer. I am seriously surprised the dogs didn't die of heat stroke.

They moved in at the end of the summer and said the dogs did thousands of dollars worth of damage to the inside of their house. Well, of course they did. They were locked up in there 23 hours and 50 minutes of every day. They said they were going to get them neutered and they'd found a rescue that would take and place them. I was SO excited when the dogs left to find their new loving family....only to find them back at their house a week later They pretty much stay outside all day. They NEVER get walked. If they do let the dogs out of the backyard, they poop in my yard and the owners leave it.


Anyways...so you can imagine how "thrilled" I was to see that they'd gotten a new german shepard mix puppy a week ago. They don't even take care of the dogs they have and now they just brought home another dog...a big powerful breed that needs lots of discipline and attention that they aren't going to give it. Sigh....I just hope it doesn't kill anyone's pets in our neighborhood, as there are lots of small dogs on my block and in our neighborhood in general.

[lynzy420]

If you care to email me the county and address, I will be happy to make some calls. No leash laws, omg everything is against you with absolutely no enforcement. This is a horrible way to live, honestly I can't imagine. If the dog disappeared he'd probably just get another etc...Have you tried befriending this guy?

[yorkietalkjilly]

This sounds like a tragedy waiting to happen. Four foot fences are a joke with a dog like this. They can jump over them sideways from a standing still position - I've seen it happen. Chances are this dog will run off, get stolen to become a fighter or bait dog or get itself run over or worse, will kill a dog or hurt someone badly and will be gone before too much longer with his history and with no more oversight than this one has, together with his owner's cavalier attitude about allowing his dog off-leash freedom out front. All you can do is keep your dogs safe and protected from him - they can come through screens and glass windows - and whoosh open that big black auto-open umbrella if he looks your way and have real protection on your person, ready to use it. I would not become or let my dog become this dog's victim so forewarned is forearmed.

[yorkietalkjilly]

And if you're an activist, you can start to haunt City Hall with petitions to enact leash laws and get enough signatures to get one. If you are not, you might befriend some activists and see if they would take up the cause as it's in everyone's best interest to keep tax-paying citizens, and their pets, happy and safe on their own property or when enjoying the pleasures of their neighborhood, sans the scary off-leash dogs leering at them from a few feet away or, inevitably, dashing right for them.