Help! New Neighbors are Pit Bulls!
 

In 6 years Daisy and Teddy have never had a dog living next door until now. Two pit bulls have moved in next door and charge the fence when Daisy and Teddy come outside. Daisy and Teddy charge and run up and down the fence barking like crazy too. I know those two pits could easily jump the fence but so far we have been lucky that the owners 'usually' come out and force them to leave the fence.

After we remove all 4 dogs from the fence, they go about their business in the yard and leave each other alone for several minutes but they keep a careful watch on each other. Sometimes one of the dogs will run and charge and bark some more and it starts all over again. Sometimes the pit bulls will sit at the fence and stare at our babies with growls in their throats (very scary). The fence is only slightly over 3 feet tall.

Even though the owners said they are very friendly dogs, I'm sure if they jumped into our yard our yorkies would try to attack them. I don't even want to think what would happen if they did.

Do you think it would be a good idea to try to socialize them and let them meet so maybe they will not be so aggressive?

Or should be continue to try to train them to leave the other dogs alone?

The new neighbors are very cooperative and I'm sure will go along with whatever we want to do. They have been great neighbors but I just worry about having pit bulls so close.

Any suggestions? Thanks.

Fence
 

get a bigger / taller fence, NEVER trust a pit never, never, :eek:

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

If it were me, no way would I trust those dogs not to jump the fence!
Nor, would I try and have my dogs be friendly with them. It's nice
your new neighbors are friendly but to trust two strange pit bulls with
two Yorkies is asking for trouble, IMO.
A three ft fence is not going to keep those dogs from jumping over it
either. Believe me, Buddy can jump a 32" gate with no problem. I would
be very concerned if I were you. When your pups are in the yard I think
you need to be with them. It's too bad and really stinks that they may
have lost their freedom from running and playing in their own yard.
This would really upset me. No matter how friendly these pit's are
remember they are still dogs and your Yorkies don't stand a chance
if they are attacked by them.

Thank you for reaffirming what I was already thinking. The neighbors told us that they were going to put up a privacy fence as soon as their old house sells and they can afford to do it. We will have to continue to keep them separated until they do.

I think I will sit outside with long leashes on them so when the pits come out they will hopefully learn not to run to the fence for now.

Reading your post REALLY put a scare in me. Thanks, I needed that because I have been 'cautious' up until now, but now I am 'scared' for my babies. I never let them outside without watching them anyway but now I walk all over the yard with them really close to me. I am very sad because it does mean that they have lost the freedom to run and play in their own yard. I take them to the park at least once a day for a walk and that will probably have to be our main exercise for the day. But we will still need to go out in the yard for potty breaks.

If the pits jump the fence (3 ft is nothing in my book) you will not have enought time to react so my advise is not to go into the backyard period.

Can you make an agreement with the neighbors on what time they let out their dogs and what time you let out your dogs.

Legally, you can make your neighbors put up a taller fence. Contact animal control in your county. They will come to your house to access the situation. That happened to me a long time ago, but the problem was the fact that it was my fence. At tje time I didn't have a dog, but one of my neighbors had a pit and a rottie. They had to put up a fence, I think minimum of 6 ft to contain their dogs...within 30 days!!!!

I would Put a a really high Fence Right now!

:thumbup: Without a doubt I would go out yesterday and get a higher fence myself so as to protect my babies. Is there no way you can extend the existing fence with maybe a trellis?
I'm sure your neighbours would understand with them being so nice but if they didn't then tough lol

Trying to extend the height of the existing fence might be the best option for now because my husband's job is moving to another state in about a year and we can't afford the expense of putting up a new fence right now. We are not sure if we are taking the move or not at this point.

There are a few good things that I can tell you though. After dark they always turn on the back light when they let the dogs out so if I see the light on I don't let ours out. The bad news is that they sometimes let their dogs out while we are already out with ours. Then it's chaos.

They also have flexible schedules and work some daytime hours as well as some evenings. This is a little inconvenient though because I never know if they are home or not. If I see that both cars are gone I can feel free to let ours out for awhile. The bad thing is that I have to walk all the way to the back of our yard to see if their cars are home. It's a real pain.

The city I live in welcomes pit bulls and will not do anything about fences, in fact a while back they told us that fences over 3 feet are not allowed in our city. I think that has changed somewhat and you can have privacy fences with some limitations. Our city's view is that it is legal to have any kind of dog here and they are not breaking any laws having pit bulls so we have to learn to live with it.

try to put up a binder a piece of pastic that you weave threw a chainlink fence or attach to a picket fence to make it impossible to see threw (a tarp works to) maybe if they cant see each other they will forget about one another and life will be easier

In my years working at vet offices I've seen quite a few small dogs come in torn up by pit bulls. One case I remember clearly because the dog (a 5lb maltese) was a regular of ours, he boarded frequently and came in weekly for baths... The pit owner was walking his dog on a leash down one side of the street while the maltese was being walked on a leash down the other side of the street. From a distance the pit saw the maltese and immediately charged. By the time the owners got the small dog out of the pit's mouth the poor maltese was in very bad shape and both owners had been bitten several times. Another one I remember that was very similar involved a goldendoodle puppy, that one didnt make it. With both dogs we stitched and stitched and stitched trying to get them closed up.

I wouldn't ever try to introduce them, these little dogs just seem to set something off in these pits. Both of the pits I've just mentioned had good owners that swear the dogs had always been completely gentle, even with children. (got to chit chat with them a bit when they came in to pay the bills $$$$). The owners were horrified at what their dogs had done and very upset about the conditions of the little dogs.

If I were you I would talk to the neighbors and see if they would split the cost for a higher fence or a privacy fence...

~Angela

I wouldn't trust them since they're already charging the fences, etc. That doesn't sound very safe to me. I do think it would be good to try to get them friendly with each other (on leashes) with supervision, just so they know each other. I know at my dad's house, the dogs will bark through the fence at other dogs walking by but once they get to know each other outside of the fence, they're fine, no more barking. But wouldn't trust them in the backyard by themselves! That's a shame.

honestly i think the dogs need to meet i have 4 very tiny dogs no bigger than 3 pounds and are next door neighbor has a very large pit and my dogs would charge the fence and get him worked up and he would start to go crazy the thing was is my dogs can fit through the fence if they try. And the pit can jump a 6 foot fence if he wanted. i put up a smaller fence up along the big fence for my dogs could not go through but i got sick of the barking and it scared me every day. i would schedule a time to let the dogs meet. Put your dogs in a secure cage where they cant put their paws out and stuff. and have the owner or the pit put his dogs on leashes or the other way around whatever works. it will be crazy and scary the first few minuets but it is worth it. after all the excitement of meeting each other is gone they calm down. And now i do not have problems with them barking and charging the fence anymore they get along very well and even if the dog some how jumps the fence or gets out and gets them in the front yard or something since they met a few times im not as worried he is going to kill my dogs he seems to really like them actually. its just the excitement of wanting to meet. your always going to worry about it if you don't try and let them meet it will ease your mind it did mine. because if they do meet with him from like jumping the fence or something without you being right there in a controlled situation it most likely will go bad. yorkies are great at picking fights i really think you should let them meet a few times to calm that anxiety down for you and the dogs. your going to worry about it every day if you dont try and let them meet even if it doesn't go great the first time i would keep trying. they are your neighbors and that dog is not going anywhere. everyday will be a scare if you dont try something.

rent a fence?
 

You could rent a 6 foot chain link fence until they build a taller one or until you decide to move. Maybe they would split the cost of the rental with you. I know there are companies that do this for construction sites etc.
I would also call the city, like someone suggested so you know if they have to indeed put up a taller fence.

Thanks for the suggestions. I don't think those things you weave will work since the fence is old and bent in places. The tarp might be a good idea though.

This is so scary. I guess I have been trusting that those dogs really are nice and won't jump the fence. I know that is not true, they very well could jump. I am sure that the neighbors would be so so sorry if they killed my yorkies but it would be too late then and their sorrow would not matter. I think some pits are very friendly with people and kids but see little dogs as prey and are not so friendly to them.

I think I will bring up the subject of the fence to them and see what they say about it.

I'll have to give it some thought if I will let them meet. I know my babies sometimes make fast unpredictable moves and might cause the other dogs to react in a bad way. Someone tried to introduce Daisy to a pit bull once before and Daisy went nuts and would have none of it. I am a little afraid to try this again.

Yorkie4luv, I didn't know you could rent a fence. That is another idea to check out. Thanks.

Now I am on my soap box
 

Putting your dogs in the back yard to run the fence and "bait" the pits, is crazy. Do you really think you could do anything to save your dogs, and yourself for that matter, if those pits decided today was the day they were going to make their move? Why would you put your babies at risk like that? If your dogs get attacked, some of the blame will be on your shoulders. Ready for that? I bet you are not. I'll bet you would be devastated if anything at all happened to your dogs. Your dogs should not be anywhere close to those pits. Please, put your babies on leash and take them to the other side of the house. Please.

I appreciate that you are putting the fear in me that should have been more natural. I put too much trust in the neighbors that the dogs will not jump the fence or hurt my babies. I guess I thought I could save them but I think in reality we could all be hurt. My yorkies are teapots but I guess the pits would still see them as 'bait' even though they are larger. Thanks for the wake-up call. Yes I would be totally devastated if any harm came to my babies. I would never forgive myself for putting them in danger.

I know I am just repeating what others have said but I would never let my dogs meet with pit bulls or any larger dog. I have had my yorkies charged at by a rottweiler, and twice by Golden Retreivers when I was walking them. The GR actually had Gracie in his mouth before the owner stepped in ( I was walking her and the GR came from behind a car in the driveway)> I also feel that for some reason small dogs can set off bigger dogs. I would stop going into the yard until a secure fence was put up. Especially with 2 yorkies, you could not get both up in time if they did get over to your yard.

I have to disagree with this respectfully, in a way. I think it's good for small dogs to be able to learn how to meet big dogs, and vice versa. I think the reason so many small dogs will bark like crazy at big dogs is because they don't know how to act around them... they need to learn to socialize with dogs of all kinds. Obviously, if it's a dangerous situation, and the dog looks vicious or you know the dog is vicious, never... I'm sorry you've had such crappy situations with big dogs but I've only had 2-3 bigger dogs that have bugged Jackson too much for my liking and had to take him out of the situation. Jackson knows how to handle the larger dogs though so I trust him first and foremost. I feel like 90% of the time, the small dog is the one egging on the big dog, then the big dog gets all the crap which is unfair.

Like in the OP's situation, I wouldn't trust the Pits at all since your dogs are being just as bad as theirs and they're egging each other on. I would never trust that situation at all. I think it's a matter of dog owners learning some dog body langauge and being able to understand the basics. If I see a mouth closed, fixation or direct eye contact, tail erect, that's not good = remove my dog from the situation. Would I let Jackson run around with a pack of 10-20 big dogs? No! When they're running around and playing, they could easily hurt him by total and complete accident. But I allow Jackson to meet as many different kinds of dogs as he can and he's a very social butterfly. A dog could be behind a fence barking and barking at him and he won't give a flying poop. We can walk right by a crazy dog and he keeps walking along with me. Occasionally, I give him a bit of a tug but I owe that all to just being around all kinds of different dogs and socializating. It's not a big deal to him.

Being an parent to a pit bull, English Bulldog, Maltese and a Yorkie I can understand where you are coming from. My dogs all get along with each other. However, I NEVER leave the pit bull unattended. If I am gone, she goes in a crate, if she is outside, I am there with her. Not that I don't trust her cause I do, I just KNOW that if anything charges at her including one of my other dogs she will do what is natural and defend herself. Little dogs have a tendency to charge after bigger dogs and bigger dogs see little dogs as "threats." A lot of it comes from poor socialization on both dogs parts. My pit has been with me since she was 5 weeks old when I rescued her and has grown up in a house with little dogs. She loves to snuggle with the babies but being 63 lbs, we have to watch her closely. Unless you know all of the dogs "triggers" I would not let your dogs go unattended while they are outside. If my neighbors dogs are out, Lola (Pit) is on a leash with me at the other end or she comes inside and we do have a fenced yard. I just won't take any chances of my baby having to be put down for something so I don't let her have any opportunities for anything to happen. This all comes from knowing my dogs and what will and could set them off. I can tell by looking at her if she is uncomfortable in a situation or not.

My advice would be work with the neighbors on a time when your dogs can go out and when theirs can. They sound like they are willing to work with you. Another thing is keep your dogs on a leash while you are outside and they are too. You just don't know how those dogs are raised and what will set them off. Remember clothes and bows on a dog makes the dog look like a toy. Next I would work with your dogs on "charging" the fence with dogs on the other side of it. That is a big NO-NO and could get them in trouble.

Don't let anyone make you feel like you can handle this with training...this is an accident waiting to happen. I have nothing against any breed, but I can tell you right now that my pups are not going to be "meeting" any large breed dog that could kill them with one snatch and a shake. The heck with that nonsense. I have a pit/chow mix on one side of me and trust me there is a very secure fence there....my neighbor and I split the cost. He did not want her over here any more than I did.

Two temporary ideas for now....you could buy some chicken wire (comes in plastic) and some fence posts at Home Depot and put up another fence inside your yard...or at Lowe's they have a nice looking wrought iron looking fence you can put up yourself. Never leave them alone outside of course...but, if one of the pits did jump the first fence, you would have warning before he jumped the second.

Cindy mentioned a schedule. Since your neighbors are friendly and cooperative, that might be the best solution for now.

Do not tempt fate.

I personally would have an issue with someone who had large dogs with a low fence. That is just ridiculous. I don't care what kind of dog it is...it is not safe...for others and for the dog. Any dog will jump a fence if given a chance. He might not even hurt another animal or person; but he could be hit by a car or get lost!

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

You've been given some good advice already and I too believe that a pit bull should never be trusted, your neighbor's pits have already shown aggression by running, barking and growling at your babies when they are out...it's only a matter of time before the right opportunity presents itself. Is there any way you can get a couple of x-pens and attach them together to use for your Yorkies when they go out? You could secure them to the side of your house so they could go out the back door into the x-pens and not the yard. That wouldn't be too expensive and their area would be smaller where you could keep a closer eye on them...then you could let them out in the full yard only when your neighbor's dogs are inside. I would not cover the fence with anything...curiosity of hearing and not seeing could make it worse and they may want to come over the fence at that point.

Please follow your heart on this one and make a decision you can all live with now and not one that your conscience may have to live with later.

Good luck and be safe...

I just want to say a word about socialization of our pups. We have done all we can to socialize our two since we have had them and I think they are pretty well socialized. Since they were little puppies we have taken them everywhere, to the pet stores as often as possible, many pet carnivals and dog events each year (we just went to a pet carnival this past weekend where there were about 300 dogs and they were great socializers). We have at least 3 doggie halloween parties that we plan to attend this month and we go to every year--they do great. The reason I mainly like to attend these events is to keep them socialized.

I walk them in a park every day where they meet old friends as well as new dogs of all sizes and for the most part they are great. They meet an occasional dog at the park that they don't seem to like but that is rare. I walk them at the park all year long and if it is raining or the path has ice on it I will take them to Petsmart and walk them there where they usually meet more dogs.

I think as much as anything they receive a surprise each time the pits (I call them the freight trains) run to the fence and they are reacting to the surprise. There has never been a dog in that yard in the 6 years I have had them so you can imagine that they are startled when the dogs come charging to the fence.

We had a problem with the dog in the yard behind us charging the fence and ours charged it too at first. After a lot of work I got them to calm down and walk away from the fence as soon as they reached the fence. The dog in the other yard continued to charge the entire time mine were in the yard but mine ignored it. But I never could get them to NOT charge at the fence when the other dog initiates the charge.

When I first got them, the first dog they made friends with was a very gentle german shepard that my friend owned. They were the best of friends and when we would go to Petsmart I noticed that they always wanted to run up to the big dogs to make friends and the seemed a little afraid of little dogs. I was a little worried that they would only like big dogs so I made sure that they met a lot of small dogs too. I still make sure that they continue to meet other dogs.

I don't usually dress them in the yard except a rain coat if it is raining. And I will have to put sweaters or coats on them in the winter. That's about it.

I just wanted to mention this because I know it seems like they might not be used to being around other dogs but they are around a lot of other dogs constantly.

There is a driveway on the side where the gate is and that is the side that the pits live on so that won't work. No gate on the other side and only a couple of feet of grassy property on that side. BUT... I can put my little garden fence on two sides of my shed and give them a smaller area away from the other dogs where they are partially blocked from view. If they would happen to jump the fence I could run with them into the shed and close the door. I think that will work for now until we can get something done in the way of a new fence or work out a schedule. As nice as they are, I have my doubts if they would want to work out a schedule and have times when their dogs are not allowed outside. I have been trying to think of how I could even suggest that.