The neighbor wants to ring my neck…
From: Dr Andrew Jones
Author: Veterinary Secrets Revealed
Website: https://drjonesnaturalpet.com
Re: Neighbor wants to ring my neck…
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Good morning fellow readers..it’s Thursday.
Some days I feel like my work and life is kind of like a soap opera…
Somethings happen which are a little hard to believe.
Like, for instance my irate neighbor next to the clinic.
He purchased a house which backs onto the clinic. But they have had issues about dogs barking, dogs urinating through the fence, and the occasional odour…
BUT…he has gotten extremely irate and unreasonable.
The Animal Shelter has 3 very unsocialized dogs in at the moment, who bark when they see anything.
We have a large fenced area, and that is the only spot we can have these dogs to get some fresh air – they are not yet leash trained.
BUT..they bark.
My unfriendly neighbor has DEMANDED that ALL barking STOP.
He has written threatening emails to the Shelter director.
He has threatened to sue the shelter.
He has verbally yelled and abused my staff.
He has installed a video camera in the back of his property to ‘monitor’
He has called the SPCA.
The yesterday he stopped me in the back alley, and went on a big threatening rant…..using words like “I am ready to get out of this car and do something..”.
Then the big rant ended with ..”you STOP all the barking or else..”
Lovely….and you have a good day too, mr ##%%%% neighbor.
As it sits now, he now has a police file, and there will be some sort of mediation.
But if you do NOT want to hear barking dogs, don’t live next door to a Veterinary Hospital!
Thanks for hearing me rant 🙂
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P.S. Your thoughts and suggestions are more than appreciated on my blog here.
It’s Your Pet…Heal Them At Home!
Best Wishes,
Dr Andrew Jones, DVM
Purchase three citronella bark collars, place on the dogs, send the bill to this neighbor (certified, return receipt) with a note this is your solution to HIS problem and you expect immediate payment for his inability to deal with ‘known circumstances’ when he purchased his property and now, after the fact and purchase, cannot handle. People cannot change situations and environments after signed contracts – that would be like claiming oil rights to land, having signed them away at purchase, once oil is discovered on their property. Same context & concept in the law in most states. See your lawyer (of course), but I’d look into it for sure!
Well, I don’t know the law, but you are an animal facility, always have been, and you were there first. I don’t see how he has a leg to stand on. He chose to move in next to you. What did he expect?
Just one question – who was there first, the shelter or the neighbor? If he was there first, then you’ve got problems and need to find a new location. If you were there first, make sure your lawyer is the best available.
Just a suggestion: Whether or not this fella loses his case against you, I recommend extra security. Slimeballs with a grudge have been known to poison dogs and cats that they found irritating.
Another suggestion: The fence separating his property from the shelter needs to be reinforced so there are no openings. If the fence is chain link, or even wood, I recommend securing impervious panels (metal or plastic). I would also patrol the area to be certain no “suspicious” items are left or thrown there where an animal can get it.
Brennan, The Voice of Experience
I don’t think this guy has a case. When he bought his property, he must have known is was very close to an animal hospital. What did he expect? Frankly, the guy sounds like a nut. However, to be on the safe side, I would keep note of and report any verbal abuse, threats, etc. to the police.
I don’t see how mediation will be helpful in this situation. The dogs aren’t going to stop barking or urinating. That’s what dogs do.
I think your neighbour sounds like the same kind of person who buys a house near an airport, and then complains because the number of flights increase….. did they really think they would go away ?
Hope you are safe legally !
Whilst it would be great if you could find something to complain about regarding the neighbour, that would only antagonise him further… so I suppose mediation is the only answer.
grrrrrrrrrrr
Sandy
Nobody wants to hear barking dogs or smell urine. You say the yard is large? Add another thin line of fencing next to his property to prevent urine from going through and reduce odors. Make sure everyone picks up the yard immediately. Spray odor neutralizers in the yard and on the fence.
Until the three problem dogs are able to listen to their handlers, string up another line of fencing keeping them as far from the neighbor as space allows. To reduce barking, try letting them out one at a time. You can give them non-barking things to do, like finding their food under overturned cups or hiding favorite toys under benches. Perhaps give them a frozen stuffed Kong when they go out. They are barking for a reason and that reason is often stress. Socialize them, distract them, exercise them (elsewhere) and perhaps they will be adoptable.
It sound like the neighbor is hopeless but if he sees everyone at the shelter trying to prevent problems, perhaps after a few weeks you could make an appointment to talk to him one-on-one to ask what else he would like done.
Or perhaps a trade? Does he want something besides the shelter to disappear? Perhaps he has a house cat you could trade veterinary services for his cooperation. Get creative. It sound like the shelter may depend on it.
Actually I feel sorry for this man. He must be a very unhappy, perhaps even lonely person. It’s as if he’s looking for a fight, maybe just to have interaction with people who knows. To move in next to a vet clinic / shelter and not expect barking dogs is like moving to the rain forest and not expecting to get wet!
Perhaps inviting him to tour the facilities and inform him of the work that is being done would be helpful. He might even become interested in being involved in helping to socialize the dogs.
Your **##Neighbor should have known there would be some noise and/or odor when he purchased his place next to YOUR animal clinic. I think it’s HIS problem and if there’s a mediation, your attorney should stress that point. You are doing a wonderful job and shouldn’t be punished for what you do for the animals who come to your clinic. I’m mad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So sorry to hear this. There will be no satisfying this guy! A 6′ wood fence helped me to keep my shephard from barking constantly at my neighbors dog across the street and wearing a rut along the bottom of the fence. Cutting off their line of vision helps alot. There is a fabric that can be woven through chain link fences to achieve the same thing. Be very, very careful here! You might want to monitor your yard too. This type of person may well throw something into the yard to poison the animals! Does he have any pets? (I very much doubt it) – maybe you could offer, if he does, to vet them in return for his putting up with some barking. Personally, I’d be over there playing with them all the time if I backed up to a vet hospital. There is a type of device you can put up in the yard whereby it reacts to any barking at all, but I don’t know if all the dogs need special collars, or if it just emits a noise they dislike at high frequency. I do know you mount it in the yard so it works for multiple dogs.
I’d suggest installing privacy fencing at least along the section that backs up to his house then tell him to wear earplugs while he sleeps and take a flying leap. Thanks for a chance to comment.
PS – the wood fence stops urinating through the fence too. As for odors, the yard needs to be policed alot! I have 4 dogs, so I do mine every other day so they don’t run in anything and track it into the house. There is a product from Canada, Sold in big commercial containers, very expensive, used to deodorize pig farms, etc. I used it one year on my yard because I did not police the yard all winter due to severely deep snow. In the spring, it smelled horrible. You put this liquid in a big garden sprayer and it really did a great job deodorizing the yard, and the grass grew like mad! It is some sort of enzyme used in waste treatment plants, etc. and is totally safe. I can get the name if you want. I comes from Echo Chem in Canada.
People like that drive me nuts! If you don’t like dogs barking, why live next to a clinic? Dogs bark, that’s what they do. You could try playing meditation music in the area where the untrained dogs are in the yard. It might be soothing to all parties involved. Please don’t let this idiot deter the great work you do!
What a jerk. He needs to move on. Maybe the dummy can get ear plugs or you might give him some.
Dear Doctor,
Here’s a good solution. Stockade fence. A nice solid 8-foot high one. Put it along the back of the property, completely cutting off the view to his yard (as well as cutting off any pee thru his fence). It will also act as a bit of a sound barrier, and your poor little dogs will not “see” him, so the barking will be less. A good thing for you is you won’t have to see his grumpy face in the backyard when you or your staff is exercising the dogs. Also, it will keep the dogs safe in case Mr Grumpy Neighbor tries to throw rocks or act on any of his threats.
Good luck!
Karen
You are absolutely right – he never should have chosen to live near a shelter if he can’t stand barking dogs! I have a kennel and had a similarly obnoxious neighbor who did bring us to Court. Fortunately, the judge was a reasonable person who realized that dogs do bark sometimes and the case was thrown out. You might consider putting up one of those high vinyl fences between the shelter and his property, which might act as a sound muffler and prevent any pee from actually going onto his property. He must be a jerk and hopefully reasonable heads will prevail in the long run.
Dear Dr. Jones,
What a knucklehead- a guy who doesn’t like dogs moving next door to a shelter. Brilliant. Since it is a legal shelter, there is reasonable expectation that there will be barking. I would ignore this neighbor and his complaints- the police will tire of his incessant griping.
He will probably move soon enough- I hope so for your sake. There always has to be one in every crowd. Good Luck with this bozo!! Best, Elena Ferrante
My suggestion is to file a complaint about his threats to you. He sounds like a very unstable person and you must have documented proof of his threats in case he follows thru with more dangerous actions.
What kind of an idiot would purchase a house behind a veterinary clinic and not expect barking?
Is this an older neighbor? Does he live alone? Does he have animals? Enlist his help if you can. He may be a “nut case” and there is nothing you can do. On the other hand, he may be very lonely and unfortunately, YOU get the brunt of his frustration, ’cause it is the easiest thing for him to focus on. You will not be able to reason with him in the traditional way. Instead of waiting for more confrontation from him, muster all the guts you have and go to him. Invite him to the clinic,let him watch some of what you do. Share with him the fact that you are also frustrated with the barking and other “unsavory” behaviors that happen with untrained animals. Ask him to verbalize the one “thing” that most irritates him. Ask for his input on ways to deal with it/change it/stop it. If you have a very calm animal ( I would say Lewis is pretty calm after watching the anal gland video!) introduce this man to him and have Lewis around while you are talking. Get to the heart of what is going on first. If he is a jerk, ‘nuf said and you do what you have to do legally to protect yourself/family/employees, your animals and your property. If he isn’t a jerk, but just an person that is unknowledgeable about pet rescue/animal care, you may just find an unexpected source of help for your clinic, right in your own backyard……..never know ’til you extend that olive branch………
Carry around a video camera to “monitor” his behavior.
I don’t understand people,why would you move into a neighborood,if you didn’t like it,I ‘ve run into the same problem,my fix for the problem the general public would’nt like,as far as I;m concerned you can have a much better relationship with an animal,than a human,things got messed up when we were given the ability to think,and we’re supposed to be the intelegent 1’s,I have 9 rescue cats,a 14 year old hybred wolf,with a failing hart,that is very emotional thing for me to deal with,and a girlfriend with a 10year old orange lab,I have had 3 of my pets cremated and plan to have all burried with me {if some human does;nt protest},they were a part of what made me the person I am today,I hope you win ,and wish you all the luck
I’m not sure about the process of leash training a dog….Maybe the dogs can be put on the leash just for a short period and be taken to an area where they can run freely to get their exercise?…maybe you can call in the “Dog Whisperer” or Brad Pattison to train the dogs?…my only frustration with dogs barking is that I think they’re in distress…other than that, it doesn’t bother me at all…if he’s threatening you, the police should be involved and action be taken….this is serious!
ohmigosh!!! what an awful neighbor you have there!!! He should be ashamed of himself for talking ugly and going through the trouble of putting up a camera too!! must be something wrong with his mind for sure!oh,how I love dogs!! they are so innocent….this ugly man should put up privacy fence and keep his mouth shut!!!!or ….MOVE!!!!!! I will pray for him!!!
Hi there,
Well, that pisses me off! He should not have bought a house there if he knew there was a Vet Hospital there right behind him. You were there first and that should have some bearing with the police and mediators. How ridiculous this man is being….but past ridiculous because his threats are un-nerving. People like that need a reality slap!!
Get one of those dog silencers that is handheld – that is what my sister did as the neighbor had a dog that would bark when she wanted to sleep as she gets up at 4am to go to work. She used it and it makes no noise that people can hear and it has trained the dog to stop barking. Go sister!!!
Dear Dr.
So sorry to hear of this man’s trouble. He needs a bit of PEace and Love in Him. I’am a Realtor and He has had disclosures presented to him before he moved in, if he’s an owner? I’m sure the law is on you side because your a VET! Duh Prayer Doe Word!! Irene G
Hi Dr. Jones
My advise is to document each and every episode that you have with this neighbor..including calls to the police SPCA and whome ever he get a hold of including the codes division. My best froiend who lives in a remote portion of the County of San Diego has a neighbor who moved in behind her and placed a modular home on the property (no problem) but immediately after his arrival she got visits from the County on a regular bases due to “complaints” by that neighbor. he had the nerve to shoot her red chow causing a long and painful death during the fires out there in the area and of course she couldn’t substanciate that it WAS him for sure. This is still and on going problem. His house is up for sale and we are praying for it to sell .. But no such luck been on the market for over a year! The guy is impossible. We wish you luck! But document, ducument, document!Lee
I first would have it on file with the athorities the threats made on you and your staff. You sure have whitnesses to all sign. I would put up the highest stockade fence you can purchase with a camera pointing to his property. Write a letter ( a nice one to try to make piece) send it registered, keep copies.He is not rational, he may try to poison the animals. That did happen to me,but I could not prove it. The person died with lung cancer so he got his. Hope this helps.Remember what goes around comes around.
Alright then, I WILL admit that I have been rudely awakened by barking dogs (one thing, in a list of many things). I am a great animal lover, and never hold the animal(s) responsible. I strongly believe that each problem has a perfect solution. I also believe that polite and professional communication is the first pathway one should choose, no matter how rude the other party is.
I have briefly scanned the lengthy list of suggestions by your supporters, I do not know what the laws are there in Canada. Anyway, from citrnella collars to lawyers, to fences… do try to COMMUNICATE with your neighbour. Let him know that you are very much aware of his problem and that you are working on it. Ask him if he perhaps has any suggestions.
At the end of the day, he too is a living creature on this planet. Make him feel worthy in your cause!
Best of luck!
Just wanted to comment,the one who is complaining, should be put in a cage like the animals. and see how he likes that. It takes all kinds to make a world and he is among them. He is a very unhappy person, but, that gives him no right to complain about the dogs barking, as others have said, that is what dogs do. they bark… he needs to move, and bother someone else. which I’am sure he will do. thanks for listening. I will pray for that situation, it is a sad one for sure.
He knew he was moving next to a vet, so he did it with his eyes open. I would think the SPCA would support you legally. This man obviously has ISSUES, and the barking dogs are a convienient outlet for him.
Do what the FFA tells people when they move in
next to an airport. They airport was there first. Time for them to move on.
Or how about hog farm that was there first, they start building a new home division, people buy
new home there knowing the hog farm is there,
and them wants the hog farmer to move out.
People need to check out the area they are
looking to buy in before buying. Go to the
area and set in there car awhile and listen
to see if there is anything they don’t like.
Dr. Jones,
This man has threatened the dogs. Please take this seriously. A friend of mine had an irate neighbor who threatened “to do something” and he poisoned her 3 of her sweet bull mastiffs. Please take this man seriously. Documentation with the police is important. Also, have the clinic set up 24 hour video cameras. I will contribute money towards this myself. Check the backyard area before any dogs are let out to play.
Take him seriously before any innocent dogs get hurt. He will only get minimal punishment if he kills these dogs anyway. Keep us posted and great job.
Make sure you’ve got a good lawyer. Your rights vs. your neighbor’s rights are going to turn on the tightness or looseness of the local zoning ordinances. It is also possible for lower courts to misinterpret ordinances, meaning that you prevail in the long run, but in the short run you suffer defeats and expenses. For instance here’s a case I randomly pulled off the internet that’s similar to your situation, in that someone is living next door who complains of smells, etc. http://lawoftheland.wordpress.com/2008/05/21/animal-rescue-operation-does-not-constitute-%E2%80%9Ckennel%E2%80%9D-under-zoning-ordinance/ Of course you’re a vet, not a rescue operation. I doubt it has anything to do with who was there first, but rather, whether you are correctly zoned. IANAL, go get you a good one.
Make sure the police come knocking on his door each and every time he makes a threat. If he’s semi-rational it should cool his jets and make him think twice about taking the law into his own hands.
Also, aren’t there dog repellent sprays available on the open market? Things you put in your yard that dogs don’t like to be near. Recommend to your neighbor that he spray that stuff on his side of the fence. After all, on his side of the fence it’s his legal right to do so. You annoy him to hell, he’s allowed to annoy you a bit too. It’ll make him feel like he has some control over the situation. The problem is if you leave someone feeling like they have no control for long enough, they’ll lose their rationality and turn violent. At that point they don’t care about the consequences, they care about getting revenge.
As someone who has lost a dog to being poisoned by a neighbor, you need to do somethings to make sure that your property is secure from anything he might attempt to do through or over the fence. I would also install security cameras that have a clear view of the fence and make sure he knows the cameras are there. As others have indicated, you were there first. He knew what was there when he moved in. But that is no consolation when an animal is lost from malicious actions.
Hi Dr. Jones,
Try smoking a peace pipe with your neighbor during mediation. Maybe he will come around and adopt one of the doggies. And on the subject of Mackie…..have you helped your father-in-law buy a junker car yet??…..It would only be for a few months or so, by then the new car wont be so new and Mackie will have full reign again.
Cheers,
Frankie
As we too have lost a family dog & friend to malicious behaviour that finally ended up in poisioning, even though we did put up an 8′ privacy, & we had cameras, you still have to watch the dogs like a hawk when they go out into the back yard to play and go potty. A double fence is a good idea to keep them a little farther away from his side, we did that also, so it was harder for them to throw things over the fence, our dogs never barked – our neighbor just was that type of person, a bully, agressive, just a trouble maker. Yes, you do need to file a police report on EVERY threat this man makes or says against you, your employees, & the dogs & clinic – you must have a “paper trail” so the judge can see what you have done to protect yourself and to prevent anything from happening. You may need to get a “restraining order” against this man so that he can not come onto your property and has to stay so many feet away from it in the front and from you and your employees, etc. He does have the right to go up to his fence line, but NOT to approach it, if you or your employees are out in the back yard first with the dogs, then he would not be able to be near his fence due to the restraining order. I know we had one for our neighbor. If this man does not have any pets, you might see if he wants a cat to keep him company and to calm him down. Let him have the cat for free, if he will work with you regarding the barking dogs. If not, then he just enjoys making trouble. If he does have pets, they must be pretty hyper due to his agreesive nature. Keep up the great work and keep us advised on this one. Our thoughts & prayers are with you.
Wow. People’s behavior never fails to amaze me. In a suburb of Cleveland, where I used to live, a builder sold a lot of nice houses in a new development. It was across the street from an airport that has been there for many years. Do you think that anyone who was looking at the houses took notice of the airport’s existence? I don’t think so! Soon after people began moving in, the airport and police department were inundated with complaints about the noise.
It’s a shame that your neighbor didn’t think about the possibility of there being dogs outside at the veterinary clinic. He probably thought they would all be inside, under anesthesia….if he thought about it at all.
I would go with the vinyl weaving in the chain link fence, and, if you have enough room, maybe some shrubs to further buffer the zone. Maybe setting up a dig box for the dogs, if you have room, would help to keep them occupied, too.
I hope that you are able to work things out, without any problems.
Hi,
I don’t think your neighbor has a leg to stand on in this case either, GEE! what did he expect when he moved in the back of you. he’s stupid! I hope the police ask him to move if he doesn’t like it! or to shut up! Seems to me your neighbor just wants something to bitch about so he picks on you. That’s NOT right!
Hope all turns out well for you!
Have a Good DAY!
One solution that has yet to be added is for YOU to buy his property & either use it as another part of your facility OR rent it out to a “animal lover”… this may be the only solution that would ensure the safety of your “patients”! The cost of lawyers alone would be enough for a down payment.
Perhaps the question is when the neighbor works:
you may be able to build an exercise schedule around his needs. It could also be that some people ENJOY complaining & there is NO PLEASING him regardless WHAT you do (or if he’s suffering ill health or chronic pain, he’s going to be “grumpy”).
By all means mention to him (& the authorities if necessary) that the law is VERY clear on “Uttering Threats” & that there are serious penalties including fines & jail time! By all means consider carrying a small tape recorder to “document” your conversations & check the yard daily for poisons (some people are simply “sick” & it’s not worth risking your patients lives or health over).
I hope this helps, all the best;
Doug M.
I totally agree…if you don’t want to hear dogs bark, then don’t buy a house next to a vet hospital, or SPCA oranimal shelter or…..
Maybe you could ask him if he would like to volunteer to help socialize these guys…(tongue in cheek of course)
Smart idea about the security. There are creeps who will poison animals. We had one neighbor like this. He moved in next to a shelter, he needs earplugs–which you can supply–and see if he wants to volunteer some time at the shelter. He will get to know the animals, and might start to love them. You never know!
I understand. Only our story is more farfetched. My mother has owned undeveloped property for 30 years. Twenty five years ago she built a house on the very back acre for my brother. In 2002, she gave me the front half acre to build on, leaving all the acreage between undeveloped. My brother sold his property last year to some lovely policemen couple and the family.
Two years ago, a man bought a house that butts up the back of my mother’s property. He wants to use it as access to the back of his property so he cleared it and started coming up the side and then through our backyard yard and over part of our septic tank. Mother went to him and told him that he was not to use her property. It was PRIVATE property. We did nothing, except to help my mother drag an old dead tree log and other dead branches across the clearing he made on my mother’s property which would prevent its use.
That has work for a year until he found out that I was my mother’s daughter. My property does not even come close to joining his. He starts harassing me. When our property was surveyed and the septic tank and the well put in there was no additional fire lane marked where the septic tank was placed. He insists that there is a fire lane because his neighbour told him so. I have explained to him several times that his neighbour is wrong. That he can check it out even on line and I will show him how! Then he tried to get the county on to us to clear off our property. The Lord is so good! After receiving the violation code receipt, I spoke to the officer and we both agreed that it was ludicrous. But to make a token response, I am changing where I park one of my cars so that it is not parked in my back driveway.
There are lots of wierdos…
Like the ones moving in near airports and then complaining about the noise??? They have me a bit worried!
I agree with Laura about the security being a good idea, but I would be a bit skiddish about allowing someonelike that near any animal unless he was carefully monitored. I have known people to not only poison dogs next door (threw poisoned meat over the fence to the dogs) or shoot them when no one is looking. I have even seen some sneaky people open a gate and let a dog out on purpose. Some people amaze me with their intolerance and ignorance. Move near a shelter and you will hear barking. Duh! Why does he expect a dog to keep it’s mouth shut when he, as a supposed intelligent human…lol…can’t seem to keep his trap shut? I also agree with others that he doesn’t have a legal leg to stand on and your dogs each have 4. 🙂 I do hope you and your dogs remain safe. Take care and watch your back!
I must admit I’m wondering what crack you guys are smoking, regarding giving this neighbor an animal “as a freebie.” A man who’s hinting that he may poison or shoot your animals is not an animal lover. He doesn’t want an in-home nuisance of his very own, he wants the barking and the urine smell to go away.
Oh, make me want to vomit. The nerve of some people. He is obviously not an animal lover. Please be careful – I agree that he may try and poison or do something very malicious to these pets. There is a special place in h_ _ _ l for people like that. I am sorry – that is just how I feel! God created these creatures just as he did you and I and even mean neighbor. They are to be cared for and respected as such. I am sorry you are having to deal with this. Amanda
I would hope that you and all of your staff are keeping detailed documentation in regards to EVERY interaction with this individual and passing it along to your lawyer at the very least, if warranted to the RCMP for their files given the threatening nature of your experiences,a paper trail is a must, as the situation seems that it could esculate into possible criminal action.
As for the location of his home in regards to your clinic this is something that he should be taking up with the city, as they would have allowed your clinic to be situated where it is with zoning laws.
The man lives in an urban area, yet seems to expect silence, if this is the worst of his troubles he should really consider himself lucky. He could always buy himself a farm, but wait…then he would have to put up with coyotes howling all night, and it is kind of hard to threaten to sue them!
A squeeky wheel looking to make a quick buck. People like that are a dime a dozen, and unfortunately more common than you would like to think. Shame on him!
So your neighbor bought this property knowing that there is an animal clinic and is now complaining about the noise? I wonder why he did not buy a place near a hospital and complains about the noisy ambulances? The best place for him would probably be next to a cemetery…
Try not to talk to him, send him some ear plugs and the phone number of your local police station, so that he can bother them all day long. They will soon be fed up with him. So far you seemed to be very polite to him, which is good. Never go down to his level, you CANNOT discuss with this kind of people. They don’t understand that god gave them only 1 mouth, but 2 ears to make sure they are better in listening to others than speaking themselves…
Dagmar
Hopefully this jerk will move,but I would not put anything past him,unfortunately you will have to be on guard 24/7.Let the police handle it.
As it sits now, he now has a police file, and there
will be some sort of MEDICATION.. <– this is how I first read that part of your email. Hmmm, maybe that is just what your neighbor needs! :))
Send him a pack of ear plugs… as a gift to STOP the dogs barking….
Well I have just finished reading all 50 comments.
I have to agree with the majority who suggest that you document every interaction that you have with this guy. Sadly, he sounds as though he has some kind of mental illness! More fool him for buying property next to your clinic!
We have a dog trainer on Guam that says he can train dogs “not to bark” – I told him I would never have my trained. Their barks tell me how they are feeling, and how close passersby are coming to the house.
Plus when they don’t bark, I know they are not feeling well — a lot of times it’s the first sign I catch.
I hope you can work out a solution – because I agree with others that the safety of your animals and employees (even you) is at risk with a neighbor like this.
My suggestion? Don’t antagonize the guy…don’t talk with him and don’t try to smooth it out.
The guy seems too close to the edge from my experiences and he will use whatEVER you do to
find a reason to retaliate.
Talk with the police and explain that your clinic was there long before the guy moved in and it was HIS choice to move there. If he didn’t realize there was a vet clinic that’s HIS problem!
A nearby farmer had the same problem. He runs a horse and cow farm. The farm behind his property sold out to a developer who built like 25 HOMES.
THEN all the people who moved in complained that
his animals SMELL is coming into their yards.
(He’s IMMACULATELY CLEAN and treats animals very well….but animals don’t use deodorant…duh!)
And we had people move next to a small airport nearby and try to shut it down because the noise and vibration was affecting their time at home.
Again, duh.
Unfortunately, these things often have to go to
court which is ludicrous. If the place existed
(and was designated commercial or farm or whatever) before they bought their property, that’s THEIR problem.
I think the animal shelters would be happy to provide character witnesses for you.
I’m getting to where I can’t STAND people who don’t like animals. They move to the country, then complain of the deer in their yards.
It’s the ANIMALS that ought to be doing the
complaining that this #$@#(*& moved into THEIR
neighborhood. My husband used to scream at the deer and throw rocks at them (never hit them).
I blew a gasket. He complained, they EAT about $200 of our plants and trees every YEAR. I responded that the deer are every bit as beautiful as any plant. Why fight nature?
Just appreciate them for the beauty they provide.
Now he buys “deerproof” plants (which they often eat too LOL) but in winter we’ll have 10-15 on our property and we don’t even have any wooded areas…poor things have no where to go and they
KNOW they will NOT be run off MY property.
When I walk down to get the mail at night, they don’t even run from me…they can be 3-4 ft away and just watch me and I talk to them.
I didn’t expect to live in the country and have it be bugfree and wild animal free
Hi Andrew,
I have the same problem with ONE of my neighbours.I purchased a Pet Safe ultrasonic bark control.It lets out 140db sound only audable to the dogs,within a week they have learnt to play without barking.I was amazed it really did work.Conditioning is the way to go!!
I had a neighbor like that when my ex & I ran a dog kennel. She would call & complain constantly about the dogs barking. We put a barrier to try to pacify her when the dogs were outside, but that didn’t work, her whole complaint was she didn’t want us there at all. I got fed up one day when she called complaining about the barking and told her that I would be accomplishing something if I could get her to quit barking and hung up. Didn’t do much good, but made me feel better.
What a stupid idiot – your neighbor doesn’t connect the dots. What did he expect when he moved next door to an animal clinic and shelter?He should have taken that into consideration before he bought the house. What a control freak!
I have had similar problems with neighbors over dogs. I think the solution is for him to move elsewhere or for you to buy his place. Some people make all the trouble they can, no matter what you do.
I agree with other comments which say that giving him a cat or dog is not the way to go, the way he is. He would just kill it or torture it to get revenge. Also, what kind of example is he setting for his children, if he has any?
I understand as I have had problems with neighbors too. People complain no matter what you do. If the dogs weren’t barking, maybe they would complain about that.
As for odors, some people seem to need everything smelling like roses all the time.
Possibly you ought to try to buy his place and have your readers contribute to a fund for that. Maybe give some deal such as a book they could buy and the proceeds could go toward buying this guy’s property. If he doesn’t want to sell it, well maybe you could get him to change his mind. He doesn’t sound like a very nice guy. You’re basically at his mercy but yet if he had a dog or cat sick, he’d be expecting you to take care of it.
Maybe he needs a rubber room where there would be no sounds or smells at all. Would he be happy with that?
Dr. Jones,
I sympathize with you. Your patients cetainly do not need a neighbor like this one. Are you a small animals only or do you treat large as well? If you don’t, perhaps you should start. It may well be an additional reason for him to relocate, or perhaps you could purchase the property and expand. In any sense, he understood what he was moving into, and not knowing your laws, I would stand to say the law is still on your side.
Hi Dr. Jones…..As a Vet you most likely know if the “anti-barking” devices work or not. What would be the chance of placing a cinder-block fence between the properties? They use them often in housing developments to buffer highway noise. I hate to think of the place looking like a prison but it may take that to keep the critters safe from the nut case. Good luck and I hope you have resolution soon. Keep up the good work.
Take heart & listen to this: Here in NZ there has been an influx of city “folk” buying lifestyle blocks in the country, and then lodging complaints with the council because the farming neighbours (been on the land for generations) make noise when they move the cows, or the sheep, or the cows come in for milking too early (why at 4am??)!!Oh, & the smells… can’t they breed cows that have odourless poop??………(LOL)
RESULT: council threw claims out, and newspapers nationwide ridiculed them!! (move to the country, then complain about the country noises and smells!! they HAVE to be idiots!!!!)
Keep up the good work!
I think they are lucky to have a veterinary clinic and a shelter. Not all towns have a shelter and a veterinary clinic. As for smells, does this neighbor have any smells and make any noise himself? Why I am saying that is because I had a neighbor who had police coming to see me every single time one of my dogs got out just once and went on their property (after they had had their kids going on my land all the time for six years). After I fenced my property and none of my dogs were going in their yard, they kept on driving quads up and down the road allowance in between me and them. Then my dogs would get agitated and run around and bark and they were forever swearing at me and telling the dogs to shut up. This went on for four years. Plus they had their own dog running over to my fence all the time and wouldn’t make any effort to keep him over there. My dogs were quiet if they parked the quads and kept their dog over there. They finally moved. When I used to have all this trouble with my neighbor, I used to try and have my dogs do their running around at night so they would sleep all day. I used to stay up all night with them and try and sleep all day. Anytime I poked my head out the door, I had to listen to swearing, the F word, etc.
I got to the point where I couldn’t stand hearing the F word at all or the sound of a quad. In 2004 it was so bad, I took my dogs farther away on my own property, (I have 97 acres in all and have about 4 acres completely fenced in for the dogs.). I had my dogs clicker trained to stay with me and I was surprised how it worked like a charm. But while I was gone, my neighbor called up the RCMP and had the police snooping in my house while I was gone.
Then after this in summer of 2005, a woman was saying to me that she was driving by my place and was concerned because she didn’t see ‘anything moving.’ That really bugged me because if the dogs were quiet and not running around, that seemed to be what the neighbor wanted.
That is why I think that even if you neutralized all the odors and eliminated all barking, you would still have complaints from him and that the best thing is to get rid of this neighbor. Buy his place.
I have to listen to snowmobiles going by my place in winter and those make a lot of noise and are very loud. Yet the same people would complain about a dog barking.
The neighbor I had was playing music so loud one time it was busting my ear drums and when I asked them to turn it down, he was yelling the F word to me and threatening to do something to me. The same people were always telling me to keep my dogs quiet. They always could tell me what to do but never were able or willing to do it themselves.
The way you describe this neighbor, it sounds like the neighbor I had. I don’t know where they moved to. I am in northeastern Alberta.
The same laws that pretain to a human killing his own kind, should also be enforced when a man deliberatly kills a defenseless animal. I can just imagine how that boy feels.
I belong to a Chihuahua rescue group in British Columbia and have seen alot of horrible things that have been done to animals.
I do hope that some charges will be layed against this hunter, but will not hold my breath