Worried about neighbours dog

[TwyfordM]

So my neighbour bought a dog a while back. It’s never been socialised, walked and is crated the majority of the time I’ve been told (although I can’t confirm this is true as I haven’t seen for myself)
It’s a shared garden, so when they take the dog out it understandably point blank refuses to be caught again by them and then they spend ages shouting/chasing dog around the garden.
We’ve had to help in the past when we’ve got fed up after an hour of her screaming at dog, gone out and straight away caught the dog as he’s obviously happy to see anyone else other than her.

Dog is a high energy breed, looks healthy and well fed etc so I can’t see anyone like the RSPCA doing anything because how would they prove the crating constantly etc

She had previous dog PTS for aggression, which I now understand probably wasn’t the dogs fault but the environment. Current one isn’t aggressive but knows no boundaries, so I can’t let my dogs out at the same time because he jumps all over them until mine snap and put him in his place and I have a large dominant (well socialised but doesn’t put up with dogs pushing her around) girl, that I’m concerned will eventually do him some damage if he carries on. Even though that’s what the dog needs, don’t want to be liable for injury as mine would come out on top and be labelled the aggressive one.

Suggestions? We are not particularly friendly due to past disputes, so the well meant advice she won’t listen to ?

 

[gallopingby]

Maybe you need to fence off part of your garden!

 

[SAujla]

I agree about fencing off your yard, if she asks why you have a lot of good reasons and can even say you are doing it for her dogs benefit as yours won't put up with his behaviour much longer. The dog sounds bored out of his mind.

Edited, I didn't know about the rules on a shared garden mentioned by Keith so ignore my idea

 

[Keith_Beef]

You usually cannot fence off a part of a shared garden, because the whole of the garden is supposed to be at the disposal of all those who share it. You could have five flats in a building, all having the use of a 10m by 10m shared garden.

 

[TwyfordM]

You usually cannot fence off a part of a shared garden, because the whole of the garden is supposed to be at the disposal of all those who share it. You could have five flats in a building, all having the use of a 10m by 10m shared garden.

This is the case unfortunately, we’re not allowed to fence off

 

[AmyMay]

This is the case unfortunately, we’re not allowed to fence off

Is the property lease hold?

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Does the neighbour rent their flat? If so, speak to the letting agent about the problems.

 

[TwyfordM]

Does the neighbour rent their flat? If so, speak to the letting agent about the problems.

Its housing society, we have dog contracts as a block so if we raise complaints about other dogs we risk loosing the right to have our own unfortunately.
There’s another dog in the block who is aggressive and they choose to use the front garden (also fenced) off rather than the back to avoid problems and this works well.
My dogs get on well with all the others bar these two, my little ones gobby though so usually only let him out if the others are in to avoid noise complaints as he barks at the others.

Previously we’ve had all the flats dogs sharing and playing together out there, but now we have to be more careful as original dog I was talking about in post has made another neighbours timid dog fear aggressive He’s a sweet dog but he just couldn’t cope with this dog jumping in his face constantly and being cornered eventually snapped.

 

[SusieT]

I'd swap to walking your dogs rather than using the garden. - yes its a pain but always a risk in shared garden that not all dogs will get on. You can't control how she manages her dog so probably better to ignore it hard as that it.

 

[TwyfordM]

My main concern is honestly that dog being locked up 24/7, garden is doable as I just avoid the times he’s out there or take dogs out for a quick walk instead if they are desperate. Doesn’t sit right with me keeping a young high energy dog crated near 24/7. Other aggressive dog while it never gets walked it at least has run of the flat and relatively normal life with their other dog, room to move etc.

Mine get a run around the garden a few times a day and run of the flat and are both low energy dogs, plus walks most days.

 

[FinnishLapphund]

I don't like saying it, but I think it sounds as if your hands are quite tied in this difficult, and sad, situation. Although part of me would want to valiantly try, and help the other dog get a more suitable life, I doubt I would do anything if it means risk losing the right to keep my own bitches. Selfish of me, but that's how it honestly is.

You could perhaps contact the RSPCA, or similar organisation, even though you don't think they'll be able to do anything, just in case if. But if it then, in the worst case scenario, leads to the other owner complaining to the housing society responsible for your contracts about your dogs...

Could you offer to give it some exercise yourself?
Or could you offer to pay a dog walker to take it out regularly?

If it's a No to both those suggestions, sadly I think the only option left is to use ear plugs/put on some music/take your dogs for a walk/do something else from here on when they can't catch their dog in the garden. No matter what, don't help them catch it again.
Hopefully it will lead to them thinking it's not worth the hassle of having the dog any more, and they'll give it to a better home (one could always hope). Or, I hate to say it, perhaps they'll start to treat it so badly that it does become a case the RSPCA can get involved in.

It's not right, but as said, when it comes to potentially risking my bitches, I'm selfish.

 

[TwyfordM]

I don't like saying it, but I think it sounds as if your hands are quite tied in this difficult, and sad, situation. Although part of me would want to valiantly try, and help the other dog get a more suitable life, I doubt I would do anything if it means risk losing the right to keep my own bitches. Selfish of me, but that's how it honestly is.

You could perhaps contact the RSPCA, or similar organisation, even though you don't think they'll be able to do anything, just in case if. But if it then, in the worst case scenario, leads to the other owner complaining to the housing society responsible for your contracts about your dogs...

Could you offer to give it some exercise yourself?
Or could you offer to pay a dog walker to take it out regularly?

If it's a No to both those suggestions, sadly I think it the only option left is to use ear plugs/put on some music/take your dogs for a walk/do something else from here on when they can't catch their dog in the garden. No matter what, don't help them catch it again.
Hopefully it will lead to them thinking it's not worth the hassle of having the dog any more, and they'll give it to a better home (one could always hope). Or, I hate to say it, perhaps they'll start to treat it so badly that it does become a case the RSPCA can get involved in.

It's not right, but as said, when it comes to potentially risking my bitches, I'm selfish.

I did think about offering to walk but I’d struggle to fit it in, and as she’s made several complaints about us in the past that are literally impossible to be true (noise complaints saying we have loud music on in the middle of the night etc when we never even really have music on, up early so usually in bed by 9pm and have a flat between us plus doors at opposite ends of the block so it’s not even physically possible for her to hear)
so I don’t think she would go for it anyway even if we did offer.

I know you’re probably right FL it’s just frustrating knowing the dogs in a bad scenario as I think the over excitement would be a relatively easy thing to train him out of in the right hands. I’ve been holding out hope she will rehome him for a while as she doesn’t seem particularly attached, but yet to happen

 

[Moobli]

Sounds like an impossible situation Poor dog does sound completely bored and frustrated, and that in itself is likely to lead to even more unruly behaviour (or worse) in future. Why do they even have a dog - not a question, just an exasperated statement, as it beggars belief that people get dogs then literally do nothing with them. Nobody is forced to own a dog.
I think other than avoiding the dog when it is out in the shared garden there is very little else you can do. The SSPCA/RSPCA can't legally do anything if the dog has food, shelter, water and obviously gets some (if only a tiny amount of) exercise if it is in the garden every day. I wonder if you could have a friendly word with a dog warden or the relevant animal welfare society to see if they could have a friendly chat with this person about how their dog needs exercise, training, stimulation etc. It is probably a total waste of time, but at least it might make this owner think twice about how they are keeping the poor dog.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I think you just have to accept that what your neighbours do in their own flat is their concern. It certainly doesn't sound like an ideal situation but actually you can't know how much time the dog spends in a crate and if we all tried to persuade everybody else to train/keep their dogs they way we do ourselves, there would be a lot of upset people.
However, if I were you, I would not get involved in trying to catch the dog when neighbour can't. The harder neighbour finds life with the dog, the sooner it will be rehomed.

 

[Parrotperson]

council dog warden? Might call and give some advice?