Neighbour Allows Their Large Dog To Roam The Streets - Advice Needed&#

[sundays-child]

Hi everyone,

I was hoping someone might know the rules on dog fencing. We have an undesirable neighbour who owns what looks to be a mastiff x staffy (a hopeless guess as it's a real mix). He allows this dog to roam the streets on a daily basis. The dog is constantly in our front yard chasing my elderly cat and barking at my Cocker Spaniel who has his afternoon play in the backyard (thankfully behind a fence, albeit one that the neighbours dog can easily jump) The dog would be no more than 8 months old but it is incredibly stupid and won't be shooed away. I have tried clapping and shouting at it and have now had to put the hose on it. We have rung the council on numerous occassions and yet nothing is done about this neighbour.

Two weeks ago the dog came running across the road from the neighbours house to our front yard. Following the dog was a tiny little puppy and I mean tiny - no older than 10 weeks. They were both in the middle of the road and when the puppy saw us she came running across the road right up to our front door. I got the puppy inside so as to not allow it back on the road (people tend to do 70 on our street and we are on a corner) We rang the council and the ranger wasn't able to come and collect the puppy for 5 hours. I fed her, toileted her, played with her and sat with her while she napped. I even deflead her as she was itching like crazy. I had to keep my dog away from her as he is 7 months and quite exuberant and I felt he might accidently hurt her. They were both incredible sooks so as you can imagine the whinging from both was unbearable. I had to go from room to room for 5 hours calming each down. Anyway, the ranger finally showed and took the pup away. There was no way I was going to go to this neighbours house as the big dog was always patrolling their driveway and the owner is a thug.

I felt the 5 hours of disturbance in my house was worthwhile as I secretely hoped they would either fine the owner and enforce better living conditions for the dogs or even better place the puppy in a better home.

To my horror the next week there is the big dog again roaming the streets with this tiny puppy in toe. My elderly neighbour next door rang the council this time as the big dog had growled at her friend who had a small maltese with her. So, along comes the ranger once again and gets the puppy into the truck but spends 3 hours trying to get the bigger dog. No such luck. Then the owner shows up. A 20 something year old pig who hoons up in his ute and says "Where's me dog" (quote) He was told by the ranger that the puppy was in the truck. He simply grunts and says "yeah well where's the big one" Lovely, the dog doesn't even have a name.

Of course he simply received a slap on the wrist and the dogs were surrendered over to him.

This however is an ongoing sarga with the larger dog roaming the streets, chasing my cat, barking at my dog on a daily basis. Today, Good Friday the dog was in my yard doing the usual and there I am 6:30 at night, in my pjs putting the hose on it and yelling like a loony in the vain hope it might go away. The dog was here yesterday, the day before and no doubt will be tomorrow. I have rung the council over and over again. Each time they ask for the same details and nothing is done about this guy.

Obviously this owner has no fencing for these dogs and allows them to roam free - even a 10 week old puppy. They are no doubt un-registered, un-dexed, un-vaccinated and unloved. Why is he allowed to continue this? The dogs are very thin and sadly I think they come here to eat the cat food I put out during the day for my elderly kitty. I feel sorry for them and would feed them but can't risk my cat and dogs life. It's a big dog and he's unpredictable.

It is incredibly frustrating as my pets are put at risk. Why is it that I spend huge amounts registering, desexing, vaccinating, fencing and doing the right thing by my pets and creeps like him get away with neglect. Shameful.

Any ideas what to do? Are there any fencing laws for dogs?

The best possible outcome would be that the dog and the puppy (and any other dogs they have) be removed from the household and placed in good homes. Wishful thinking.

Appreciate any help

Thank you

[percyk]

ring council

dont wait for anything to happen

[Bully]

Keep ringing the council Even put it in writing - that usually gets something done. Good luck ;)

[persephone]

Get pics of the dogs - and keep contacting council.

[dancinbcs]

Advise the council that you will ring them at least twice a day to report these dogs until they ensure that the owners keeps them in. They will do whatever it takes to stop you calling because every time you call they have to fill out reports.

I had to do this once and when the council told me that the owner was unable to keep the dog in, I replied that if they fined the owner enough they would work it out. After a few weeks of constant calls to council the dog was never seen again. I still have no idea if it was kept in or they got rid of it. Either way I didn't care, so long as it was gone from the street, it was terrorising.

[sundays-child]

Thanks all,

I will keep ringing them and hopefully something will come of it. If not I'll have a letter from my lawyer drafted as we have already had a pack of dogs attack my cat. This is always in the back of my mind and any off leash dog is a threat.

Appreciate the help

[Dogsfevr]

I would also consider heading down to the local police station ,but yes council hound them.

Look at your local councils website regarding the dog laws & keep on top of them

[Adnil444]

Hi, what a horrible situation to be in. Yes keep rining, emailing, writing to the council and the police. Eventually something will be done - we had a similar situation with a dog in our street - roaming, pooing in everyone's yards, growling at people walking along the street etc, the owners didn't have proper fencing. After quite a few calls from myself and others in the street, the house now has dog-proof fencing and we never see that dog again. The owner sounds like a moron and should not be allowed to have a dog. Good luck.

[Dame Aussie]

Yeah, I'd start calling the council every half hour, and I mean literally, just keep calling and calling and calling until they do something, you could also call the police and ask them to come out with the ranger as you fear for your and your neighbours safety.

[Jed]

Keep a note of how often and when you have rung the council, also keep a note of when and how often the dog was out. Then write a letter yourself, to the council CEO, giving him those details. Also CC the letter to your local councillor. In both letters, quote the section of the bylaws which refer to roaming dogs.

Hounding them can work too.

Cattle from behind my property were coming through my property and getting on to the road, over a period of years. They broke all my fences. I would phone the council from time to time, and something would be done then, but the problem kept occuring.

The people up the road were getting married, they had the garden looking gorgeous, and along came the cattle (about 8) late one Saturday, and ran all over the lawns. The bloke up the road phoned the council every 1./2 hour until someone came. He herded the cattle to the end of a street (dead end). Herdsman came out, couldn't catch the cattle, chased them back to where they lived.

They were back the next day. Bloke up the road phoned every half hour until someone came out. Same story as the day before. He continued to phone them every half hour until something permanent happened.

Finally, 3 herdsmen came out, ascertained where the cattle were from, went to see the owner, and made him either fence or surrender the cattle.

Problem which had been going on for years was finally sorted.I don't have time to phone every 1/2 hour, but it worked!!

You obey the laws, it is the council's job to ensure everyone else does too.

[sundays-child]

The ranger advised me that the owner is "well known" by the council so he's obviously got a record for this type of thing. I have already encountered problems with him in the past when he thought it would be amusing to ride his quad bike into my driveway to scare my cat. I wish I put the hose on him now! Ho hum, there's one in every street.

I recently saw an intact male staffy run up their driveway. I have a feeling they might be backyard breeding. He's a real pig and the wife isn't much better. It is obvious from the dogs lack of reaction to my trying to shoo him away that he has next to no human contact. Very sad. The best outcome is that the dogs are taken away and because they are both young they should be easily re-homed. Not to mention that he deserves a huge fine for the complete hassle he has caused my neighbours and I. Surely if they continue to fine him he will hand over the dogs or fix the fencing issue. The problem is they aren't likely to fine him on my heresay. I doubt the dogs are registered so perhaps they could fine him for that. I wrote a letter to the ranger today expressing my frustration with this on-going saga. I assume that unless they come out and collect the dog at the time of the occurence a fine isn't warranted.

I no longer walk my dog because of all the strays and roamers in the area. Unfortunately because it's a regional area I think the council tends to be a bit more relaxed about the strays. I checked the Wingecarribee shire council website and there's nothing about fencing rules or fines. I'll keep up the emails and phone calls and see what happens. Fingers crossed.

Thanks everyone

[Gretel]

Oh I do feel for you having such feral neighbours! I really hope something is done to stop them letting the dogs roam or maybe they'll decide the dogs are too much hassle and give them up. Some people really should not have animals

[Whippetsmum]

Our council picks up dogs from all over Sydney. I checked their website for after hours animal problems, & as it's out of hours (on weekends and public holidays), you ring the local police who ask council to impound the animals. Obvipusly I wouldn't call the police lightly, eg: not if it was just a stray, but deifinately for an aggressive or otherwise a dangerous. Just call the local station, tell them that the dog is aggressive to your animals or however you would like to present this, and hopefully they'll try and come out. I would also explain that the big dog is a traffic hazard, as if someone swerves to avoid him the car might end up in your yard.

Good luck

Edited April 3, 2010 by Whippetsmum

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

If I had neighbours like this, and a cat that I let wander about outside, the first thing I'd do is keep the cat indoors.

Ringing the council to report the dogs at large should work over time. In the meantime, keep your own animals safe, inside your property, and keep doing the right thing. Council will either get sick of coming out to attend to these dogs, or the owner of the dogs will get rid of them...if you're lucky. If not, the neighbour might try to retaliate somehow. Be careful. ;)

[poodlemum]

If I had neighbours like this, and a cat that I let wander about outside, the first thing I'd do is keep the cat indoors.

Ringing the council to report the dogs at large should work over time. In the meantime, keep your own animals safe, inside your property, and keep doing the right thing. Council will either get sick of coming out to attend to these dogs, or the owner of the dogs will get rid of them...if you're lucky. If not, the neighbour might try to retaliate somehow. Be careful.

That's what I would worry about, too - especially from your description of said neighboour.

[sallyandtex]

I can't beleive how slack your council is!

Like the others say., ring and hassal them, plus the police. Maybe the RSPCA could help regarding the pup. I thought it was ILLEGAL to do this to dogs??

In the meantime, the hose should work wonders. We have a weimerana who runs around in our street, and a quick hose sends him off when he has come into our driveway.

GOOD LUCK!

[sundays-child]

Well just a follow up for all interested. After Good Friday's exhausting day of trying to get the neighbours dog out of our yard we had him back on our property yesterday. This time along with the 10 week old puppy. There they were having a good time eating all my cats food on my doorstep. I panicked not being able to see my cat but thankfully she was hiding under my car. I was on my own and couldn't get out the door as they had me bailed up inside. I grabbed the broom, opened the door and pushed it at the big dog just to have him growl at me and take off across the road with the entire cat feeder!!! If I wasn't so frightened I would have laughed.

The little puppy stayed on the doorstep to pick up all of the left over kitty biscuits. I quickly grabbed her and brought her inside to ring the council - furiously mind you. They told me that a ranger might not get out here as they had other jobs. I told her that this took major priority over anything else as this is ongoing and not to be sneezed at. About 15 minutes later the ranger shows and starts taking photos of the big dog still roaming around outside the neighbours property and going into other people's yards. We spoke about what would be done about this and apparently there is nothing the council can do. They aren't able to confiscate the dogs - which is disgraceful given the neglect they are receiving. The ranger was unable to capture the large dog and told me that if he went and once again spoke to the owner he would have to give over the puppy. I decided it was best that the puppy be taken back to the pound. I hoped the owners might not think it worth the drive and minimal fine and she might end up rehomed. Of course, the ranger left this brute of a dog roaming the streets just to have it come back to my yard again and again throughout the afternoon. A few hours later the lovely neighbours drive into their driveway followed by their big dog. They must have realised their puppy missing and began to search the streets. I felt so angry I was going to go out and give them a mouth full but decided it wasn't worth it given I have a dog of my own who likes to play outside in the afternoon - you just can't trust these people.

Anyway, the lovely wife starts knocking on people's doors and I see one of my other neighbours point towards my house. He must have seen me put the hose on the bigger dog and grab the puppy. Gee thanks! She comes over and asks if I'd seen a staffy pup. I told her I had and that the ranger had come to collect her. I decided to play it smart and asked her if she owned the big brindle dog. She said she did and I told her that the dog was giving me a lot of trouble, stealing my cat food, chasing the cat, barking at my dog. It turns out she knows all about his antics and whilst apologetic isn't able to keep him secured in their yard. The puppy belonged to her Mother who lived in Cootamundra, a considerable distance as you can imagine and was very unhappy to find that the puppy was at the pound (for a second time). Apparently the daughter had been minding the puppy whilst her Mother was in hospital and she had now returned to pick her up. Not my problem! The good news is, the puppy is being taken back home to Cootamundra and the big dog is being returned to the breeder (breeder of what I have no idea) as quote from the owner "he's a dangerous dog and we can't control him so we're giving him back" Well thank God for that but here we are the following day and guess where the dog is. Roaming the streets again and standing in the rain. Ho hum. If he isn't gone by next week which is when she promised to return him to the breeder I might track down this breeder myself and ask them to come and collect him.

I would have to say I am more furious with the council than the owners. They have allowed this dog to terrorise us for weeks and on seeing the dog in my yard with their bare eyes, they left him here for us to deal with. Unbelieveable.

I will be writing the council a letter but you just can't change city hall.

Fingers crossed the dog is gone within the week.

Hope everyone had a better holiday than I did! I wonder if I'll ever see that cat feeder again

[frufru]

OMG - what council area do you live in so that I cross it off my list of possible places to live. It is outrageous that you were bailed up in your own home.

[sundays-child]

Hi Frufru, we live in the Southern Highlands (Mittagong/Bowral area) The council is Wingecarribee.

Mind you I read on my Cockers registration papers that unregistered dogs can incurr fines up to $2,000. My dog is an indoor dog, fully vaccinated, microchipped, registered and spoilt rotten. If I didn't register him by 6 months they'd hit me with a fine. My vet told me they couldn't desex him until he was a year old as his testes hadn't dropped properly yet. I had to pay the undesexed registration cost to avoid fines. Funny world.

[poodlemum]

Hi Frufru, we live in the Southern Highlands (Mittagong/Bowral area) The council is Wingecarribee.

Mind you I read on my Cockers registration papers that unregistered dogs can incurr fines up to $2,000. My dog is an indoor dog, fully vaccinated, microchipped, registered and spoilt rotten. If I didn't register him by 6 months they'd hit me with a fine. My vet told me they couldn't desex him until he was a year old as his testes hadn't dropped properly yet. I had to pay the undesexed registration cost to avoid fines. Funny world.

It always seems to be that way nowadays - the law-abiding people get hit with the large fees, whereas people who have no respect for the regulations don't suffer. I can't understand why people like these have a dog at all, when they obviously don't care about it.

Do you know who your local council memebr/representative is - try hassling him/her to get the Council to act on this - not impounding roaming, possibly dangerous dogs is just CR*P!!