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Dogs In Front Yards


JulesP
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There's a house down the road from me that has 4 (sometimes 5) little dogs in the front yard. Securely fenced, but they go MENTAL whenever someone walks past. To be honest though, it doesn't bother me, and there's a few houses around me with dogs in the front yard, I know where they are, so I know to avoid them if I'm not in the mood to deal with it. If I am, I use them as training tools for my big fear aggressive boy. They've worked wonders! Sometimes, we can walk past the "house of a thousands yaps" on the same side of the road without going over threshold :D I'd probably be a little upset if they put their dogs in the back yard. I was using them!

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It'd be pretty annoying for neighbours if you were in a high-traffic area and the dog was constantly barking at people walking by the house. It may become an issue if the dog becomes a nuisance barker and gets complaints.

If there is the option of keeping the dog in the backyard, obviously that would be preferable, but not everyone has that option.

As long as the dog is well contained and can't get out, there's not much else you can do.

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I think it no-one's business but the person who lives in the house if they keep their dog in the front yard. In a previous house where I had my dog in the front yard my elderly neighbour loved it as my dog would alert them to anyone in the street.

Also I think it makes sense to make the most of all your yard, front and back, for you dog to have the most space.

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it used to be an offense to have a dog rush at another person or dog even if the dog doing the "rushing" was behind a front fence. Maybe it still is.

Well I hope not. There is nothing unusual about a dog running down the driveway barking if someone is there. They are animals with a protective instinct not animated robots.

Out on the street loose & rushing at people is a whole other issue & wrong of course.

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Not only are my dogs contained in my back yard, it's also double gated... but come to my front door and 2 of my dogs will give you a "greeting" that looks pretty unfriendly. I know they aren't likely to bite anyone, but a stranger doesn't know that...

As for dogs in front yards... I'll admit it's a bit offputting to have them going off every time someone passes by... must really nark off their neighbours...

T.

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I think Jules is concerned as some can easily escape their front yards. At least that's my concern, we have one dog near us that scales the fence trying to get at us, that is not appropriate.

It can't be that easy as they haven't managed it yet! Once again trying to scale the fence, if it scaled it you would have been "got to"

My goodness, talk about "deed not breed" apparently dogs that are now contained but displaying inappropriate behaviour are the targets (shakes head in utter disbelief) if the Government launched a policy that any dog barking at a fence when a stranger goes past should be taken out of the public domain and declared dangerous, you'd all be up in arms. Seriously, perspective!

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I think Jules is concerned as some can easily escape their front yards. At least that's my concern, we have one dog near us that scales the fence trying to get at us, that is not appropriate.

It can't be that easy as they haven't managed it yet! Once again trying to scale the fence, if it scaled it you would have been "got to"

My goodness, talk about "deed not breed" apparently dogs that are now contained but displaying inappropriate behaviour are the targets (shakes head in utter disbelief) if the Government launched a policy that any dog barking at a fence when a stranger goes past should be taken out of the public domain and declared dangerous, you'd all be up in arms. Seriously, perspective!

Please don't put words in my mouth. I actually said it isn't something I would report so I dont know why youre getting all excited. All I have said is seeing a dog going crazy and trying to get at me and my dogs is not ideal.

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Dogs in front yards bother me too Jules, more so the ones where the fences are low to medium height and chain link or pickets, something that the dog can see through. I don't have a real issue with dogs behind high, solid front fences. I may get flamed, but that's my opinion, whether it's logical or not :laugh: . I wouldn't report them, but they do bother me when I'm out walking my dog.

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Yeah we get a lot of this where we walk. There is one place with a dog (Ridgie Shepherd x) that goes absolutely mental, owner says it will never come out and it hasn't........yet :laugh:

Then there's the place with the two Spaniels that scare the absolute crap out of me whenever I walk past, I always forgte they;re there , an APBT, and a few SWF's that go nuts too.

I wouldn't do it, I think it gets the dogs too riled up.

As for reporting, personally I probably wouldn't as nothing has actually happened, but if you are really concerned I guess it couldn't hurt?

Nobody is putting words in to your mouth, you said yourself that "if you are really concerned you guessed reporting the dog couldn't hurt" I would suggest that it could hurt, how would you feel if you arrived home only to find that some faceless stranger has deemed that your dog is dangerous and needed council intervention because it barks when they walked by the dogs fence everyday?

If it bothered me, I would walk on the other side of the road, I have a choice in where I was walking, the dog did not have a choice were it is contained.

I am not trying to turn this in to an argument, I just think that surely as dog owners, we of all people should be able to see this behaviour for what it is? A dog, doing what comes naturally from safely behind a fence. :-)

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I'm like you rebelsquest.

It's not the dogs and the barking, each to their own if they want to hear it and put up with it. But when they can get noses and mouths through the fence that's when I start to worry. And being able to see the passing traffic for many dogs would cause a bigger problem than just hearing them going past, particularly those that sit at the fence scanning the street for the next passer by.

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Please don't put words in my mouth. I actually said it isn't something I would report so I dont know why youre getting all excited. All I have said is seeing a dog going crazy and trying to get at me and my dogs is not ideal.

I know what you're saying and I agree with you. It's not that you're going to report the matter, but it can be a bit uncomfortable with a dog or dogs going full bore along the fenceline. But they'd be on their own turf and guarding it as dogs do. Only times it gets more than uncomfortable is when it looks as if the dog could get over the fence . Could be a case for report.... based on question of adequacy of fencing.

Speaking only for myself, we've always had side gates and don't leave our dogs in the front yard. Like we don't want them getting into the habit of barking at the passing parade, we want them secure from visitors (like meter readers) leaving gate open, ane we don't want them stolen.

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I also live on a corner block and the house is in the middle, so there is no front and back yard, just a yard.

My dog doesn't bark at everyone that walks past, far from it. He barks at people who are being loud while walking past, some people and their dogs (but not all dogs) and motorbikes. If the barking ever became excessive, we would put a stop to it because it would annoy us too, but he's generally only out there when we are home anyway.

I do sometimes get frustrated, or get a fright, especially since I believe that dogs barking behind fences was what started my boy's on leash reactivity, but that's my problem to deal with. People are allowed to have their dogs in their front yards doing what dogs do, and some of us don't have a choice. As long as they're contained, I can deal with it.

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I also live on a corner block and the house is in the middle, so there is no front and back yard, just a yard.

Trojka, I pass a house with yard like that when walking the tibbies. Two handsome border collies live there. Fences are very high with no gaps. But there's small gaps under the 2 separate gates.... just enough for the tips of their noses to come thro'

The BCs run along the fenceline barking at the little dogs.... stopping only for nose tips to snort under the gaps. Just my reaction, but it's funny (given that they're well secured). My tibbie girls actually wait for the snorting noses.... & hurry around the corner where the BCs have beaten them to the second gap, trying to snort and bark at the same time. The little dogs are so used to this show & seem to look forward to it. Maybe they're feeling superior that all the rushing & barking & snorting can't get them.

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Yeah we get a lot of this where we walk. There is one place with a dog (Ridgie Shepherd x) that goes absolutely mental, owner says it will never come out and it hasn't........yet :laugh:

Then there's the place with the two Spaniels that scare the absolute crap out of me whenever I walk past, I always forgte they;re there , an APBT, and a few SWF's that go nuts too.

I wouldn't do it, I think it gets the dogs too riled up.

As for reporting, personally I probably wouldn't as nothing has actually happened, but if you are really concerned I guess it couldn't hurt?

Nobody is putting words in to your mouth, you said yourself that "if you are really concerned you guessed reporting the dog couldn't hurt" I would suggest that it could hurt, how would you feel if you arrived home only to find that some faceless stranger has deemed that your dog is dangerous and needed council intervention because it barks when they walked by the dogs fence everyday?

If it bothered me, I would walk on the other side of the road, I have a choice in where I was walking, the dog did not have a choice were it is contained.

I am not trying to turn this in to an argument, I just think that surely as dog owners, we of all people should be able to see this behaviour for what it is? A dog, doing what comes naturally from safely behind a fence. :-)

Could have fooled me......I'll say it again, I WOULD NOT REPORT IT (clear enough?). I agree it's a dog doing what dogs do, never said anything to the contrary.

My comment only meant that If Jules wants to report it because she feels unsafe, that's up to her, and she has the right to do so, none of my business.

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Please don't put words in my mouth. I actually said it isn't something I would report so I dont know why youre getting all excited. All I have said is seeing a dog going crazy and trying to get at me and my dogs is not ideal.

I know what you're saying and I agree with you. It's not that you're going to report the matter, but it can be a bit uncomfortable with a dog or dogs going full bore along the fenceline. But they'd be on their own turf and guarding it as dogs do. Only times it gets more than uncomfortable is when it looks as if the dog could get over the fence . Could be a case for report.... based on question of adequacy of fencing.

Speaking only for myself, we've always had side gates and don't leave our dogs in the front yard. Like we don't want them getting into the habit of barking at the passing parade, we want them secure from visitors (like meter readers) leaving gate open, ane we don't want them stolen.

Thank you mita. That's all I was trying to say.

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I personally think that if they are in their front yard and you don't like their barking walk on the other side of the road. Not everyone has completely non-reactive dogs and lets face it people, dogs do bark. Short of having their voice box removed what do you suggest? I'm so tired of hearing people carry on about dogs and things they do naturally, some more than others. I have seen someone claim a dog tried to attack them and it was a large breed pup who was simply jumping up to try and play. Yes jumping up isn't great but it was a pup and still learning. All this ''I think it would attack me IF it got out' is nonsense. Did it attack you? No!! It's things like this that make me glad I live so far out of town. My dogs bark when strangers come to our house, I want to know when people are here, why would dogs in town behave any differently simply because they're in a smaller yard. Remember they they are dogs and will do what dogs do, regardless of whether you like it or not. Give them a break, everyone seems out to report everyone every chance they get. It's quite interesting reading information from dog behaviour experts about barking and how barking is normal in dogs, the situations we expect them to be in and not bark is not.

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There's one where I walk...a German Shepard who is contained by a measly looking sheep wire type fence, the type that most of mine would easily jump over or barge straight through. It barks aggressively when we walk past, even though we are always on the other side of the road. God help it if it gets out and tries to attack my little one...I will defend my dog any way I can, and then come at the owners like the devil herself lol

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