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Could anyone comment on the effect on property value of a barking dog, or having had to go to the council to complain of one?
Councils won't all have identical policies, but if a complaint is made to mine, lets say about barking dogs ( or rubbish being put out on the wrong day, or loud parties) the standard procedure is to send a letter to every house in the immediate area saying a recurrent problem with whatever it is has been reported and the situation is being monitored.
Even the complainant will get this letter, so everyone's treated the same.
Sometimes the official letter is enough and the unwanted behaviour stops. If it doesn't, the offending person(s) will get a visit from the relevant officer: i.e. the dog warden for barking.
Further monitoring by whoever began the complaint follows, and there are a couple more levels of escalation if the problem persists. For noise, that would include measuring and recording it.
The final step, when all else has failed, would be prosecution, but that's costly, so councils are reluctant to do it. However, if much evidence has been collected, there would be nothing to stop a member of the public taking out a private prosecution.
So, as I said, it's not always a quick process.0 -
moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »
My sympathies OP and hope you manage to resolve it. I get annoyed enough that I've got a similar "antisocial" near me and their dog just barks intermittently and has continued to be allowed to do so (despite my pointing out to them that quite a few houses nearby can hear this besides myself). So very frustrating - even if the barking is infrequent enough that I just resort to saying "Chav" or the like rather loudly in my garden when they let it start up again.
Sorry, but, it seems as though you think it's reasonable to expect that a dog would never bark, if even infrequent barking makes you start calling them rude names?
Dogs do bark sometimes, that's partly why we domesticated them, they are a burglar alarm and general early warning system!0 -
Red-Squirrel wrote: »Dogs do bark sometimes, that's partly why we domesticated them, they are a burglar alarm and general early warning system!
But would they bark all day?0 -
Red-Squirrel wrote: »Sorry, but, it seems as though you think it's reasonable to expect that a dog would never bark, if even infrequent barking makes you start calling them rude names?
Dogs do bark sometimes, that's partly why we domesticated them, they are a burglar alarm and general early warning system!
What I meant was that one might - very occasionally - hear a dog "wwoofing" once or twice and then it stops. The chav neighbour I have lets their dog bark for minutes at a time and it happens several times a week. That isnt "normal behaviour" or acceptable - though, obviously, some people (eg OP) are getting it a sight worse.
But it is still unacceptable behaviour for a dog to be barking for, say, 10 minutes and then maybe start up again some hours later and have another 10 minutes worth.
Part of the problem with intermittent barking is one can't rely on quiet when that is happening. You think, for instance, "Right - I'll have a quiet read of my book". The dog interrupts and barks for some minutes and you give up trying to read and get on reluctantly with something else instead whilst you wait for the barking to stop. You decide it's safe to get back to reading (as the dog has stopped) and then it starts up again and it's "rinse and repeat" and you can't rely on getting on with what you've decided to in your own home.
To me - it's an odd concept to regard having a dog as a living "burglar alarm". All the dogs I've known (including the most closely-known - ie my parents) were never thought of for one second as "burglar alarms". They were pets and part of the family.0 -
I agree gld having a barking dog nextdoors would degrade the price of your room.0
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sevenhills wrote: »Is the dog inside or outside; if its outside you could give it a bone, to keep it quiet for a few minutes.
Try to solve the issue yourself? Calling the RSPCA is good.
Seriously bad idea. What happens if the dog chokes on the bone? Or is made ill by it? By giving the dog a 'treat' you are rewarding the barking, so will probably make it worse!
My dogs both have huge barks, but rarely do - the GSD will woof if a pigeon dares to fly within his airspace, but apart from that they're pretty quiet, so if they do bark at night I always get up to see what's happening as it's really unusual. However, my neighbours' dog which is treated like a baby will yap and howl for up to 4 hours if left! I'm sort of used to it now and the walls are thick so can't hear it over the sound of my tv if I turn it up a little...0 -
moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »What I meant was that one might - very occasionally - hear a dog "wwoofing" once or twice and then it stops. The chav neighbour I have lets their dog bark for minutes at a time and it happens several times a week. That isnt "normal behaviour" or acceptable - though, obviously, some people (eg OP) are getting it a sight worse.
But it is still unacceptable behaviour for a dog to be barking for, say, 10 minutes and then maybe start up again some hours later and have another 10 minutes worth.
Part of the problem with intermittent barking is one can't rely on quiet when that is happening. You think, for instance, "Right - I'll have a quiet read of my book". The dog interrupts and barks for some minutes and you give up trying to read and get on reluctantly with something else instead whilst you wait for the barking to stop. You decide it's safe to get back to reading (as the dog has stopped) and then it starts up again and it's "rinse and repeat" and you can't rely on getting on with what you've decided to in your own home.
To me - it's an odd concept to regard having a dog as a living "burglar alarm". All the dogs I've known (including the most closely-known - ie my parents) were never thought of for one second as "burglar alarms". They were pets and part of the family.
A few minutes barking several times a week?
I'm sorry but I think you have unrealistic expectations if you think that makes them 'chavs' and antisocial, and I think its far more antisocial of you to be shouting' chav' at them over the fence!
Nobody who lives near other people, or roads, or animals, can 'rely on quiet'. The police helicopter was over here late last night, alarms go off, people talk to each other, kids laugh and cry, dogs bark, cars go past, doors slam, emergency vehicles have their sirens on, people play music, or practice musical instruments, my next door neighbour is currently very very poorly and shouts a lot. If you want to be able to 'rely on quiet' you have to go and live somewhere isolated.
Of course dogs are pets first and foremost, but they are also fantastic at warning you if something is awry in your home, and that's not a trait that should be trained out imo.0 -
When I moved, I let out my old house. In the last year before moving out, next door's aging dog had sight issues and would panic and bark endlessly. I was/am on good terms with the neighbour and mentioned the issue and that I was concerned about the barking and the future impact on tenants, and she agreed to do what she could (although there wasn't much she could do). She did then say "well, [the dog] is quite old - she wont go on forever" - which I took exception to - it was as if she was saying that we should just let the dog keep going until it croaks, whenever that may be.
Fortunately, she managed to keep the dog quiet, and the tenants were dog lovers, so it all worked out well.
I often reflect on that comment though. Imagine if I let the property out to a guy who was in a rock band and who liked having a drum kit in the adjoining bedroom, and when she complained to me I said "well, he wont be there forever". :rotfl:0 -
mgarl10024 wrote: »She did then say "well, [the dog] is quite old - she wont go on forever" - which I took exception to - it was as if she was saying that we should just let the dog keep going until it croaks, whenever that may be.
I do think though that we all need to show a bit of understanding and 'live and let live' when we have to exist in close quarters.
A dog that barks a bit more than it used to because its senile and blind is very sad, if that was my neighbour I would just put up with it, I wouldn't be making demands or thinking that I had a right to never hear a dog bark!
When people are wilfully inconsiderate or malicious, that's different, but some stuff is just life and we should be more tolerant. As I said, my poorly next door neighbour shouts a lot now, at all times of day and night. It does disturb me sometimes but what on earth kind of person would I be if I had a problem with it?0 -
Red-Squirrel wrote: »A dog that barks a bit more than it used to because its senile and blind is very sad
I agree. As with everything in life, there is a balance.
This dog went from nothing to constant and late-night barking, so I wanted her to at least try everything she could.
As it happens, with a few small alterations (some curtains and moving the dog bed I think) the dog was much happier and the barking stopped.
I don't have an expectation to never hear a bark. However, if there is a major problem I do have an expectation that the owner will attempt to fix the problem before asking us all to wait for nature to take its course (!).
Just like I suppose, she would expect me to tackle an inconsiderate noisy tenant without shrugging and waiting until the tenant decides to move out of their own volition.0
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