Neighbours' dog
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monkeychops
Posts: 172 Forumite
Me and OH moved in May. Next door neighbour has a shih Tzu. Cute little dog, bit yappy but doesn't bother us.
We realised quickly that if the neighbours are there (male, female and 3 sons youngest about 12) the dog is tied up outside. When they go out the dog is indoors.
Most days the dog was put outside at around 8am and not taken in until 10pm, sometimes later. Although not thinking this was great we just thought well the weather is warm so ok.
Anyway because of a close family member's illness we have been away from our house until 2 weeks ago. Of course the weather has turned much colder. The dog is still outside for hours on end.
He has food and water and they leave the shed door open for him to go inside but it is hardly going to be any warmer in there is it? He is tied on a lead and then a piece of rope. It is not very long at all.
So he can't run around the garden. The garden is pretty big and very secure so he wouldn't escape. Most days he has been outside from 8am to around 8pm. The sons play in the garden but not with the dog. I have seen them walk past the dog and totally ignore him. The adults do the same. I have not heard them even speak to the dog.
When they go out they pick the dog up and put him inside. So straight off the rope and picked up. I don't know but I would guess that he is in a crate when indoors.
He seems to get no walks, no interaction etc. This weekend he was in the garden from 8am until 8pm. It was cold and it rained. I think he went into the shed when it rained. Sunday they were out from 9am until 2pm so the dog was indoors. Literally the second they got home I saw the woman carrying the dog and on the rope he went. He was then outside until 7pm.
I feel so sorry for him. What a horrid sad life he has. No walking, no playing, no interaction that I can see or hear (walls are pretty thin so would probably hear if it sounded like they were playing with him in evening).
Now the problem. Do I report to RSPCA knowing they will probably do nothing as dog has food, water and shelter. If they do come out the neighbours will be pretty sure it was us that reported so on a bad footing before even really getting to know them. We have spoken to the male who seems ok but not the woman.
I am becoming obsessed with looking into their garden at him looking so sad and dejected. I speak to him through the hedge. We have 2 dogs and we are always walking them, playing with them, talking to them etc.
I am just getting more and more upset about the poor thing. Any ideas what I should do?
We realised quickly that if the neighbours are there (male, female and 3 sons youngest about 12) the dog is tied up outside. When they go out the dog is indoors.
Most days the dog was put outside at around 8am and not taken in until 10pm, sometimes later. Although not thinking this was great we just thought well the weather is warm so ok.
Anyway because of a close family member's illness we have been away from our house until 2 weeks ago. Of course the weather has turned much colder. The dog is still outside for hours on end.
He has food and water and they leave the shed door open for him to go inside but it is hardly going to be any warmer in there is it? He is tied on a lead and then a piece of rope. It is not very long at all.
So he can't run around the garden. The garden is pretty big and very secure so he wouldn't escape. Most days he has been outside from 8am to around 8pm. The sons play in the garden but not with the dog. I have seen them walk past the dog and totally ignore him. The adults do the same. I have not heard them even speak to the dog.
When they go out they pick the dog up and put him inside. So straight off the rope and picked up. I don't know but I would guess that he is in a crate when indoors.
He seems to get no walks, no interaction etc. This weekend he was in the garden from 8am until 8pm. It was cold and it rained. I think he went into the shed when it rained. Sunday they were out from 9am until 2pm so the dog was indoors. Literally the second they got home I saw the woman carrying the dog and on the rope he went. He was then outside until 7pm.
I feel so sorry for him. What a horrid sad life he has. No walking, no playing, no interaction that I can see or hear (walls are pretty thin so would probably hear if it sounded like they were playing with him in evening).
Now the problem. Do I report to RSPCA knowing they will probably do nothing as dog has food, water and shelter. If they do come out the neighbours will be pretty sure it was us that reported so on a bad footing before even really getting to know them. We have spoken to the male who seems ok but not the woman.
I am becoming obsessed with looking into their garden at him looking so sad and dejected. I speak to him through the hedge. We have 2 dogs and we are always walking them, playing with them, talking to them etc.
I am just getting more and more upset about the poor thing. Any ideas what I should do?
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Comments
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That is sad, poor dog.
The problem with ringing the RSPCA is that they will not see this as neglect as the dog is being fed/water and shelter.
Personally I would try and speak to the neighbour (in a friendly way) and somehow mention the dog and see what is said about it. They may open up and say its too much for them or if they have some other issue. It's worth trying to find out what the problem is, it could be anything.
Once you find out the problem, then maybe you could help with a solution.0 -
While it is sad it’s not regarded as neglect so I would not call the RSPCA. Could you offer to take it for a walk when you are walking your own dogs?0
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And if it is too much for them/kids lost interest in it, then I'd offer to take the dog off thier hands (I realise that may not be practical for you, but hey when did practicality ever get in the way of dog love:o).
I'd probably offer them money if I thought it helped.
Poor dog, it's a rubbish life it has at the minute:(0 -
Why not offer to take the dog out for a walk yourself, it is a good way to get chatty and perhaps later on mention that you have a concern for the animal during the colder days.:grouphug: Threewheeler0
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Yes I think I will have to try and chat more to them and casually mention the dog.
The male told us that it is his girlfriend living in the house and it's her dog. He also said he doesn't live there but he obviously does, not that we care.
I haven't really seen the woman to speak to although my husband has and he said she was a bit off with him and didn't want to talk so maybe not that easy.
Offering to walk him is not straightforward. We try and walk our dogs together as I cannot walk the two on my own. Because of the hours my husband sometimes works I do have to walk the dogs on my own so I have to do 4 walks a day (2 walks each) for at least 45 minutes each. They are biggish dogs and need a lot of exercise. I have some health problems and some days it is a struggle enough for me to walk them. Also one of my dogs doesn't like other dogs so it would not be feasible to walk them together.
I worry too that it looks really rude to suggest we walk their dog. If someone said that to me I would be annoyed. I don't want to annoy or offend her particularly as I don't want to fall out with a neighbour especially so soon after moving there.
We don't really want another dog but if they didn't want him we would take him as long as he got on with our dogs.
I didn't think the RSPCA would be interested. What about dog wardens? Do they only deal with dogs that are a nuisance?
I feel I have to do something as I am getting really upset about him and for him. If they were abusing him by hitting him or similar I would have no hesitation in having words with her and reporting her but as it is not so clearcut I am being more cowardly about it.0 -
I don't think it's cowardly of you at all, it's natural hesitation at how to best approach someone with what is in essence a criticism. You are just trying to find the best way to couch that criticism, so it doesn't sound so bad.
Unfortunately I don't think there is much you can do beyond trying to raise the subject as tactfully as you can.
Dog warden wouldn't be interested either.
TBH, if I knew someone elsewhere that would give it a decent home, I'd have no compunction about nicking it. ( Not suggesting that for you BTW).0 -
We had a similar situation with a dog left out all day every day.
the garden was under three foot high weeds and stank as it was never cleaned.
We contacted Environmental Health who visited and also called in the dog warden.
The garden was cleaned up -20 black bags worth- and the dog was not shut out any more,
Defra have a Code of Practice for the welfare of dogs available online which advises on what is required by the Animal Welfare Act.0 -
Would you mind the dog playing with your dogs? Perhaps you could suggest they play together occasionally, as you've noticed the dog seeming sad. See if anything changes once they know you've seen the dog, then go from there.0
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If your gut instinct is telling you something is off, report it. Better to have the house on the RSPCA etc radar than not knowing at all.#KiamaHouse0
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monkeychops wrote: »Next door neighbour has a shih Tzu.
We realised quickly that if the neighbours are there (male, female and 3 sons youngest about 12) the dog is tied up outside.
Of course the weather has turned much colder. The dog is still outside for hours on end.
He has food and water and they leave the shed door open for him to go inside but it is hardly going to be any warmer in there is it? He is tied on a lead and then a piece of rope. It is not very long at all.That is sad, poor dog.
The problem with ringing the RSPCA is that they will not see this as neglect as the dog is being fed/water and shelter.
The RSPCA leaflet on dogs says - "The RSPCA advises against keeping dogs outside because it can be very difficult to meet their needs. Living in a cold or wet place can cause a dog to suffer and may lead to illness."
monkeychops - you could quote their information back at them if they aren't interested in coming out to check on the dog.0
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