I have a next door neighbour we get on ok taking in parcels and the odd conversation etc. they have a dog who although lovely when they leave the house she constantly barks. I work from home so I hear it all the time and have been trying to ignore it but it’s been getting in my nerves. I have noticed that they’ve got a dog walker in to try and break up the day and give her some exercise but as soon as she’s dropped off she’s barking again.
Today we were talking and I mentioned in passing that the dog has been barking all the time and it’s getting worse. My neighbour instantly got defensive and said there’s nothing for it she has to be rehomed. I feel horrified. I don’t want her to be rehomed and have suggested that I could look after her while I’m at home and take her next door if I go out. That was rejected and he says he’s going to talk to his wife about it.
I’m now feeling like shit about it. I was calm and polite and I don’t like confrontation but it has got to the point where I couldn’t ignore it any longer and I had to say something. So did I do the right thing? Answers on a postcard please…..

Sounds like he doesn’t like the dog either.

No dog owner would react like that! They clearly don’t want the dog

she probably feels bad that she can’t b e with the dog. You are doing her a favour helping to see she’s not cut out for dog ownership.

I’d not worry about it. His dog, he can re-home it if he wants to. Obviously not the best for the dog but then it’s not having a great life being stuck at home alone.

What Jam Bo says too.

You’ve given them the excuse they were looking for to get shot of the dog. Everyone wins – well done.

Hope the dog finds a more caring owner.

I think rehoming it might be the best thing for it anyway. Hopefully it’ll be taken on by someone that is at home most of the day.

Agree, your neighbour is clearly looking for an excuse. Our dog doesn’t bark but even so, if a neighbour offered him company during the day, we’d jump at the chance. I don’t think you’ve done anything wrong, they were looking for an excuse. If the dogs that unloved, I can understand why it’s constantly barking when left alone.

Speculating; the wife has got a dog she wanted and the husband didn’t, you’ve said “sorry but there’s a problem” and he’s gone “fantastic, leverage.”

Frankly, it’s not your problem. You’ve done the right thing in highlighting a neighbourhood issue that a) they probably weren’t aware of and b) the other neighbours probably wanted to flag up and didn’t.

Their action is their call, a reaction of “well, we’ll rehome it then” smacks either of an intentional guilt trip or relief that they wanted to do that anyway.

Moreover, if they wanted to rehome it that quickly, it’s probably better off being rehomed.

Fancy a dog?Perfect for a home worker 😀

divenwob – Member
Fancy a dog?Perfect for a home worker

Of course! That’s perfect. Show it some love and you’ll see a totally different dog.

I wish our n I ghbours would rehome their dog. It’s kept me awake past midnight twice this week. They just leave it alone and scared for hours on end (thunder storms last night sent it batshit mental) and the kids (college age) don’t care and go upstairs and ignore it. The best walk it gets is 100m up the street. It’s a lovely little westie really but it’s untrained and unruly. It doesn’t come me to call and it escaped once into the road. They couldn’t get it back but the dog is as clearly loving a good run round.

I’ve had to have that same conversation twice, and TBH it never really goes down well. One did get re-homed, and I moved not long after the second, so don’t know how it ended.

You did the right thing though. They need to know that their dog has some problems, and any dog owner would/should be concerned.

Sounds like a result.

better for her, better for you, but also remember better for the dog!

It reads like your neighbours already knew about the problem, so others had complained, hence the dog-walker. He’s trying to load some grief onto you. It’s not your problem, especially after your offer of help was rejected.

Why do you think he dog is barking?

Because it’s not happy.

Hopefully it will find a new owner who can look after it properly. You should be pleased abotu that.

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/tameside-dog-owners-mystery-letter-9587873

problem solved.. not sure what the problem is?
I wonder if you could rehome neighbours.

Sounds a reasonably moderate response. I’d have probably poisoned it! 😆