Good thing you aren’t in Pasadena as the debate keeps coming up to ban the breed with their city council. No bad dogs, just bad owners is usually the problem but they haven’t figured that out.

Dogs are loud and occasionally dangerous and don’t belong in cities. I can’t begin to explain how much I dislike the dog who lives across from me that barks loudly and frequently between 7am and 1am. Anything that goes by makes the dog angry and when the dog is angry, it barks and barks and barks. A direct request to the owner pleaing for it to be kept indoors or fitted with a muzzle was ignored and so I listen to the dog continue to snarl and yelp at every car and and garbageman the scuttles by.

It’s awful.

Dogs should stay out in the country where neighbors aren’t so closely packed. It’s like having an uncontrollable brass band playing songs at full volume at random intervals throughout the day, it’s selfish.

That dog barks because it is lonely and thinks its job is to bark, to protect the territory. I would say call Animal Control and report the owner, but that most likely will just result in the dog getting dumped by the lazy ass human for being “too much trouble.” Bad humans are the problem with and cause of “bad” dogs.

While I recognize that the dog is not at fault, I don’t think it would be viable for me to request that all bad dog owners be forced to relocate to the country. People get antsy, for good reason, when you try to dictate where people can and cannot live. Dogs, on the other hand, are not people, so I think I can, without being called a complete monster, request that they be relocated to places where reasonable quiet isn’t considered as important.

The dog is doing what it thinks it should be doing, or what it was trained to do, but that doesn’t make it any less difficult for me to live near it.

@frazgo – there are several cities across the country that have a ban in place and it does nothing to address the real problem of irresponsible owners and breeders.

@rumorsdaily – That is really annoying and I don’t blame you for wanting to banish the offending dog to the country. Some relative quiet isn’t too much to ask for.

It’s possible that the dog has behavioral issues and it’s possible that the owner is unable or unwilling to properly care for the dog. Either way the dog probably needs some attention and training. I too live in an apartment surrounded by other pet owners and while the majority of them are responsible there are a few that have no business having pets but telling people how to care for their pets is like telling them how to raise their kids. I don’t know your neighbor so I’m not sure what you can do short of organizing your neighbors and begging the owner of the dog to take the barking dog to a trainer.

If any readers have suggestions please share.

It’s not about space, it’s about socializing. Dogs are social animals and need to be around other dogs and/or people. Muzzling will not help, it just increases frustration and will make the dog unmanageable. If repeated attepts to talk to your neighbors doesn’t help, call animal control – I believe you can also file a noise complaint with the city. I know that the information can be found on the LAPD website. (It’s a pain to look up from my blackberry or I’d do it for you.)

Barking dogs aren’t always angry – a lot of the time they’re bored or lonely – or idiot Timmy fell in another well (you’d think he’d watch where he was going by now.)

Sadly, this is about irresponsible owner issue. People underestimate the commitment a dog requires, and end up with untrained dogs who are unmanageable, dumping them back into the system to be destroyed, and get another dog and repeat the cycle all over again.

I will say this – responsible dog owners are infuriated by this sort of behavior (same as people who DON’T PICK UP AFTER THEIR DOGS) because it makes it harder on the rest of us.

FWIW, I spent all day with Hootie (the white peke in the photo) and he uttered nary a peep!

rumorsdaily – You remind me of a neighbor that just moved into a duplex on my street. This neighbor left a note on the house across the street and requested they keep their dogs inside and/or muzzled. This happened within the first week they moved into the duplex. Nice first impression right? The funny thing is that the three homes in front of the duplex and the two houses next to the duplex all have dogs living there. They’re all small dogs that bark because they’re pretty territorial little mutts. In addition, the evenings are full of people taking their dogs on strolls. If you are the neighbor that moved into Atwater and left that note than I only wish that you eat shit. Thanks!

Rumorsdaily, I suggest you look up the word “hypocrisy” in the dictionary.

I’m always surprised that people will live in the city and complain about noise – dog or otherwise. I mean, why don’t YOU move out to the country?

The problem Rumorsdaily is describing seem avoidable so lets not kill the messenger who is really only asking that their neighbor be a more responsible pet owner. I’m sure that they don’t realistically expect dogs to head out for the country.

8 track kid: Did you read the same comment thats causing the last few posters’ comments? Thats sure enough a reason to piss off pet owners.

I certainly did read it I am a pet owner and I’m not offended by the comments. The root problem here appears to be an owner who is ill equipped to care for the animal. If my dog was barking at 3 am I’d expect my neighbors to say something about it. Well trained and properly cared for dogs don’t do this. It seems to me that the commenter is only asking that their neighbor be a more responsible pet owner. They don’t say that they hate all dogs or dog owners, and I think that the move dogs to the country remark was probably sarcastic so I didn’t let it bother me.

Of course the point of this post had nothing to do with barking dogs.
Hopefully some readers are taking the time to check out what the Bill Foundation is doing to make sure dogs find good homes.

I’ve had dogs my entire adult life in LA, and never have I had a noise problem with any of them. I don’t think it’s unreasonable for a neighbor to expect quiet. Dogs poop and bark, but owners should be the one dealing with it, not neighbors.

I don’t know rumorsdaily’s situation, but if he was told to “just deal with it” I can understand his frustration.

That said, I do understand the point made that there’s noise in the city, and I agree that a nasty note on your front door is no way to deal with a dog situation. However, in choosing to have a dog, we assume the responsibility to have a well-mannered dog and obey leash laws, scoop our sog’s poop, and and be respectful of neighbors and noise ordinances. If we cannot do those things, then getting a dog might not be a great idea.

Lest anyone think I am unsympathetic to dogs, allow me to point out that I a) own a well-behaved pit bull who does not aggravate my neighbors and b) I am the woman holding the dog in the above photo. And you can find us (and me) at the Centinela Pet Store every other Sunday from 11-3!

“Hopefully some readers are taking the time to check out what the Bill Foundation is doing to make sure dogs find good homes.”

I donated! I wish I could have a dog but it’s just totally unreasonable with my three cats and my miniature sized condo. Someday but until then, I give money.

ehadams – How am I hypocritical? I’d be hypocritical if I were in a loud rock band and expected others to be quiet so that all could enjoy my awesome Jethro Tull covers. In asking that dogs remain quiet, and remaining quiet myself, I think I’m pretty consistent.

There are some noises in cities that are unavoidable — I can’t reasonable ask that cars not drive on streets, or that people not have conversations outside. Some noises, though, are avoidable. Dogs barking loudly and frequently (which, by the way, is the real issue, not dogs in general which was an exaggeration on my part above) is something that is avoidable and I think it’s perfectly acceptable for me to prefer that it not be part of my local environment. In the same way that I might love my loud Jethro Tull, I understand that my neighbors likely don’t and I endeavor to keep any noise that I make as much on my side of the property line as possible, I’d hope that dog owners could do the same.

If you can’t train your dog to remain quiet most of the time, keeping it indoors or on a muzzle seems like a reasonable accommodation to your neighbors.

you are killing me, my heart just broke a little. you and nina are top notch folks with ginormous hearts. i am very glad you got over your fear of dogs.

our 2nd puppy, we got a few months ago was just dropped off in a bin in the parking lot of an animal supply store along with his four other siblings. luckily, they were all put into homes within 5 days.

You and Nina are doing good work for homeless dogs. Thank you.

I do my best with my three dogs, one of whom does bark some at the squirrels in our back yard. It’s not continuous and I do not allow it to occur early in the morning or at night. If only my neighbors had the same courtesy. I hear their two kids screaming at all hours of the day and night.

Ha, maybe should send dogs AND children to the country!

I’d sooner send the kids out to the desert because my dog won’t grow up to resent me.

There was just a story the other day about a pit bull found almost completely starved to death next to a BART station. She’s since gained some weight and the SPCA is trying to place her. They named her Bart and I almost jumped through the TV because I wanted to bring her home with me so badly.

My chow/pit bull mix is the sweetest dog I have ever known. I wish I had more room. I would take every abandoned pit mix at the pound.

(I wouldn’t send my kids to the desert because they would figure out how to find a phone, call me, and complain about the heat. Too much of a hassle.)