Long vent post, so forewarned...

I got a knock on the door half hour ago, by a cop.
He asked where my dog was, inside, I responded. She is a 2-year old Jack Russell (looks just like WishBone from TV with markings and all) about 15" tall, and quite liked by most neighbors, (we and our kids walk her around neighborhood).
Well, a month ago a lady bought the for sale house next door. We went over to introduce ourselves to her, and she was not receptive, so we backed off, give her time. Mind you, this is a good neighborhood, about 20 years old (1700 sq ft to 2200 sq. ft homes) with concrete streets with curbing, underground electric and utilities, and lamp posts. Lots of 30 to 40 year old with kids basically. And a public elementary school 2 block away.
Within a week she called the cops on guy behind her for listening to his radio while gardening in broad daylight twice.
Some other neighbors kids have said that she has called police on them for being to noisy playing and trespessed on the utility easement outside her fence in the back yard.
So, anyway, our dog apparently jumps our fence and runs accross her yard, and she has an older much biggeer dog which gets excited, and she worries that it might die or something.

Anyway, she has apparently already called earlier in the month and complained, and we were not contacted.
Now she wants to file doggie trespassing against us. Apparently there is a leash law and possible $120 fine if guilty.
Cop thinks this lady is batty, about 50 years old, no husband, hell no wife either or kids, and for that matter, has not had a f'ng visitor except the painter and exterminators.

I gotta sell my other house to use to finish renovations on this one, and now will include a 6' privacy fence in leau of our now 4' chain link one that my dog can jump.

She could learn to not be so bothered by the dog, since the dog never was aggressive to her. Also, never did any damage to her prop, or ever threatened her in any way or her big dog.

Cop said that she will have to file in the morn, and even if she does, she won't necesarly win. Judge will listen to both and decide if we are making efforts to restrain our dog charges will be dropped with just a warning. He even suggested to her to come and talk to us and even try making freinds with the dog. She said dog is friendly, but thats not the point.

I work, my wife is home all day, but she has Lupus, and is 100% disabled so stays inside mostly, saves her energy to play with kids. And when outside, she is a talker, with other neighbors which understand how difficult it is with a disability.

Anyway, one of the larger and nicer houses is across the street, inbetween ours and this so called lady.
They invited me and family over for barbecue and beer cookout this weekend. I wonder how much fun that will be, thier patio deck wraps around side of the house and the grill is in view of her house.

The lady said this has happened four friggen time for as much as 15 minutes, and each f'ng time, I was aware dog was out, and was calling dog to come back. Her long journeys when escaping are usually just 5 minutes and run around in just the front four yards.

Arrrgh!

This lady complaining is one of those home health care workers that go to other people houses to assist the elderly.
I can imagine she is real compassionate, and I hope they don't have animals.

Now how to continue being neighborly.
Good thing we have large lots, about 110' x 130' deep and the houses are situated about 40 to 50' apart.

She needs a Man in her life to use up all that meddling energy or something, or maybe its a woman she needs.

Any suggestions.

With this county being so politically divided, I know she gotta be voting some other way than I am, whichever way it is.

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<font color=red> And the sign says "You got to have a membership card to get inside" Huh
So I got me a pen and paper And I made up my own little sign </font color=red>

Yea, this sux, My wife has tried, I intro myself to her and told her to come over and ask if she needs any help.
I help the other neighbors, usually just drinking beer while looking like we are waxing boats, or working on cars.
She lives inbetween us and my wife good friend who also has Lupus and is disable in a elec chair.
A time or two a week, they will decide to roll to one or the other house to sit on porch and chat for an hour.
My buddy is across the street and I go over there to see if there are any beers he needs drunk before they expire. That is quite a friend, It would truely be a blo to my status, if I let him drink stale beer.

So we will be watching here from all four sides, she actually has problems with everbody.

What I gotta find is a way out with out letting reactions get out of control and yelling "biatch, I say you walk across a corner of my turf. 911 thats trespassing, and your going down. Also, the dog catcher is the mother of our previous neighbors and likes us alot. Its cus were so focking freindly. And another of wifes dear friend is an attorny, we hang with cops at her house parting with these same officers.

I am a GeoMatician running a small business in town, and I know supervisors and mayor, since I submit reports to them for rezoning and development a time or two a week.

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<font color=red> And the sign says "You got to have a membership card to get inside" Huh
So I got me a pen and paper And I made up my own little sign </font color=red>

Population (July 2002): 17,003
On the Gulf Coast with Casinos and new money around town.
But our town refused casinoes, shot it down 4 times never to come back.
Ever other city has casino operations, just not this small one within the other ones that support it.
Long Beach is considered a bedroom community, with not much commercial development. Like a big subdivision that became a city.
I agreed, this is a communitiy town, freindly know everybody who is somebody.
You grow up with them, and some get respected, and this shiat dont happen to them.

There was a post earlier today, woman = evil

Maybe I can call her employer when she is working, and complain on her dog barking and casually mention that I need to file a complaint here since she files complaints to her neighbors which are good people for lame reasons. She wont communicate, even with the cop. I would be willing to bet that they cant stand her at work. And would love an excuse to fire her.
Then, maybe she would move back to Texas where she came from.

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<font color=red> And the sign says "You got to have a membership card to get inside" Huh
So I got me a pen and paper And I made up my own little sign </font color=red>

Damn, Rich as if you weren't coping with enough...I just have to agree with DH. What a miserable life she has carved out for herself. Like DH said what goes around comes around.

Gort, Klaatu nicto barada...Patricia Neal

You've got a problem... I don't care how nice people seem to be, it can get real dirty, real fast, & the dog is in the wrong... Your best bet is to keep the dog in your yard, only..

I say that knowing what happened to my cousin. He had 2 Rots & 2 German Short Hairs. The neighbors in town complained about barking dogs. The dogs never got out of there yard. This one woman called the cops every time a dog barked. Animal control would be at there place daily with complaints.

This went on & he had 2 tickets for barking dog. The the third complaint, they can put the owner in jail for not controlling the dogs. So my cousin had no choice but to fight it to keep himself out of jail. Paid $5300 to a lawyer to fight it. Several months pass & he ends up having to plead guilty for a barking dog.. He didn't get jail time, but had to get rid of the dogs.

Being dog people, they couldn't bear to get rid of the dogs & decided to sell & move out to the country. Problem solved, right?? Wrong!!!

Cousin bought 35 acres & placed his house right in the middle of it. Trouble started again with another woman on the same road he'd moved to. Barking dogs, again. It was the same county as where he had first lived & the record of the dogs followed.

He decided to say he was going to run a kennel on the farm. Bad mistake.. Kennels have different laws & controls than just single dogs. SO animal control became more involved now. He had a 6' fence around the kennel & they wrote him another ticket for illegal kennel. They had him put up another fence around the kennel 8' from the other one. They didn't want another animal being able to come to the fence of the kennel & be able to touch noses.

Mean while, he had the Short Hair's throats cut so they couldn't bark, at the vets. By now may thousands of dollars had been spent on defending the dogs & himself, he couldn't afford it any more.

The last straw came when the woman's pigs got out & ransacked the kennel & my cousin's place. He thinks now, by god, he's got them!!!! Wrong again. It seems that domestic livestock have different law, than dogs. Live stock can break down a fence, do damage & it's not a violation of any law. A dog barks or goes outside it's property & it's breaking the law & animal control will enforce that.

In the end, after about 5 years of dealing with animal control, paying out thousands of $$$ in legal fees, & selling his house & building another, he had to give up & sell out again. He now has 2 dogs, that don't go out of the house.

So you see it can & does get out of hand. I have just briefly outlined some of my cousins problems dealing with dogs. After all, you've got to realize that animal control was set up for a reason. Animal control has been empowered to up hold the law & they will, no matter how stupid it is. That's why I say keep your dog at home, in his own yard, if you don't want to slide down a real slippery slope.. [shrug]



<==== Should be (Forum <font color=red>Coors </font color=red> Master) [/shrug]

Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
<font color=red>{FMCD}</font color=red>

I'm not saying your neighbor isn't a biatch!!! It is a bummer to have the neighborhood taken over by a newcomer, no doubt about it.... I could not believe how it got out of hand with my cousin here in MI, but it did..

Sounds like your trying to do the right thing, for sure.

It's so funny how they have things set up. Ask the cop about a cat.... Cats are allowed to roam anywhere they want to.. No leash law, or anything with them...

It bugs me how these things come to be in the first place... Then again, I've seen it completely the other way as well...

I worked in Mexico for 6 months... My biggest fear down there was getting bit by a stray dog & having to get back to the states for rabies shots... Wild dogs run in packs all over Mexico... One time I was in a market & a mutt in heat came into the open air market, with about 20 mongrels following, fighting, to try & get some... Let me tell you, it's not a pleasant place to be in with that going on..



<==== Should be (Forum <font color=red>Coors </font color=red> Master) [/shrug]

Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
<font color=red>{FMCD}</font color=red>

I have that leash on runner in fenced yard, but the complaint is based on the fact that about 4 times, the dog slipped away for periods from 5 to 15 minutes only, and when officer arrived dog was contained.
Officially, I still have no written complaint, just a threat of one.


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<font color=red> And the sign says "You got to have a membership card to get inside" Huh
So I got me a pen and paper And I made up my own little sign </font color=red>

Ok...you have to get one of <A HREF="http://www.bumperdumper.com/bumper2.htm" target="_new">these</A> and use it on her front lawn. Leave the bag at her front door!

<font color=red><i>Doctor Hooter</i></font color=red> <A HREF="http://www.page3.com/" target="_new"><b>(·Y·)</b></A>

To follow up, the very next moring we sent her flowers with a card stating " We are sorry, can't we be friends, signed Rich, Robin J and R and also (Cinamon)"
We have not had dog slip out at all since that last incident.
We thought we might finally be able to put this to rest.
Days passed.
Well, Today, we got a call from Police dept. that the woman has pressed charges against my wife, for letting dog get out.
She has not gone down there yet, but officer stated that this does not mean autamatically guilty and paying the $87 fine.
He said she would have a chance to explain to judge what means we have done to improve situation, and if we are and have been actively trying to contain her, and no hostile acts were ever made, that charges could be dismissed.

I have one thing to say <b> "BIATCH, YOU SUCK BIG ONES!" </b>

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<font color=red> And the sign says "You got to have a membership card to get inside" Huh
So I got me a pen and paper And I made up my own little sign </font color=red>

Burn her house down.

--
"There's more to life than profits."
<font color=red>"Like what?"</font color=red>
"Like, you know, Slurpees and stuff."
<A HREF="http://images.southparkstudios.com/media/video/707/slurpees.mov" target="_new">South Park</A>

Well that just sucks. I don't know what to say.
Except keep your receipt for the card and flowers to show the judge how much of a hard case this woman is after you tried to make ammends.
If you show the judge you have gone out of your way to make ammends and ensure the problem never happens again hopefully the judge will berate her in public court.

<font color=red><i>Doctor Hooter</i></font color=red> <A HREF="http://www.page3.com/" target="_new"><b>(·Y·)</b></A>

I wish to thank you all for responding, at my rambling. It has caused me to look at some different aspects which might help in my situation.
I do not wish her any stress, but I am oblivious to what I can do to create a peacefull neighbor repor with her. Somehow, she percieves us as an adversary, and I do not fully understand why.
I do, however understand her not liking our dog on her premises, yet I presume she has a basic understanding that I can not communicate to our dog to stay away from her and her property when she escapes our property. I am now focusing more effort on preventing her escapes.

I am sure in the end, legally, this will be resloved, and I doubt (but I could be wrong) that the judge will find us guilty of dog trespassing.

I can not imagine what it is like to only have issues like this bothering and consuming time and energy from you to the point of pressing animal tresspessing charges with all the things going on in this world we live in.

Again, thank you.

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<font color=red> And the sign says "You got to have a membership card to get inside" Huh
So I got me a pen and paper And I made up my own little sign </font color=red>

I can definitely understand the idea of having a dog running on my yard and how that MAY be annoying IF it had messed it.
However, if you said you guys had it tied, why is it escaping?

Just curious, and I definitely back you guys on this.

BTW how old is she? If you did mention it, I musta forgotten it. She definitely sounds like an older lady.



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<font color=blue>Ede</font color=blue><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Eden on 10/22/04 11:37 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

The lady is in her mid 40's could be 50 I guess.
We used to let our dog roam in the evening in the past to get some exersize for up to an hour.
Well, about 2 months ago, this lady moved in next door, and that is when this started.
So, we stopped letting our dog run, but occaisionally she will dart through the door when someone is leaving the house.
She is just frisky, and looks for an oppertunity to run, but now we immediatly engage in rounding her up.
So far, she has not escaped since Sunday evening, which only lasted about 5 minutes till we rounded her up.
But that was to long, since the lady called the cops afterward apparantly, since it took about 30 minutes for the cop to show up.

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<font color=red> And the sign says "You got to have a membership card to get inside" Huh
So I got me a pen and paper And I made up my own little sign </font color=red>