So it's been great weather here the past several days and I've turned off the AC and opened the windows. Now instead of a neighbor screaming at his tv all day there is a dog left outside in a yard near our building that barks constantly from 9am until 8-9pm. It's driving me crazy. Who do/should I call: the police or animal control? It's constant barking. I don't know why no one has done anything about it so far (as much as I know).

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Welcome to the club.

I'd start with Animal Control for whatever jurisdiction you're in...
If that doesn't work, try visiting Pyramyd Air's website...

Call the police. If it violates any noise or nuisance ordinances, they'd be the ones to deal with it. If the dog gets out or is not being cared for (worse than not being walked or played with) call animal control.

Keep in mind that it is not the dog's fault. It's the owner's fault. The dog is unhappy.

And the owner is probably out all day and doesn't know/doesn't care. It's a total mystery to me why some people keep pets and then neglect them.

you also had a neighbor screaming at his TV a while back. How did that settle after all

.....a moving van [so that you can move to another apt]....????

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I reject your reality and substitute my own!

Sic the dog on the guy who screams at his TV... kill 2 birds.

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Sometimes I wonder, "What would Hodor say in this situation?" - Jim Gaffigan

whomever you call is going to ask you if you've spoken to the dog's owner. You can either go talk to him/her first and explain, or you can just say, "I can't tell who's dog it is." However, the latter may make it difficult for any authority to follow up.

We just had this problem with a neighbor the next street over. Her dogs would bark 24/7. Eventually, i got 3 of my neighbors involved and we all write complaints to animal control (they deal with dog issues in my city). They went out and talked to her (we had tried many times to explain to her the problem, but she didn't care). It's gotten better and they've told her that if they receive more complaints, they will take her to court and make her put bark collars on the dogs.

YMMV.

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miK.
Sic the dog on the guy who screams at his TV... kill 2 birds.

Or have the guy scream at the dogs. Might drown them out, and get things back to just one noise problem.

Who you gonna call?

Ghost Busters!

Try to find the group in your area which steals neglected animals. Screw the owner.

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$tevie
Try to find the group in your area which steals neglected animals. Screw the owner.

Perhaps a Chinese restaurant will do a pick up......

hahaha testcase.

Check your city noise ordinances. Usually they don't kick in till after5 or 6pm. My local ordinance states, maintence workers/contractors/etc have between 7am and 5/6pm to work. The local Police station usually has a compliance officer that goes around checking for a wide range of city ordinance violations. Barking dog usually is low priority during the day. If you know where the dog is, sent them directly there, they usually want your name/number to make sure you arent a repeat offender.

Animal control usually can't/won't do anything if the dog doesn't look sickly or has water/food available. They mostly deal with strays and roadkill.

Good luck.

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BernDog
Call the police. If it violates any noise or nuisance ordinances, they'd be the ones to deal with it. If the dog gets out or is not being cared for (worse than not being walked or played with) call animal control.

^Correct answer^

The problem with calling the cops or animal control is that the dog ends up dead. Have you tried talking to the owner or leaving a note on his door? You could write an anonymous letter and have the postal service deliver it. Just say "please take your dog inside. What you are doing with that dog is cruel and illegal."

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Gutenberg
The problem with calling the cops or animal control is that the dog ends up dead. Have you tried talking to the owner or leaving a note on his door? You could write an anonymous letter and have the postal service deliver it. Just say "please take your dog inside. What you are doing with that dog is cruel and illegal."

The police going and knocking on the door will not result in a dead dog. Warnings would be given and tickets would be issued. In a worst case scenario where multiple chances were given over a long period of time, including multiple warnings and multiple or unpaid tickets, the dog could be removed by animal control. It would not then be euthanized immediately unless it was deemed vicious or if animal control was severely underfunded or overcrowded.

The system really does try to work in favor of the property owner, trying to preserve their rights as such, for as long as possible.

That said, a neighborly visit would probably be the best first step, as long as one felt comfortable doing so. However, barring that, I would contact the police and skip the anonymous note. It will likely be taken as passive-aggressive, and the neighbor with the dog will be able to narrow down fairly accurately, within a couple houses, who sent it. The same could happen with a police complaint, but then it includes other possibilities such as a passing officer heard the dog personally, or maybe a service worker or letter carrier made the complaint. Plus, if neighborly relations then break down, you've got an official paper trail of how things got started.

Unless you know the neighbor well, use the police. That's what they're there for. It's possible the first call only results in a drive-by, but the bulk of police work is done by paperwork, documentation, and accurate record keeping. Get it in the system.

....McGruff....??

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I reject your reality and substitute my own!

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Jerry®
So it's been great weather here the past several days and I've turned off the AC and opened the windows. Now instead of a neighbor screaming at his tv all day there is a dog left outside in a yard near our building that barks constantly from 9am until 8-9pm. It's driving me crazy. Who do/should I call: the police or animal control? It's constant barking. I don't know why no one has done anything about it so far (as much as I know).

Call your neighbor. Duh.

You've all been very helpful. I appreciate the suggestions (and humor)! I'll keep you posted.

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BernDog

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Gutenberg
The problem with calling the cops or animal control is that the dog ends up dead. Have you tried talking to the owner or leaving a note on his door? You could write an anonymous letter and have the postal service deliver it. Just say "please take your dog inside. What you are doing with that dog is cruel and illegal."

The police going and knocking on the door will not result in a dead dog. Warnings would be given and tickets would be issued. In a worst case scenario where multiple chances were given over a long period of time, including multiple warnings and multiple or unpaid tickets, the dog could be removed by animal control. It would not then be euthanized immediately unless it was deemed vicious or if animal control was severely underfunded or overcrowded.

The system really does try to work in favor of the property owner, trying to preserve their rights as such, for as long as possible.

That said, a neighborly visit would probably be the best first step, as long as one felt comfortable doing so. However, barring that, I would contact the police and skip the anonymous note. It will likely be taken as passive-aggressive, and the neighbor with the dog will be able to narrow down fairly accurately, within a couple houses, who sent it. The same could happen with a police complaint, but then it includes other possibilities such as a passing officer heard the dog personally, or maybe a service worker or letter carrier made the complaint. Plus, if neighborly relations then break down, you've got an official paper trail of how things got started.

Unless you know the neighbor well, use the police. That's what they're there for. It's possible the first call only results in a drive-by, but the bulk of police work is done by paperwork, documentation, and accurate record keeping. Get it in the system.

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BernDog
It would not then be euthanized immediately unless it was deemed vicious or if animal control was severely underfunded or overcrowded.

Animal control is always overcrowded. Dogs rarely get more than a few days before being euthanized.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/09/2012 04:30PM by wickedsteve.

Do a neighborly visit WITH the crazy screamer along... if the conversation goes overboard, have the crazy screamer take over...

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wickedsteve

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BernDog
It would not then be euthanized immediately unless it was deemed vicious or if animal control was severely underfunded or overcrowded.

Animal control is always overcrowded. Dogs rarely get more than a few days before being euthanized.

As per berndog, the police are not just going to drag the dog off to animal control.

The police going and knocking on the door will not result in a dead dog. Warnings would be given and tickets would be issued. In a worst case scenario where multiple chances were given over a long period of time, including multiple warnings and multiple or unpaid tickets, the dog could be removed by animal control.

Get your neighbor a shock collar. You may want one that can take a padlock as your neighbor may not want to wear it. Works great.

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Saint Cloud, Minnesota, where the weather is wonderful even when it isn't.

In my municipality, the police handle these complaints. If you want to impress them, see if you can look up the ordinance on your town's Web Site (it may be under "animals" "noise" or "public nuisances"). Call the cops on their non-emergency phone #.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/10/2012 10:33AM by the_poochies.

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Speedy
Get your neighbor a shock collar. You may want one that can take a padlock as your neighbor may not want to wear it. Works great.

LMAO that made my day Speedy! Lol

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hal
Do a neighborly visit WITH the crazy screamer along... if the conversation goes overboard, have the crazy screamer take over...

Hahhaah!!!!!

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.....CALL it a day.....??

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_____________________________________

I reject your reality and substitute my own!

The dog's only hope is to be removed from this home.