Thursday, August 9, 2012

Letter to my neighbor

The following content was sent to my neighbor with the nuisance dogs a couple of years ago.  I have shared this content on other sites in the past.

Note the dogs in question had ALSO been off leash, using my front yard as a toilet, overturning my trash cans and digging holes all over my property.

Note that names have been changed to protect the not-so-innocent!

Feel free to plagarize... if a variation of this helps your case then more power to you!  Again, I do NOT advise contacting the neighbor face-to-face... that is a mistake that can have deadly consequences.  Consider my "Dangerous owners" essays for more information on that.

"                                            John Q Public
                                              9999 xxxxx Blvd.
                                              AnyPlace, FL 32999
                                             000-000-0000
                                                                                                                       

Mr. and Mrs. crappy dog owner
9998 xxxxxx Blvd.
AnyPlace, FL 32999

RE:  Animal control issue.   Sent via Certified Mail 11/3/2010

October 29, 2010   (updated 11/3/2010)

Dear Neighbor,
The purpose of this letter is to notify you that you have been broadcasting loud, unnecessary pet noises into my home and I demand that you stop doing so immediately.   This problem has been apparent for approximately 4 months.

Pursuant to our prior, in-person conversation(s) on 9/27/2010, 10/27/2010 and 11/2/2010 regarding this issue, I am putting the situation in writing so there is no misunderstanding as to my position.   This letter is primarily a summary of what we’ve already discussed with a few other facts added for emphasis.  I suggest you read this letter in its entirety and contemplate what I am saying carefully before you come to any conclusions.  

When I refer to “Pet” or “Pet’s” I am contemplating the yellow dog you acquired around late June of this year.

First, I am going to make 5 statements to you.   I don’t mean to provoke, insult, or sound threatening, but this needs to be said.  These 5 statements are not debate points or anything I am going to argue further:

1)       Your pet/barking dog noises have been penetrating my home.  This happens frequently, for long durations, and is not welcome.   There have been barking incidents in excess of one hour in duration.  I can hear them/it loud and clear inside my house with the doors and windows shut.   As a result of this I have been awakened prematurely, have had my work disrupted, had telephone conversations disrupted, and have been subject to various other hardships and disruptions.  This is seriously impacting my quality of life.  As a matter of fact, it disrupted me while I was composing this letter!!

2)      You are required by law to confine your pet’s noises to your space.   Pursuant to (1), your pet’s noises should not be penetrating into my home:   Doing so is in violation of St. Johns county ordinance 89-62.   Refer to attachment “Table 1” and Section 5, Subsection “ee” in attached county ordinance 89-62 (highlighted page 2 and page 4).  To summarize, if the noise level you are generating exceeds a given level *at the property line*, you are committing an actionable offense.   I’m confident that, if your pet is clearly audible inside my house with everything closed up (doors shut, windows shut, blinds drawn, etc…), it certainly exceeds the acceptable limit at the property line (street line).   Consider that, irrespective of the county ordinance, such things can be actioned in civil court. 

3)      I have a *right* to peaceful enjoyment of my home.    The noise level inside my home is for me to control, not you or anyone else.  You’ve been broadcasting noises into, and thereby raising the noise level, inside my home without my permission.   Any opinions of anyone other than *me* regarding the noises in question are totally irrelevant:   When at home, I should only be listening to what *I* want to listen to.  I don’t want my home awash in the sound of your barking dog(s).

4)      It is self-evident that the pet in question has become a nuisance.   I dislike the fact that I’ve had to deal with this in any way or at any level.   It’s general knowledge that, when living in the suburbs, pet owners are required to restrain their pets and keep them quiet.    The pet in question barks in an explosively loud manner that can be heard through closed windows, multiple walls, and distances of several hundred feet.   This situation should not have erupted in the first place.    
  
5)      The pet noises in question serve no purpose.  Your pet barks frequently, loudly, unreasonably, and unnecessarily.  Your pet, at present, is not a legitimate watchdog.    The constant “false alarms” are a nuisance that needs to stop.   Consider that as I write this, your dog is barking and there is no one in the immediate vicinity, certainly not a crime in progress.   

UPDATED ON 11/03/2010:  Regarding our conversation on 11/2:  Consider that this problem is entirely your fault.   You are the ones who need to modify their behavior, not me.    *I* have broken no laws.  *I* have not violated your space in any way.  *I* have been nothing but polite to you.  So, before you make this personal, you should consider that I’ve done nothing to you.  I have done nothing to you while you have disrupted my life in many ways.    You, on the other hand:  You have created a nuisance.  Your failure to properly restrain your pets has caused me numerous problems.  You have disrupted me and offended against me repeatedly even after I have asked you to not do so.  You have wasted a considerable amount of my time and other resources.  You are the one’s breaking the law(s).  You have been hostile, rude and argumentative with me.  You blatantly ignored the letter I left for you yesterday.  YOU are the offender.  YOU created this problem.  Consider what you would do if you were me.

You apparently did not read the letter I left for you on 11/2, even though you’d previously requested that I send a note/contact you directly instead of contacting authorities.   You returned it to my mailbox in what appeared to be an unopened condition.   In any case, I do know that you did not give me the information I requested, your contact telephone numbers.  I left you that note in response to an incident that afternoon where my work was disrupted yet again by your out of control pets:   They had escaped their pen, were barking loudly and furiously for an extended period, and interfering with the water company meter reader.  There was no one around, besides myself, to restrain them or look after them.  I did you a huge favor yesterday and you repaid that by being rude and argumentative with me on my own front porch.

That said, I do not intend to give you any more flexibility on this.  I have had it.  I am not going to debate this further.  I am not going to because, in your words “I don’t have to!!”  From now on, when you offend against me I am going to contact the proper authorities:  You may save your foolish arguments and hostile attitude for them, but I’m sure they will appreciate that even less than I.   If this persists long term I will consider litigation.   Despite what you may think, reporting an offense is not itself an offense, in fact it’s what I SHOULD do.  I’m confident it’s what you would do if you were me.

I also intend to continue to document any offenses against me.   I have a right to record, tape, photograph, make note of, etc… anything that can clearly be seen and/or heard from my property.   If you want me to stop documenting your offenses, you should simply stop offending.

Again, I request you cure this problem before I am forced to action it further.

Regards



John Q Public"

42 comments:

  1. "If you want me to stop documenting your offenses, you should simply stop offending."

    this warning should separate the psychopaths from the rest of us.

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  2. Jesus christ, I am sorry you have to put up with that.

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  3. I should add that this only scratches the surface. After this letter was sent and received, I have called AC and police multiple times as well as their landlord. More on that in another post!

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  4. Late last year, there was a chronically barking pit bull on a neighboring property. During one of its barkathons, a police officer confirmed that the dog was indeed a pit bull, and that there was no one home. So, no ticket was issued for a disturbance of the peace.

    Take away the fact that owner not being present is a big enough loophole to drive a truck through, and you have the perfect opportunity for some education.

    Except that I was in no mood to educate the owners about their dog ownership responsibilities. Not after having to endure several hours of nonstop barking.

    Instead, I decided to educate the landlord, a locally owned property management company, about the presence of this dog on their rental property. Sent a certified letter that concluded something like this:

    If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact my attorney.

    On the cc: line was the name of a local personal injury attorney, a guy who has tried pit bull cases.

    The dog was gone within days.

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  5. I think the big question is, how are we going to close these loopholes?

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  6. This is a hate site for dogs - even cats don't hate dogs this much!

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    1. I have no hatred in me, just LOTS of love. You know what I REALLY love? A chestnut-stuffed, roasted SPARROW. YUM.

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    2. wow- so rude. I too have had my entire life destroyed by barking dogs - multiple neighbors - 5 dogs total. not a room in my house safe from noise - maybe could get 3 hours sleep a night. got very ill. lost my house. just as predicted by barking dogs dot net poster. moved to a no-dog building - not because I hate dogs - but because I love and need to sleep. Now they changed that policy without warning mid-lease. So far, just averaging one night a week getting woke by guy who now has dog. So angry about this change. in a multi-unit building - now have to listen to this guy coming and going at all hours and having him just stand out front by my place, just looking at his cell phone instead of actually walking the dog - at like 5 a.m. - great - dog on the brain people - dogs have way more rights - and I am angry about it. I do not want to live with barking dogs. Go around the corner and two houses also have barking dogs. That is way I live in an apartment cave - you can no longer trust home owners with dogs. Everyone is so rude these days and don't think past their own selfish interests.

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  7. This is not a dog hate site you idiot. This is an irresponsible dog OWNER hate site. Some dog owners are complete a-holes.

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    1. Pitt bulls should be taken off the planet,,,,,,,,,,,,they are no better then a bad muslim terrorist

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    2. A moon colony for dog nutters is a capital idea.

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  8. I saw the side bar comments about uses for a dead pit-bull. It reminded me of the comment reportedly made by Bill Mollison , the man credited with being the 'father' of Permaculture. Someone asked him if it's OK to have cats in the garden too. "Yes" he replied. "They mulch in quite nicely."

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  9. "REAL PROBLEM is NOT the ANIMAL it is his MASTER"

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    1. Which is why many dog owners have no business owning a dog.

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  10. And you must have a HATE of PIT BULL / Animals because I sure the blank see nothing discussing irresponsible pet owners over and over. PEOPLE LIKE YOU ARE THE 2nd problem.

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    1. What do you think this site is about? Here's a clue: It's about irresponsibility.

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  11. And you must have a HATE of PIT BULL / Animals because I sure the blank see nothing discussing irresponsible pet owners over and over. PEOPLE LIKE YOU ARE THE 2nd problem.

    You dog nutters really are stupid... this article was about nothing BUT crappy owners! What are you going to do next, watch a season of "Star Trek" and say it has nothing to do with space travel?

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  12. Get a life moron..
    ..dogs bark...they have been with us since caveman times..."pursuant"..blah, blah, blah

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    1. Another dog worshiper does not get the point. What part of "get your dog out of my business" do you not understand?

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    2. it very simple really, some idiots have no understanding, respect and dignity for them selves so when they have a loud dog it gives them some sort of power thrust or i am tuff presence, its just a matter of fact that these stupid people have no idea of noise violations and or the peace of mind to do anything about it as they were raised as idiots and will remain idiots unless it happens to them and then watch out its like a lesson learned the hard way, up till then there is always a fool, who gets a breed built on stature not need, (does anyone really need a pitt bull)they enjoy that ruff ruff ruff outside with no responsible behavior at all, too bad there are humans like this, but maybe some day the laws will be tighter to subdue the fools that will in effect keep their dogs quiet. alas there is always what goes around comes around and typically, these types of stupid people are awash in arguements, fights, controversy all theyre lives and expect thats normal,,,,,,,,,,maybe some day there will be better ways to deal with loud dog issues and the fools that own them, period

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    3. @anon July 19, 2016 at 9:16 AM

      In essence: They are douchebags of epic proportions.

      Thanks for writing.

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    4. Just because they can bark doesn't mean they should;certainly not in a crowded suburban area. This should be easy, no?

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  13. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  14. So, what brought this thread to life after 4 long years, anyway?

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  15. I love dogs and all animals...a lot...and much more than people. The problem with people is when they keep their dogs in a pen or outside only, the dogs get bored out of their minds and have to create pretend drama. My dogs would be the worst bark offenders except that, unlike your crappy neighbor.... we walk them everyday, pay attention to them throughout the day, have a doggie door so thy can come in/out as they please, and we also excersize authority over them. They are allowed to bark a couple of times if they see a squirrel or hear our neighbors outside....for about 3 barks worth...after that, they shut up because they know they are not allowed to bark anymore. Some people dont get it, they dont know how to train their kids or dogs, no understanding of excersising authority. Your neighbors are boobs, the dogs on the other hand are also victims of boobs, their owners need their asses kicked. Have you tried that yet?

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    1. the dogs on the other hand are also victims of boobs, their owners need their asses kicked. Have you tried that yet?

      Yes, that is why they are gone.

      Thanks for writing.

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    2. Jackie, I like what you're doing, but I would add that a dog should never bark where there are people living in close proximity. There is zero use for a barking, abnoxious terror within earshot of a poor unsuspecting neighbor.

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    3. Of course humans think a dog barking is useless, but for the dog doing, I'm sure feels appropriate. It annoys me hearing a dog bark and I don't appreciate my neighbors allowing their dogs to bark continuously. But we share the planet, I don't think dogs appreciate it when we celebrate with fireworks, so i guess the point I'm making is some people are very rule oriented all the time about everything, always butting they're big negative nit picking noses and making a big stink about everything... and it gets on my nerves.

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    4. Bottom line. Good people take care of their dogs. However, you're mislead. At no time should we care what dogs think. We protect them, we feed them, and enjoy them. That's it. Dogs are somewhere in the middle of the food chain and their "rights" against mine have zero merit.

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    5. You're wrong. I dont care what you think and neither do my 4 legged friends. Ruff ruff ruff

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  16. Hahaha...i doubt those neighbors are gone beacause you took out a can whoop ass. Men who put lots of time and thought into writing elegant, well spoken letters dont typically kick anyones ass. You simply annoyed them out of their living situation:)

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    1. I meant that figuratively, not literally. I thought that would be obvious. In any case: No, I did not literally go over there and physically kick their asses. If I had done so, I'd be gone and they would still be here (most likely).

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    2. Maybe not typically, but anyone who has sleep deprivation from barking canines will eventually have a tendancy toward violent behaviour, in america they take this very seriously, their animal control people carry guns and handcuffs and have authority to arrest dog owners who dont comply.

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  17. I've got a long term neighbor, adjacent to me, who has two larger dogs that sometimes bark, in the backyard, in the middle of the night. I'm composing a letter to her, and trying to get creative on what to write, including quoting the noise ordinance in the city I am in. Any way to inject a little humor into the mix. The code seems vague, and it requires the complainer to get other neighbors involved. Unfortunately, that'll b hard, because of households HAVE DOGS, but they don't pierce the early morning air with their wonderful sounds.

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    1. That's called the multiple household rule. And, IMHO, it is meant to keep people from complaining about barking. Because, as we all know, barking is the most wonderful sound on the planet.

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  18. The problem is dog owners that are NOT responsible. We have 3 dogs but I don't want them to bother the neighbors with their barking so they go outside one at a time.

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  19. Hi, good page, another thing you can try is next time it comes on your property, catch it with the help of a few mates and take it to the dog pound. It costs owners to get their dogs released from the pound, a few times of doing this may help. I had a rotten dog next door that when the owner used to let his dog out for a few hours, used to come over to my place crap on my front porch, get under my fence and attack my dog. So one day i trapped it in there and gave it the beating of its life. Needless to say it never did it again.

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  20. In our experience with six years (yes six years!) of a neighbor's dog pooping in our yard, on the loose, and barking at all times of night and day, calling the police does absolutely nothing. I even got audio recordings -- the police said, we can't tell whose dog that is. So I installed the security cameras, and provided video evidence. The owners got a simple warning. When their dogs actually attacked us and tore my clothing, the police said, there's no way to prove that that came from that dog. On and on we go. Then their dog was on the loose in my yard, I caught it and put it in my storage shed, and called police. The police said, well there is no way to prove that you did not just kidnap that dog. Exasperating! Since I am a dog lover I would never do anything to harm their dogs, but the thought has crossed my mind, next time I find it on my property, it might just get a large Hershey candy bar. Maybe some diarrhea would at least make me feel better? But honestly if the police would just connect the dots.....and issue a citation, with a painful monetary penalty, maybe these bad dog owners would figure out they are just not cut out to be dog owners, and find a better home for their dogs.

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  21. For 10 of 12 years, I had to live w constant barking. Even during those 2 yrs - there was still barking, but it was bearable to me. Then another neighbor (I think, it's a theory) killed three dogs at three different houses with large barking dogs that were kept outside a lot. Funny - they all died of stomach problems. So it is only a theory they were killed, but I am sure one of my neighbors was sociopathic on some level based on being around him and hearing bizarre stories - but still just a guess.

    Anyhow - then the barking got really bad because two of the neighbors got three new shelter dogs in total. Two were outside barking all day (for years - like 8 years for me til I moved) and then the other was allowed out at all random hours - would be out barking at 2-3am when daddy was ready for the over night smoke break.

    Basically I had already stopped using the front of my house. Then this third shelter dog made the back of my house unlivable.

    Then the woman between us let her house default.

    Then the people who bought it did construction 7 days a week, 6-7 am until 10-11p, on two shifts. Well that was also illegal (all those hours). Had a few good nervous breakdowns then.

    Then they moved in 3 dogs - because you know such a dog friendly place with all the dogs outside barking.

    I could hear them and talk to them through the walls. I had to do so - they were alone alot and barking the entire time.

    Nothing ended well for me. All through this I had a home based business. I lived off the beaten path and it was a struggle.

    I ended up losing everything. My house. My business. The worst loss was my health. Imagine never getting to sleep for more than 3 hours at a time. (Oh yes, there was the loud teen on the other side w mom out all times with bf and not paying attention - so once it was 11 p and I was given dog reprieve on that side of house, she'd be banging around 2am, 4am with very bad loud music.)

    The lack of good sleep killed my health.

    I am still not the same several years after getting out of there.

    When I was giving the keys over to the new owner, and the 3 dog people had moved - they had rented to another dog couple. And that was another very large loud barking dog.

    The guy didn't bother keeping the house. It was unlive-able but for other dogtarded humans.

    When I moved, my top criteria? No dogs. A no dog building.

    I found that.

    Then guess what? They actually changed the policy because of C19.

    Now there are three small yappers here - one right above me. When it barks - might as well be right inside my apartment. Luckily the guy closest - he is a loud pain even before the dog with his friggin power tools on the decks out back (right over my now-former bedroom) - but did reach out to make sure his dog was not horribly loud. I would have vacated the bedroom now anyhow because I can clearly here the worst barking dog there all day long (not his dog).

    When I complained about the policy change - told I could just move if I didn't like the new policy. Which I would have already done if I could have.

    So I am just once again stuck listening all friggin day long to others dogs. I cannot walk out the front door and sweep without getting barked at by dogs in the building.

    And the smell of the poo? Of course piles of crap just outside my door. Looking at the same piles for 2 months before the lazies from the management company bothered cleaning it up - and that was only because of the change over of tenants.

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    1. That is quite a narrative. You can email me at animaluncontrol at gmail com. We are putting together a community.

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