Do it from the house next door, in the kitchen, with that door and windows closed and I'll guarantee I'll sleep through it. Or you know not complain cuz it's 4 mins
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Neighbour filed a complaint about my dog
- Thread starter Podge293
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Do it from the house next door, in the kitchen, with that door and windows closed and I'll guarantee I'll sleep through it. Or you know not complain cuz it's 4 mins
That's possible; could analyze the audio and count the sound bursts.
I'm still wondering how the OP went about it; and how he knows the recorder even picked up all the barking if he's using some sort of noise sensing technology.
It's not "proof" to a court either way. And the neighbor did "do the adult thing" and chat with his wife. From his perspective nothing was done.
CosmicQueso
Member
This always depressed me (I always wanted a dog) until I moved into a building that allowed dogs. Most of the dogs are fine, but one downstairs barks whenever someone walks by the door. My gf works nights. She gets sleep in 1 or 2 hour stretches. It's absolutely miserable and something that could be easily alleviated by a citronella collar. We even left one for them with a note, but yeah, same as OP... in complete denial about the impact of it.
It's a simple fix, one that doesn't hurt the dog in any way. We left one on their door with a nice note explaining the situation and asking them to please try it out. But for some reason they're real dicks about it and just let their dog keep barking whenever a truck drives by or someone walks in the hallway.
"It's only for a couple minutes" is what I'm guessing they're thinking too.
Our dog barked when we first got her. Two weeks with the citronella collar and no more barking. But I guess that's just too much of a challenge for people. Let others suffer.
TheCochese
Banned
Because everyone can sleep as soundly as you can? You are starting to sound like the dick here.
You completely ignored my post about how the fact the 4 minutes is stretched out is probably the issue.
Instead of 4 minutes straight, how about 20 instances of a dog barking waking you up throughout the night, totaling 4 minutes of barking?
Robin64
Member
Well that's silly because that's at night, which is a universally accepted quiet time.
If I had to sleep in the day I would hear constant traffic, dogs from many directions on and off, children walking past and shouting twice a day for 15 minutes each time, possibly music.. I wouldn't expect all that to stop just because I have to work nights. Instead I would look at getting ear protection for myself, the sensible thing to do.
CosmicQueso
Member
Tell that to your ER nurse that works graveyard shifts. Sure they'd agree.
That's what we used. Worked great.
ClosingADoor
Member
The problem is, if you have a dog next door barking about every hour for a short time, that will still wake you up. Now you add the stress of not knowing if it will happen or not, which impacts your sleep. I've had this myself with noisy neighbors. They are not loud every night or very long, but because it happens regularly, you come to expect it and that keeps you up even more.
He's recording an audio file. You can drop audio files into other programs and see audio spikes very easily wtihout having to listen to the entire clip.
This is what I was thinking. OP listened to 8 hours of recordings?
Ha, answered above me.
Yeah, 4min is not much. Though I can somewhat relate to your neighbour... I work mostly at night and during the day when I'm trying to get a few hours of sleep and my neighbour's dog is barking like crazy, I get mad fast (because I'm exhausted). I get bad anxiety too when something is preventing me from sleeping. I use earplugs but it's not always enough and it hurts after a while, it feels uncomfortable.
But I feel bad for the dog mostly, my neighbour has just left him outside for almost three days straight, and only comes once a day to feed him. He cries at night because it has been fucking cold this past week. I don't really like dogs (especially loud small dogs) but last night I wanted to take him inside to reassure him (and he would have shut the hell up, lol).
But I feel bad for the dog mostly, my neighbour has just left him outside for almost three days straight, and only comes once a day to feed him. He cries at night because it has been fucking cold this past week. I don't really like dogs (especially loud small dogs) but last night I wanted to take him inside to reassure him (and he would have shut the hell up, lol).
Fair enough but a later post I did say it's in and around 3pm and seemingly triggered by another dog barking setting off my dog in response so it's not spread throughout the day rather focused with a range.
And it's not like the dude is coming home at 9/10 in the morning after work. I leave for work at 7 and he's usually in his house by then
GameAddict411
Member
I think 4 minutes of continuous barking at a time where I am sleeping is super annoying. It's worse if it's spread out throughout the night/day. Do you know why is it barking?
CosmicQueso
Member
Seriously OP, if I was your neighbor (and I am in that situation) and you left a note at my door saying that you were going to try a citronella collar and to let you know if that's working in a week, the complaint would go away instantly.
The neighbors tried to talk to you about it, and obviously nothing changed. What do you expect them to do?
You don't have to fight and get mad at them. Just, like, try to be a good neighbor. Work together.
It's not a big deal. Instead of going all Colombo and recording sound bites all day, just try things that will help the dog learn to not bark.
What's the big deal with just trying that rather than saying that "the neighbor is an asshole and I'm going to prove it in court!"
You're coming across selfishly. It's not a good look.
The neighbors tried to talk to you about it, and obviously nothing changed. What do you expect them to do?
You don't have to fight and get mad at them. Just, like, try to be a good neighbor. Work together.
It's not a big deal. Instead of going all Colombo and recording sound bites all day, just try things that will help the dog learn to not bark.
What's the big deal with just trying that rather than saying that "the neighbor is an asshole and I'm going to prove it in court!"
You're coming across selfishly. It's not a good look.
Seems to be in response to another dog barking as far as I can tell.
Oh you know I will be. "Your honor, at least 3 Gaffer agrees with me, can we just throw this out before we begin"
tattooed_dwarf
Member
Or you just put recording to editing software and search for spikes in timeline, it's not that hard you know.
Dog barking here and there is normal noise, just like kids playing, people moving furnitures or cleaning. I got annoyed when I worked on nightshift and woke up when workmen cut grass or neighbor cleaned but I also understand that life can't go on halt during daytime.
Im not bringing him to court he's bringing me. I didn't wanna be disciplining my dog with no proof so I figured I'd see how bad it was over a few weeks and then either talk to him about it or start corrective measures (like those collars posted)
SliceSabre
Banned
I don't see how the neighbor is an asshole. the neighbor may feel they are at the end or their ropes because they tried confronting OP but since that didn't work they had to go for the next option.
My neighbor has a dog that bark continuously a lot. The trick? She doesn't always do it. Some days she's chill and doesn't bark at all when he leave, others she barks a lot.
It is entirely possible when the OP recorded her she wasn't acting up.
My neighbor has a dog that bark continuously a lot. The trick? She doesn't always do it. Some days she's chill and doesn't bark at all when he leave, others she barks a lot.
It is entirely possible when the OP recorded her she wasn't acting up.
That is regardless as many cities have nuisances laws that say you can't have a dog who barks all day. I know mine does.
ClosingADoor
Member
A few weeks is a long time to go with sleep problems though.
Spread over 2 weeks tho? Fair enough it could happen but then that'd be more a case of unusual circumstance then a continuous nuisance
OniBarubary
Banned
Teach your dog to play acoustic guitar. Suddenly the concerns about the barking will disappear.
tattooed_dwarf
Member
And BTW, using shock or even citron collars is wrong way of trying to keep dog silent. When you use those, you are punishing the dog and just trying to stop barking, but not addressing the reason for barking, which would be right way of solving barking problem.
Yeah people are looking at the CUMULATIVE TOTAL OF 4 MINITES instead of for example 20 separate bursts of 15 seconds of barking, which is the more important factor here.
Working third shift is hard enough as it is to get any kind of restful sleep due to the human body not being designed to sleep during the day. Add in that with the mowers and garbage trucks and general noise associated with daytime activities its very difficult to sleep. Now throw in a neighbor that has a pup that gets lonely because it's left alone and barks at various noises, now it becomes a serious source of frustration because it's yet another thing to try to sleep through.
And since you have an adjacent living area the sound travels easily through the walls. If I were you I'd be more understanding that while, to you it's only 4 minutes total, to him it's keeping him up all night.
And honestly, your recording isn't really going to help you in any meaningful way unless you recorded 12 hours straight of uninterrupted audio. Otherwise, who knows how much you edited to make those 4 minutes. Not to mention no judge is going to sit and listen to all that audio for a barking dog complaint.
Take more responsibility for your dog and if you're going to be gone for 2 days of the week that long that the dog is alone, you should put him in a kennel while you're away so he has other dogs or people to interact with.
Sounds cold, but that's the reality. Your pup needs to be socialized and not left alone for so long.
Dammit acoustic guitar. I foolishly opted for a banjo. Not enough umpfh in that I'm guessing.
All those hours and all that money wasted. Where were you 4 months ago dammit!!!!!
| Praxis |
Banned
Time to buy a loud stereo and some death metal and have some nice daytime parties.
Dr Stabbingworth
Member
Have you considered doggie day care for when you're gone longer? It's good for your dog and solves the neighbor problem as well.
tattooed_dwarf
Member
Well barking all day is very different thing than barking few times a day. Like you can shout at your home but if you do it constantly, the it is a problem. But that's not what is happening in OPs case.
Snkfanatic
Banned
A few weeks??
Gracious no wonder the guy escalated it. Not saying going to court is the right thing but yeah that's a bit much.
SMH at people recommending spray collars. Negative reinforcement doesn't stop being a bad idea just because you're stopping short of literally electrocuting a dog.
A dog barking for a few minutes a day is not a problem. The neighbour would not be in the right if OP had kids that came home everyday from school and made a bit of noise. The neighbour would not be in the right if OP was at home and practiced guitar in his room for an hour each day. He needs to invest in earplugs or white noise.
A dog barking for a few minutes a day is not a problem. The neighbour would not be in the right if OP had kids that came home everyday from school and made a bit of noise. The neighbour would not be in the right if OP was at home and practiced guitar in his room for an hour each day. He needs to invest in earplugs or white noise.
It's 4 mins within a 30/40 minute window generally. Not a bark here and there over 12 hours.
The days were not there it's a solid 9 hours of recording. Something we can't avoid but that's life really. Why would we put her in a kennel for 9 hours a day for 2 days.
If it was spread out throughout the whole day yeah id probably be a bit more understanding but it's relatively localised with a set time and it's in reaction to another dog barking. Can't see how it's unreasonable for a dog to react to another dog barking
Goldenroad
Member
Take it to a daycare the couple days a week that you're away for an extended period of time. When you're around you can control its barking, but when you're not, you can't. I'm lucky I can bring my dog to work, since we live in a condo and have had noise complaints about her as well. Long and short of it is, if you have an asshole neighbor, don't leave your dog home alone.
Judges, 9 times out of 10, will side with the complainant, and he can go so far as to order that your dog be removed for the premises or even put down. It's ridiculous, but do whatever you can to make sure this does not go to court.
Judges, 9 times out of 10, will side with the complainant, and he can go so far as to order that your dog be removed for the premises or even put down. It's ridiculous, but do whatever you can to make sure this does not go to court.
CosmicQueso
Member
Sigh. Good luck OP.
It's not disciplining. It's just a collar that sprays stinky stuff when the dog barks. It's completely harmless.
Yeah, I'm pretty convinced now it's not the neighbor that's the problem.
And the judge will tell you to do something to fix it, no matter how many hours of recording you're bringing in, because you're obviously not being reasonable.
You don't know what you're talking about.
It is a problem if the neighbor says it's a problem. And it'll really be a problem when whatever judiciary says it is.
Dog barks, nasty smell comes at the dog after bark. I'd call that disciplining.
And I'll find out when the date comes but I'm not sure they'll find 4 minutes in a relatively tight range to be excessive barking.
Not sure how not punishing a dog is me not being reasonable
CloudyTuba
Member
When I first moved in where I'm currently at with my dog, the older man next door complained within like three days. Didn't even talk to us first, just straight to management. That made me a bit grumpy.
He only barks if another dog walks by the fence and he's locked in with us every night from dark until morning. I think that's reasonable.
He never complained again though so I guess he got over it.
Growing up, my neighbors had a large german shepard with a thunderous bark that liked to bark throughout the day. I like dogs so I actually enjoyed hearing it. It was never at night so it was never a problem.
He only barks if another dog walks by the fence and he's locked in with us every night from dark until morning. I think that's reasonable.
He never complained again though so I guess he got over it.
Growing up, my neighbors had a large german shepard with a thunderous bark that liked to bark throughout the day. I like dogs so I actually enjoyed hearing it. It was never at night so it was never a problem.
SliceSabre
Banned
Dog nuisances laws give the neighbor the right to complain about OP's dog regardless. It'll be be up to a judge to decide if corrective action is needed.
Astral Dog
Member
Your neighbors would have been traumatized by our little dog, she is one little furry barking machine
Sho_Nuff82
Member
Are you counting each bark as 1 second in that 4 minutes?
Robin64
Member
The Control of Dogs Act 1986 does explicitely state "excessive barking" not just "some barking". I think OP has nothing to worry about here, as he can clearly prove it is not excessive.
Goro Majima
Kitty Genovese Member
Even considering that the neighbor works the night shift, I don't think a dog barking that little is unreasonable. When you work the night shift it's not like dogs are the only thing that can wake you up. There's people mowing their lawns, leaf blowers, motorcycles, etc.
I think the neighbor really needs to invest in some earplugs or white noise machines.
I'm usually the first one to complain about a barking dog as well. I lived in a city without noise ordinances for barking dogs. So for 5 years, I lived next door to a bored dog that would lay outside by the fence in the backyard and bark about 6-8 hours a day. Longer, if the owners went out to bars until 2am. The extra fun part was that the way the backyards were lined up, they're right outside the bedroom window so the barking was loudest in the bedroom. It was weird how easy it was to get used to over time but it reminded me of the stories people have of Tinnitus. If you accidentally start paying attention to it again, it'll drive you mad.
I think the neighbor really needs to invest in some earplugs or white noise machines.
I'm usually the first one to complain about a barking dog as well. I lived in a city without noise ordinances for barking dogs. So for 5 years, I lived next door to a bored dog that would lay outside by the fence in the backyard and bark about 6-8 hours a day. Longer, if the owners went out to bars until 2am. The extra fun part was that the way the backyards were lined up, they're right outside the bedroom window so the barking was loudest in the bedroom. It was weird how easy it was to get used to over time but it reminded me of the stories people have of Tinnitus. If you accidentally start paying attention to it again, it'll drive you mad.
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