German Shepherd dog

This morning while letting my 3 gsd's out, I noticed the neighbors dog attacking something.  I thought it was a ground hog because I have caught them in the morning in my fence and had to seperate one from Falon on occassion.    I did not have my glasses or contacts in so couldn't figure out what it was, so I put my dogs into their corral and started calling for my neighbor to come out.  In the middle of all this Falon took a beautiful leap over the 4.5 foot fence in the coral and started running the fence line trying to either join in on the kill or go at it with the huskie.  I got her rounded up and put away and ran next door.  The husky had a young cat (maybe six months old in its mouth).  The owner finally came out and was able to get the dog to drop it and grab her dog.  The kitten couldn't walk.  I wrapped it in a towel and took it to my vet.  They suspect the back leg is broken and have put her on pain meds.  They have not done xrays yet - they want to wait until she stabilizes.  I came back to tell my neighbor about the broken leg.  She told me it is probably a stray and doesn't want to pay to fix the leg.  I am trying to find the owner so I can let them know what happened to their cat.  I was told since I brought her in she is now my responsibility - which is fine, but I am just frustrated that my neighbor does not think she has any responsibility toward this animal.  The vet told me it would be around $1,000 to repair her leg depending on what they find in the xray. 

In addition - they are the same neighbor who hooked their fence up to mine (and now have claimed 2 feet of my property).  Then they get a dog that they cannot control and to boot started baby sitting kids that are allowed outside alone with the huskey.  I never leave my dogs out unattended, but they leave the dog out almost all day.  Falon and the huskey have gone at it between the split picket fence and the neighbor never comes out - just lets me handle it.  I met with the fencing company today and they can run another length of fence (privacy) along that side - that will give a two fence buffer and no opening between the dogs.  Plus I am enclosing the corral which is currently a split rail fence with wiring - with privacy so that they can no longer visually see the neighbors dog.  My 75 year old mother is coming to live with me end of May - and I cannot expect her to handle my dogs if they are agitated by the neighbors dogs, so I have to fix this problem asap.

I am just so frustrated that I will now have to come up with another $1,100 to add a second fence to protect my dogs and am having a moral dilema about this poor kitten.  I don't think I have the heart to put an otherwise healthy animal to sleep just because of money.

Anyone have some good ideas on how to approach this neighbor? 

Cheryl

The neighbor sounds like the type that cannot be reasoned with...clearly an idiot if they let children run loose with a dog, especially one that attacks small animals.  You have my sympathy.

As far as the kitten, contact as many rescure groups/shelters as you can, explain your situation, maybe someone can help. Can you speak to anyone at the vet hospital who may be sympathetic to the situation, maybe lower the payment?

That's a shame, poor little thing, shame on his owners for not keeping him safe indoors.

I feel very bad for the kitten,  but in fairness to the neighbor and the other dog,  the cat did not belong on the property,  and the dog did what comes natural.  Huskies have very high prey drive and will kill or go after smaller animals.  its just their nature.  Even my own dogs will do it.  they never killed our cats, because they grew up with them and saw them as part of the pack,  but they will kill a stray.  Plus,  who says the neighbor had the 1000 to spend on an animal that wasn't their's?  I have enough trouble paying for gas and groceries along with standard bills at the moment.  my dogs have been eating better than me since gas is over 3.30 a gallon and groceries just keep going up in price.

Read your deed restrictions or local easements. There is an easement on all sides of property unless you have multiple lots. There is a 15 ft front and rear easement and a 10 ft side to side easement on my property. I cannot put a dwelling or fencing  on the easement, the neighbor has the same restrictions. When he put his house in, he put it as close to the easement as he could get, unfortunetly that is on the same side as my dog yard. He has to get a survyer out here to make sure he wasnt on the property line or the easement line.  I would check with your county restrictions about the easement, and if they are attached to your fence, you have the right to remove it, they are crossing the easement. Just like if you were to attach to the telephone or electric pole, the company can disengage the the fence and there is nothing you can do or say about it.

LeNore

Thanks for the advice about the fence.  What I discussed with the fence company was laying another fence parallel to mine to put two sections of fence between my dogs and theirs.  This way they cannot have any contact and the kids cannot put their fingers through.  This will leave a 2 foot alley between the fencing.  I will have a gate installed on my side to to access it so the grass can be maintained.  My goal would be to put some trees in there as well.  It is not my perfect solution, but I have to do something.

I am rasing the height on the corral and adding privacy fence as well.  This gives me 3 sections of fence to keep them apart.  They usually do not bother with the huskey - unless they see her charging the fence.  My dogs are  not outside unattended, however with my mother coming to live with me, it now has me scrambling to come up with the best solution.  I am putting an addition on and will have new kennels built on the lower level, but until that happens, I have to figure something out.

As for the kitten, yes I understand people cannot afford a bill like that, and that it is not 100% the neighbors fault since the kitten did enter their yard.  What upset me is that she heard her dog attacking something and did nothing because she thought it was a groundhog.  I think if your dog is attacking something, common sense, fear, etc would drive you to see what was going on.  I am not made of money either, but am willing to put some money out to give an animal a chance.  I know that it could have been my yard that the kitten wondered into and it could have been Falon that got it.  The difference is I watch my dogs and could have stopped it sooner and maybe the kitten would  still been alive. 

I guess I just don't have the heart to put an animal to sleep unless I try everything I can to find a solution first. 

Cheryl

I had the same fence problem with a neighbor who move in next to my three acres.   The cattle fence wont keep small childrens hands and feet out of harms way so I had to spend 8.000.00 to quickly put up a 6' cedar fence and for two years have still had problems of kids throwing junk over the fence and standing on daddy;s truck or something on their side to look over the fence,,even shooting B B guns and throwing things at the dogs...I have to keep my dogs kenneled because of junveniles that parents wont discipline and could get bit if one happens to fall over the fence...

It seems no matter what you try to do,,it gets harder every month to keep a civil head and keep things running smoothly.

They have three heinz 57 dogs with fleas and not shots and they run my dog out in the front of my property and I spend part of every day running them off and spraying them with vinegar if I can get close enough...they were warned to keep them in their own yard but in the County,,there are no leash laws. They have puppies every 6 mos and half of them end up smashed up on the busy farm to market road out in front.  I have to turn up the  music and not look out front to keep from hearing the crashes and dogs getting what they dont deserve.

So Renofan:   no matter whether its the city or the country ...Neighbors dogs and neighbors can be a trying every days frustration. Hope you can find a  solution before your mom gets there.   I would call the inspector and talk to city officials and take down your fence between the yards and put up a 6 foot cedar or pine paneled fence. concrete the a rail all the way down the yard before they put fence in place. Concrete the posts in place also. On the fence facing the other yard, post a sign that says    "No Trespassing"    post same sign  on back fence and front fence on  your property. 

This covers a multiple range of problems and notifies everyone  . This is our property and must ask to come on it...covers a multilple of sins., no matter what State you live in.

UGGGHHHHH.  Stupid neighbor.

Very lucky cat though that you were kind enough to bring it into the vet.  Maybe your vet will be kind enough to give you some sort of a discount because maybe it is a stray. 

 I like everyone's elses ideas on fencing too.

We have a bit of fence problem here, but not terrible.  Little fluffy dog next door is out ALL THE TIME.  Shouldn't this thing be in someones lap!  He's very cute and I actually feel bad for him, because he does not get very much attention.  But, when he's out.  Ike (my male GSD) and Spike (the poodle) run the fence.  Can't exactly call it fence fighting, because they are both very happy doing it.  And I'm afraid that it's the only fun this little dog gets to have.  I'm just always nervous that he will end up in our yard, as they will dig under the fence at each other occassionally.  So, I have to keep a close eye on things.  My older girl will get involved, but with her it's true fence fighting.  The boys are really just having fun.  You can see them look at each other through the vinyl fence and they seem to say. "ready, go!" There is two fences there.  A vinyl and a chain link fence.  Eventually I want to do something under the vinyl to prevent the digging.  As is there's sections with patio block, that are looking quite ghetto. 

The little town closest to my home, has dead cats laying all over the streets.  Most all of these cats are homeless and full of diseases. There are kind humans out there, but most don't care any more for a cat than an insect. Millions of cats are euthanized every year by shelters, and millions of others die from other circumstances. The kitten above may not have even had a home.

I learned decades ago, when one takes it upon themselves to save or rescue an animal from any situation, the responsibility is soly theirs. Rescues are broke and in desperate need of donations. The best any rescue could do is perhaps get certain vets to allow a discount. The great majority of vets are just looking to get the $$$$. Most don't even have the experience to save an animal in deep shock and in dire need.

Since I always had large numbers of dogs to care for, I always lived rural. It seemed that any area where we lived, boomed in population, and soon we had to move again. I worked for the Rail Road. On call 24/7, I was limited as to how far away from work I could live. When I had the opportunity to take a buy out, I jumped at the chance. We were finally able to move where we would never have a neighbor.

We can't expect others to have our feelings and empathy for animals. Animal owners living in cities or semi rural areas, are always fighting with each other, or fighting with neighbors who don't have animals.

At this time we have 9 cats. All are fixed and keep the mice away from our old farm house. I admire and commend Cheryl for her kindness. She is however, in the great minority of those who care what happens to a cat.

Abhay:

Beautiful cats.

Some great advice about the building inspector.  I think I will talk to them as i don't want to learn later that I did something wrong and again have to move/change fencing.  I made my first mistake by putting a split rail in and, then when the neighbor complained that he thought my fence was on his property I made my second mistake by not having the property surveyed again.  My Dad was a surveyor and I purchased new construction, so he was convinced we installed correctly.  But, when I put a new fence in I moved it in 2 feet to accomodate my neighbor - who then later decided to install his own fencing and had it survyed - only to find out that the 2 feet indeed was mine.  So - great advice to make sure where I am allowed to put the fence - as the other side is also in 2 feet , so don't want that to be an issue in the future as well. 

I am installing kennels with the new addition - but will also keep the "dog corral" which I am making adjustments do to Falon's impressive leap today into my backyard.  The coral has been a life saver as I finally had a new back yard put in and this is the first spring since I moved in that I actually have grass.

My vet indeed was very nice and gave me a courtesy discount. I appreciated that as they did not have to do it.

Again, thanks for all the good advice.  Hopefull the building inspector can point me in the right direction, especially since I will need to be in touch with them over the next few months regarding the addition.

Cheryl

Cheryl,

You are a good person for trying to help the kitten.  Cats are difficult to keep contained unless never let outside.  I have inside only house and barn cats both.  I've lost a few barn cats to neighbor dogs, not the dogs fault as the cats went on their property.   I do agree she should have at least come to see what the dog was attacking.

Good luck with the fence solutions.  It's a pain sometimes........

Renofan2, you are a caring person, what folks need for a neighbor.  What goes around comes around and you will be in store for many good things in your life in the future because you practice the "golden rule" of treating others the way you would like to be treated.  And your kindness to animals is most excellent.

You don't want to lose two feet of your property by allowing the neighhbor to "use" it for seven years (common law in many states).  So you need to consult with an attorney and have a letter sent to the neighbor. This can be done in a low key friendly way, just explaining to that neighbor, or having your attorney put it in a letter, that not to correct the boundary problem on the lot now can cause very serious problems if and when you try and sell your property, even causing lost sales at the last minute and near impossible to remedy in short order (something similar to this happened to me years ago and it was a real mess.).  

Then build a secure fence and put an electric fence wire for dogs (low powered but gives a fair jolt) on top of the fence.  One dose will stop any climber, be it human, dog or animal.

I think the building inspector will hopefully be able to give you some guideance.  Our local inspector is a real nice guy; ironically he used to be into the GSD's and was a helper in SCH so we had much to talk about.  When I built my house I had some issues with this psycho that lived next door claiming we had put our fence on his property.  Hell he even claimed we built our house on his property. lol  The inspector nipped that all in the bud one day when he came out with his tape measure and a copy of our survey to confirm the fence was where it was to be.  It never went any further.  But some inspector's don't like to get involved in "disputes" so they will refer the parties to take up the dispute in civil court.  I don't think in your situation it would be necessary to even take it that far if you have an inspector who is willing to do his job. 

That's the thing when you buy a house in a suburban area...you just don't know what you're neighbor's are gonna be like.  Some people are just ignorant and a pain in the ass! lol

TessJ10:

Luckily I am blessed with some very caring, generous friends.  I had called one late that morning and she was willing to share the expenses with me to save the kitten and was willing to take her home and help her recover until we could find either her owner or a new home. 

Again, thanks everyone for the great advice about the fence and property line.  I never thought to go to the building inspector at our township building, but will go there on Wed to find out the best way to solve this problem.  Hopefully I can have this problem solved quickly to avoid any further issues.  For now - 100% supervision of my dogs while outside in the yard is a must.  I used to leave them in the corral because cleaning the house with 3 gsd's under foot messing it up as you go along is not productive!  I will just have to live with a dirty house until this is solved.

Regards and thank you again,

Cheryl

The problem is that cats are free to roam and their owners take no responsability. We have nice neighbors but some of them have 4-5 cats that run free, crap all over my yard, climb on my cars and boat etc. They are not fixed and keep on having litters. While I don't want a cat to get hurt you can't expect a non-owner to pay $1000.00 vet bill on a stray cat. If they want too great but most people don't have $1000 to throw away.

We need laws to make cat owners take responsability and control their cats. Don't blame a dog who gets teased by the cats all the time; of course he will take a bite if given the chance.

Bottom line is yes alot of cats get killed and suffer because of this. Sad but true.

I agree with most on here.  The cat spent all 9 lives.  Perhaps, was too curious.   I don't think that even you should be held responsible for the feline.  If I were you, I would have told the vet that I was doing a good deed.  I won't pay you for the cats medical.  We have two options.  #1 is that you continue what I have started and you donate your time and expertise to the cat, or #2, I will pay to put the cat out of his misery.

As to the land used by your neighbor, I would claim it back.  I wouldn't worry, however.  Almost every attorney I have spoken to about this subject says that a judge would have to be an idiot to award someone else's property by theft or stupidity. 

Lisa

That is wacky!  You're not going to be there 24/7 to shut it off when their kids go outside.

I think you should just put razor wire around your compound.  Maybe a couple trip wires and booby traps incase the neighbors try to cross the boundary.  You do have a lookout tower, no?   

Honestly, why don't you plant something that is fast growing in the 2' along the lotline?  It will reclaim your property and give you a bit of privacy from the neighbor.  If you want some recommendations for plants, ask or go to a professional.  Don't buy those cheap Arborvitaes at Lowe's or H.D. that will take 20 years to fill in.  After you have these planted, then you put up the razor wire!

What the hell is KUDZU?  Looks like the Japanese Plague to me.  Once planted, you can't get rid of it.  Will it take up the 2' space that the neighbor has "borrowed"?  Kudzu can only be planted in the S.E.  US.  where does the OP live?

Lisa

I still don't know.    I'm glad you're not my neighbor!   I am going to keep a close eye on you!

I would be dike proud to be one of your dog's what?

I am not arguing with you.  No matter what house you live in, unless it is a corner, the neighbor to your left and right are always going to be morons and everything they do will be odd to you.  They probably think the same about you.

Example:

My neighbor is a moron.  They let their dog run loose.  Their kids play ball right next to my fense even though they have over 2 acres.  He mows his lawn every third week after 830pm.  They never put their lids on their garbage cans and in a windy day, their garbage blows into our yard.

In my neighbors eyes:   I am a moron.  I have vicious dogs that are unable to run free and be social with all animals and people.  My dogs are vicious and run up and down the fense when hisds play ball.  (he doesn't get prey drive).   I mow my lawn every week and sometimes twice a week when it grows quickly.  To him it is a waste of time. 

Sue

That stuff sounds like Trumpet Vine used up here.  Very Fast.

YRT

I think you missed that she has two fences two feet inside of her property line.  Add a row of shrubery and I highly doubt they can get through all three. 

Cheryl,

How is the cat doning?

Don: I got it ,,,One of the fences is not going to stay   it is not in the right place....

Kalibeck - you have it right.  I am leaving the 5 foot high split picket and then 2 feet behind it running a 6 foot privacy fence.  I will talk to the landscaper about what we can put in the 2 foot buffer zone that will be low maintenance.  I will put a gate on the split picket so I can access the 2 foot zone.  Just want to check with the twp and building inspector on rules for setting fence lines (as per all the good advice above).  I know our twp does not require permits for femces, but it would be good to know once and for all what the rules are before spending more money, etc.  The electric fence suggestion is also a good one as I thought about running this in front of the fence to keep them from digging, jumping etc on it. 

Thanks for all the good advice.  By checking first with the twp - I hope that I can finally get this situation settled.  Plus I want to make it as secure as possible before my mother comes to live here as I don't want it to be a big problem for her to let the dogs in and out ,etc when I am not home.

Cheryl