My Neighbor Got a Pit Bull - What Do I Do?

[Guest sith lord]

I think a Grizzly would do better with the kids, don't you?

:laugh::laugh:

[skinzWILL]

People like me are NOT half the problem. People that buy the worthless piece of **** are the entire problem. If it were up to me they'd all be dead, pits and rots. You need to be on the recieving end of those teeth and jaws one time, your opinion would be the same.

YES THEY ARE, and the IRRESPONSIBLE owners too!!! And I have been... I used to train dogs for a living... i had way more problem dogs than i did easy ones. I know how it feels... probably better than you in fact.

So by your logic, if someone of a certain race attacked you and you in self defense killed them, that, since someone of that particular race hurt you, all of them should be killed. Or where would you draw the line, a bear in the woods? an opossum in your garage?? One of them hurt me = they should ALL die?? man you are screwed up.

***to the OP do chain link not chicken wire (its not strong enough).Be sure bury at least 6 inches of the fence in the ground. And unless your a breeder any dog you have should be fixed

[Meskeet21]

So by your logic, if someone of a certain race attacked you and you in self defense killed them, that, since someone of that particular race hurt you, all of them should be killed. Or where would you draw the line, a bear in the woods? an opossum in your garage?? One of them hurt me = they should ALL die?? man you are screwed up.

my friend, you have NO idea how many people share that same logic. NO idea.

[Monte51Coleman]

For anyone suggesting that you give the dog the benefit of the doubt, that you introduce your two very young little girls to the dog and teach them to read the warning signs, etc, I only have the following advice:

Experiment with the lives of your own children.

To the op: Build that fence and build it fast.

[skinzWILL]

I live in Texas.... oh yes I do and its scary as hell

Monte i can understand that, but would you apply that to every dog (personally i distrust small dogs more bc. they have less discretion with why they bite bc. of their smaller stature) i socialized mine with young children at a young age and he is great with kids bc. he knows the rules. But you do have to be careful with dogs that are as big (or bigger) than the child (as i alluded to in my other post they can hurt them just playing bc. they are so big), and it is best to (from a safety aspect) that you yourself know the dog. From the other perspectiveit will also help the animal to learn the rules for being around children.

[twa]

For anyone suggesting that you give the dog the benefit of the doubt, that you introduce your two very young little girls to the dog and teach them to read the warning signs, etc, I only have the following advice:

Experiment with the lives of your own children.

To the op: Build that fence and build it fast.

Introducing them to the dog and teaching them what to watch out for is gonna do more than any three ft fence(especially chicken wire) that might slow it down two seconds:2cents:

Of course doing both and consulting animal control ,while arming yourself would be better...along with never giving a animal the benefit of doubt

[zoony]

Introduce your cat right away too. but beforehand put a little mustard on it, the pitbull will thank you

[SkinnedAussie]

Just move to my part of Australia. Pit Bulls are banned. All existing Pit Bulls must be desexed, or they will be destroyed.

[Burgundy Burner]

My daughter was raised with ****er spaniels and assorted cats. I never had a worry with these animals and she was really good with them. I never had any concerns.

However, you mention that your daughters are ages one and three. When my daughter was about three or so, a neighbor came knocking on my door and was very excited/animated. She was frantically describing how Jessica was choking our beloved dog. As it turns out, Jess was simply loving the dog (around the neck) a little too much. The dog was fine and Jessica learned how to interact with the dog in a much better way.

Your daughters are way too young to understand the importance of interacting with a dog, especially a breed that can be unpredictable. The owner of this dog does not sound like a responsible person and this would only add to the problem. Since this dog would be allowed to roam the area unabated, my suggestion is to put your house on the market and move. Seriously. Having a sturdy fence in the back yard is fine, but what about the times when you and your loved ones are in the front yard? Ultimately, no one is safe from a dog that can roam the neighborhood.

Whatever you decide, just make sure that your family is safe at all times.

[Redd]

People like me are NOT half the problem. People that buy the worthless piece of **** are the entire problem. If it were up to me they'd all be dead, pits and rots. You need to be on the recieving end of those teeth and jaws one time, your opinion would be the same.

ManCow?

[33]

What Pitbulls can teach us about profiling.

Of course, not all pit bulls are dangerous. Most don’t bite anyone. Meanwhile, Dobermans and Great Danes and German shepherds and Rottweilers are frequent biters as well, and the dog that recently mauled a Frenchwoman so badly that she was given the world’s first face transplant was, of all things, a Labrador retriever. When we say that pit bulls are dangerous, we are making a generalization, just as insurance companies use generalizations when they charge young men more for car insurance than the rest of us (even though many young men are perfectly good drivers), and doctors use generalizations when they tell overweight middle-aged men to get their cholesterol checked (even though many overweight middle-aged men won’t experience heart trouble).

Not the first time I've posted this article, but always seems worthwhile to the discussion.

EDIT: This obviously won't solve the OP's question, but might add to the parallel discussions.

[robotfire]

Okay, so it sounds like the kind of fence I was planning on getting will do nothing. What in the world am I supposed to do? I have a huge yard, and it will cost about $5,000 to build the kind of fence I apparently need. I know you can't put a price on your children's safety, but I don't even feel like a fence would really solve this problem. We'll still have to run to the car every time we leave the house or come home, because the car is in the front yard.

About the neighbor: Everybody in the neighborhood hates the guy. He is the epitomy of white trash. He's got tons of cars and garbage in his back yard, he's constantly got a hobo fire going on, and he's constantly drunk. I went to talk to him about this tonight at 7 o'clock, but he was already out for the night because he was wasted - not because it was a Saturday, but because of the time of day. His friend told me to come by in the morning, because he would have the best chance of being sober at that point. He's a reasonably nice guy aside from being ridiculously inconsiderate, but he is in no way responsible enough to own a pit bull.

I've thought about buying him a fence, because his yard is very small. However, I guarantee that he would leave the gate open. He completely intends to let this dog run free.

Somebody please give me a better idea than bringing my kids over to the dog so they can play with him and insert their heads in his mouth. I'm not experimenting with my kids.

[33]

Sounds like the cheapest thing would be for you to learn more about dogs so you have something to actually teach your kids.

Your easiest option is obviously a fence.

There is no reason you should have to run to your car just because there is a pitbull in the area. If that's your opinion then you should be running every time there is any dog in the area.

Maybe the cheapest solution is to actually get the dog some real training so you can have the best possible control over the dog. Otherwise, this sounds like a neighbor problem more than a dog problem.

[Redd]

Well you could build a small fenced in backyard for your kids to play in if your that scared of the pit bull. I can see where you're coming from with your small kids playing, but the whole running to your car thing is overreacting imo.

[twa]

Lets see

we have arson(of your own home)

Taking the dog for a permanent midnight walk

Moving(w/o arson)

poisoning the dog

Putting up a good fence(not very effective if he lets it run loose)

Learning to live with the dog and the risk

I'm leaving out the alligators and bears...I'm prejudiced

If none of these nor your local laws seem to fit...wait till no one is around and shoot it....it's word against yours,and it ain't talking.

I don't see many other options other than shooting the neighbor or burning him out...perhaps you could take him aside and explain it to him?

I have to say Zoony did outstanding here:cheers:

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoony View Post

-Dig a moat, fill it with crocodiles

-Start a car restoration project. Spread parts all over back yard. Hang engine from cherry picker. Leave frame of rusted car sitting out. Tell neighbor that you can't complete the project until he gets rid of his dog

-every time dog poops in your yard, collect it, load it in a trebuchet, and fling it back. Aim for open windows.

-Buy a pet Grizzly

[AdamB]

It is late, so if I missed something already addressed, sorry

If your neighbor is letting his dogs run, report him, asap. Even if nothing comes of it, you still have it documented. If the dogs is causing problems, tell them it is a pit and you will usually get a faster response. I hate saying that since, at this point it sounds as if the dogs has done nothing wrong and there is a "shoot-first and ask questions later" approach when it comes to pits and, really, anything that looks like a pit, but that is on the owner's shoulders, not yours.

But, at this point, first step is talking to your neighbor if you can find him sober and explain your concerns, and what you plan to do if it continues to be a problem.

You can introduce your children to the dog if you want. Not knowing the dogs or able to observe their behavior, no way to say if it is a good idea or a bad one. Make sure you children know how to approach dogs, not to get face level or throw their arms around them, etc, but that is good advice for any parent.

Do not have them chain the dogs, especially the pit bull, if it is more than a few hours. There is alot of debate within the pit community about the effects chaining has these breeds of dogs, but there is enough research for it to be considered generally a bad idea. if they go that route, recommend to them a zip line or similar where they have plenty of room to move about while still being restricted to their property. Chaining can cause dogs to become overly territorial, putting everyone at risk.

Skip the invisible fences. It works for some dogs, not for others. Remember that some breeds such as APBTs have a higher than average resistance to discomfort (they feel it, just tend to ignore it), which can render the shock from the collars useless - plus you would have to talk the owner to putting the collars on the dogs anyways.

As far as pits being aggressive, they can be against other animals. In fact, they can be very aggressive against other dogs, it just depends on the individual dog. Historically however, they are not aggressive towards humans. The problem right now is that there are alot of bad breeders and owners. People do not realize that the pit bull breeds are extremely human-centric, more so than many other breeds, therefore must be part of the family unless you intend for them to be purely working dogs.

And they suck as guard dogs unless trained to do so. And to train them as guard dogs means over-writing their basic instincts, which is usually a bad idea. There is a reason why most law enforcement agencies consider them great for everything but patrol work. There is an old joke about good pitbulls being such good guard dogs that they will help the robbers load the van.

Any dog can be aggressive, and any dog can cause a fatality. Pomerians have killed children before, and Huskies have killed 3 or 4 people this past summer (remember, over the past coupel of years, the average fatal dog rate has been around 20 per year total). Dogs were designed as predators, and even the friendly Golden next door still have the tools to be one. Pits are very strong, fast dogs with a never-quit attitude, and they, along with any large dog, have to be respected by their owners.

[The Brave Little Toaster Oven]

Sorry, i was attacked by a pitbull. It was unprovoked. The owner let it off the leash and it made its way under the fence and into our yard where it almost ripped my balls off with its teeth....I was very lucky. Missed my skin by less than a centimeter.

To the OP, take precautionary measures to protect your family...shore up your fencing for sure. Dont listen to the "he would never hurt a fly" speech the owners give you...when they want something, they will do what they want.

[Enter Apotheosis]

**** those dogs. If you've ever been REALLY attacked by one you'd know. I mean attacked! In my own yard by one of those docile playful as an angel pit bulls. Let's just say one of us didn't make it and I bathed in his blood before I took it to it's former owner. That animal and everything mixed with its blood line needs to go. They are a ticking time bomb.

I'm sorry I feel so strongly about them. I went through a horrific event and I will never forgive the last one.

Go see a shrink... god ****ing damn, man :doh:

Being cautious and even a bit paranoid after something like that is perfectly understandable but you're in full-on serial killer mode. Hell, I'd be more afraid of having you move in next door than a pitbull after your last couple of comments.

[Slateman]

How about just putting in a fence? I mean, you have little girls. Easily establishes boundries. Keeps them out of the dog poop and the dog poop out of your yard.

[Capt Rich Fla]

Just move to my part of Australia. Pit Bulls are banned. All existing Pit Bulls must be desexed, or they will be destroyed.

:applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause: Finally!, some place with the brains and nads to do the right thing.

[Capt Rich Fla]

So by your logic, if someone of a certain race attacked you and you in self defense killed them, that, since someone of that particular race hurt you, all of them should be killed. Or where would you draw the line, a bear in the woods? an opossum in your garage?? One of them hurt me = they should ALL die?? man you are screwed up.

:doh:Oh my Obama. I figured that stupid statement would make its way in here somewhere. You must be kidding? Put the race cards down and back away. I draw the line between animals and humans. If you value a dogs life more or even as much as your life, good luck with that.

[Capt Rich Fla]

To the OP. I had a neighbor move in with a very large doberman and I kindly told him that I had two baby girls and what the consequences of his dog entering my yard would be and you know what? The very next day there was a 6 foot high securty fence built all the way around his back yard. What's even better is after that I didn't have any trouble with that guy asking to borrow stuff either.

[SkinnedAussie]

:applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause: Finally!, some place with the brains and nads to do the right thing.

A lot of areas have a Dangerous Dog Register, and if anyone has any of the dogs listed on the register, they are under heavy restrictions in regards to keeping the dog under control, both on and off their property.

The first time an 'incident' involving the dog is reported, the dog is confiscated, to be later humanely destroyed, and the owner is heavily fined.

[Capt Rich Fla]

A lot of areas have a Dangerous Dog Register, and if anyone has any of the dogs listed on the register, they are under heavy restrictions in regards to keeping the dog under control, both on and off their property.

The first time an 'incident' involving the dog is reported, the dog is confiscated, to be later humanely destroyed, and the owner is heavily fined.

See, that would never work in the US. We wouldn't want to offend the dog or hurt its feelings.:doh:

[robotfire]

See, that would never work in the US. We wouldn't want to offend the dog or hurt its feelings.:doh:

There are a lot of places in the U.S. where pit bulls are banned. A LOT.