How To Deal With Neighbors Aggressive Dog? (Read This First)

Dog aggression may develop for various reasons. It can either be a fear motivated, protective or territorial type of attack or sometimes a redirected aggression that owners often misunderstand. Neighbors with aggressive dogs are a nightmare.

How to deal with a neighbor’s aggressive dog? You have to evaluate the situation first before reporting the problem, such as knowing what triggers the dog to behave in such a way and then, speak with your neighbor positively, explaining the situation. However, if things got out of hand, call your local animal control to solve the issue.

This article will show you ways to deal with aggressive dogs in the neighborhood, especially when it approaches you, charges on the fence, and keeps coming to your yard.

What Can I Do About My Neighbor’s Aggressive Dog?

An aggressive dog does not necessarily need to hurt someone or wait for it to become a safety concern before acting upon it.

As a concerned individual, it is your right to report or do something about your neighbor’s dog if you suspect that it is a threat to your safety and other people in the area.

You must also know what to do once the dog attacks someone. 

When faced with situations like this, here are some tips that can help you on what to do with your neighbor’s aggressive dog.

1. Be Diplomatic

Calmly approach your neighbor. Your neighbor might become defensive when you talk to them with a loud tone of voice. 

Sit down and discuss the matter. Before that, if you already noticed that the dog acts up, you may take photos of it. It can serve as evidence if the situation escalates later on.

It could also help convince the owner of your claims.

If the owner is aware already, give your neighbor ample time to solve their dogs’ problem. A week or two can be enough to make changes.

But, when you can’t get the chance to talk face-to-face, you may leave a note on their doorsteps or mailbox. The content should not be rude, that they may get offended. Make it clear that your neighbor will not misinterpret your actions.

However, through this method, there’s a slim possibility only that your neighbor will be informed of the situation.

2. Assess The Situation

Check your surroundings. Maybe there are triggers around that stir up the dogs next door. 

Is it because there’s wildlife entering the yard? Are there children around teasing the dog that can worsen the situation?

You can opt to fence your yard to make it safe. 

It’s better this way so that you can help to alleviate the aggressive behavior of your neighbor’s dogs.

3. Call Animal Control

If you talk already with your neighbors multiple times, yet no progress has been made. Then it’s the best time to call for your local animal control.

Report the situation and provide pieces of evidence you have gathered to support your claims.

You and your dogs have the right to walk into your yard freely without getting afraid.

What Happens When You Call Animal Control On A Neighbor?

Calling an animal control on a neighbor can help you avoid getting a personal injury because of the dog’s aggressive behavior.

Worst case scenario is that the dog tends to growl at your children or attempts to bite you or any of your family members. Thus, this problem should be brought to your local animal control.

This animal control is usually a government-funded agency that deals with domestic animals. They handle aggressive dogs, investigate the issue, and assist in controlling those deemed dangerous pets.

Once your neighbor’s dog is determined to be dangerous, your neighbor must follow and comply with the specific safety precaution to reduce its chances of causing harm to other people or animals.

Some cases involve requiring the owner to pay for penalties, provide a leash, or muzzle requirements.

Related: My Dog Was Attacked by a Pit Bull

What To Do If An Aggressive Dog Approaches You?

It’s frightening when you are approached by an aggressive dog when you walk down the road, jog, or while riding a bike.

Here are ways you can apply to avoid the situation from escalating.

1. Be Alert. If you are running with your earbuds, remove one so that you will be aware of the approaching danger. Check unusual movements or sounds around you.

2. Avoid making eye-to-eye contact with the dog. Staring at an aggressive dog may prompt them to attack you. Thus, talk to the dog in a calm and subtle tone of voice while you slowly move backward.

3. Avoid screaming or yelling at the dog. Never run away with an aggressive dog in pursuit, for it only worsens the problem.

4. If you are going towards a barking or growling dog, avoid invading its territory. You may cross the street and walk on the other side instead.

5. If the dog gets too close to you, place something between you and the dog, such as a backpack, jacket, etc.

What Can I Do If My Neighbor’s Dog Keeps Coming Into My Yard?

Neighborhood dogs can be a nuisance for homeowners who want a pet-free yard. However, even if you have pets, you don’t like dogs next door coming into your yard and cleaning up after someone else’s.

There are various methods of dealing with your neighbor’s dogs that keep coming into your yard. Here is some of it.

1. Place noticeable signs such as “No Trespassing.”

2. Talk to your neighbor and ask them to stop letting their dog enter your yard.

3. Install security cameras to catch your neighbor’s dogs in the act. You can use this as proof when things between you and your neighbor heighten.

4. Enhance your yard’s fencing. You may add height or locks to your fences.

5. Contact your local animal control authorities if your neighbor does not do something to resolve the problem.

6. You have to understand local ordinances regarding roaming dogs. Seek legal advice on this matter to keep your neighbor’s pet out of your yard.

How To Stop A Neighbor’s Dog From Charging The Fence?

Your neighbor’s dog is charging the fence perhaps because of its barrier frustration, barrier reactivity, or barrier aggression. Your fence is acting as a separator of the dog from the trigger.

It could be that it’s your pet, a passing vehicle, a particular sound, or even you are the trigger that upsets your neighbor’s dog that causes them to charge.

To stop this behavior, you can try building a better fence.

If you have a pet, plus you have an open type fence, you might want to consider covering it or building a barrier in front of it. It will reduce the dog’s ability to see and engage with the trigger.

Another is to talk with your neighbor. Try to speak with them calmly and develop an agreeable setup.

If you both have dogs, you can work together in supervising both of your dogs or come up with an agreeable schedule that will not let you bring dogs out in the yard at the same time.

However, if your neighbor does not do anything about it, it would be best to call for local animal control to help you settle this problem.

Can I Call The Cops On A Neighbor’s Dog?

Yes, you can call the cops, especially if your neighbor’s dog is aggressive or has charged you, yet the owner does nothing.

It is also a way of doing your neighborhood a favor because you might not know who is the next target or victim in your area. It is better to be vigilant and report the dog’s owner.

After all, this kind of behavior is just a result of your neighbor’s irresponsible attitude in owning a pet.

Can An Aggressive Dog Be Cured?

There is no guarantee that this tendency can be cured. In most cases, dogs’ aggression is not totally rehabilitated, but somehow, it can be managed and controlled.

To aid your dog’s aggression, it is a must to limit your pet’s exposure to situations, people, things, or other animals that triggers their aggressive tendencies.

Indeed, aggression is a severe behavior problem for pets. There are various reasons why dogs act this way. Sometimes it can be too complex to detect and at the same time challenging to treat.

But there are ways of managing this. The only thing is that if the owner does not correctly carry it out, these modification techniques can lead to detrimental effects on your pet.

Some of this includes habituation, extinction, desensitization, counterconditioning, etc.

If your dog has a history of resorting to aggression to deal with stressful situations, it will be hard to apply techniques to them.

On the other hand, if the dog has been well behaved for years, it would be easier to predict the possible triggers or stimuli. Hence, you can avoid those.

Also Read: My Dog Is Yelping In Pain When Picked Up

Summary

In summary, dogs in the neighborhood are overly aggressive by the time they attempt to break through your fence, show their teeth, or growls when you pass by.

Thus, this is not just a simple issue of protecting its territory, but there’s an excellent risk of a possible attack.

Sad to say, but this aggression in dogs is not cured. What you can do is to manage and control it. However, even working dogs’ aggression is not enough to solve the problem.

Your neighbor should learn the skills in handling and controlling this act. Hence, whatever damage this aggressive dog may have caused, it is still the owner’s accountability.

It’s crucial to know and understand the underlying factors why a dog behaves aggressively. It will also help them identify modification techniques that will be effective for their dogs.

Resources

Image credits – Canva