My neighbors have a very obnoxious beagle that is allowed to run free. This dog apparently considers the entire street to be his territory. He has actually charged at me and my GSD while we're in our own front yard!

My shepherd tends to be somewhat aggressive toward other dogs and we've been working on this (I've read Ed's articles on this). She is doing well, but I'm unsure how to handle it when she shows aggression toward this particular dog. I don't want to be unfair to my dog and this beagle is very intrusive and rude. By the way, the beagle doesn't budge when I speak harshly to him and tell him to go home. I bought pepper spray recently, but consider this a last resort to be used against bothersome dogs.

Any help you can give me will be appreciated. Thanks!

Call your animal control officer. Dog at large. Or if you are particularly industrious you can catch him and drop him off at the animal shelter as a stray.

Use the pepper spray. Protect your dog. Don't think because the beagle is small he can't do much damage.

I agree. This is a huge pet peeve of mine.....get it....PET PEEVE <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />
Anyways, I would call every time and sign a complaint everytime. I hate this....irresponsible and ignorant pet owners who feel their dogs dont need to be on leashes.
I have even come across dogs left out roaming the yards and street near thier homes while I was working (police officer)....what I do every time is call our animal control. They come and pick up the dog and then drop it off at the vet kennel we use as per our SPCA. What happens then is the dog is checked for a Town license. If it doesnt have one the owner is ticketed for that, dog at large, and they have to pay the kennel fee to get the dog back. In most cases...not all...it corrects the ignorant act of letting their dog out at large.
Also use the spray....dont be afraid to....they are in the wrong and you are protecting yourself....besides it doesnt injure the dog....OC spray is just a strong irratant. Always remember though if you use it...you were protecting YOURSELF.....not the dog.....follow?
I feel better now.
Pat

Thank you. I do get your drift. Actually, I called Animal Control previously just to double-check and make sure the owners were breaking the law, as we aren't in the city limits. They assured me they were in violation of the leash law and told me they would go to the house and talk to the owners. Thanks for your input. I'm calling Animal Control tomorrow morning.

My neighbors have a very obnoxious beagle that is allowed to run free. This dog apparently considers the entire street to be his territory. He has actually charged at me and my GSD while we're in our own front yard!

I am really glad to see that someone has raised this issue, as my home backs up to a neighborhood green space in which an irresponsible dog owner lets his two dogs run free a couple times a day to sh*t or do whatever else strikes their fancy, with the owner(s) tagging along eventually, too late to prevent any bad behavior (or locate and bag any poop, of course). Too bad they're not out long enough to call animal rescue, but I'm thinking a liberal dose of pepper spray to both the dogs and mainly the owner, if they even THINK of approaching my pup when he's out there on leash, will be well used. I've got a young GSD and have been lead to believe that any injury/bite at this age could be devastating as far as his drive is concerned. We don't need to take this crap, although people like this DO make me want to teach pup the art of food refusal, just in case retaliation creeps into their tiny brains....

Lisa posted:

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We don't need to take this crap, although people like this DO make me want to teach pup the art of food refusal, just in case retaliation creeps into their tiny brains....

Fanni vom Haus Lord suggust:

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These are good words to HEED. Most HUMANS will not do much to other HUMANS but will take their revenge out on us the K-9 companions of the same species.

(and I'm just a pup)

Sometimes my pup makes really GOOD SENSE!! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Lisa-
Just don't spray the humans.....even if they do deserve it <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />
Yea, your right, an attack by a dog to a pup can make the pup dog aggressive as it matures....and probobly wont help it's self confidence. Remember a pup cant defend itself...it looks to you, the Alpha, to protect it.
Good luck andemember to be persistant....unfortunatly some animal control dept's are pretty laxed.
Pat

Hi I am new here but I agree you should report them but keep reporting them until they are forced to do something. I have Apbt's(aka pit bulls) and I am always plagued with the problem of loose uncontrolled dogs. It is a very big problem for me as Apbt's are ALWAYS to blame. You are fortunate enough to have another breed(Not that it really matters in court) that is not given such a bad rep. because of the media don't let them get one because of an ignorant beagle owner(and I say ignorant because no one who knew anything would allow their dog to run free no matter what the breed.)

Okkk...this will probably get me flamed but I'm just posting how *I* do things..
Carol,
In the state where I live, an uncontrolled dog attacking your dog can be killed in self-defense. That, coupled with our strong concealed carry weapon laws tends to keep incidents like your going thru to a minimum. I've only had to knock on a distance neighbors door once to remind them that I'd be forced to shoot their dog if it came into my yard again ( it was harassing both my mules and my dogs ).
Of course, I belong to our counties animal control board, so I know the law for my state ( and I can see you were smart enough to check with animal control <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> ) Sadly, If you live in a non- rural area, your ability to defend yourself is diminished, and then the telephone is your best friend. You may consider just skipping calling animal control and call the police saying " there is a wild dog threatening me, it looks sick or something...hurry, I think it's going to attack the children nearby!" Believe, the police *will* respond if you word it like that.
Good luck!

Carol,

I completely agree with spraying this dog with OC. I say this for at least two reasons: first, the dog has a territory problem. He thinks your yard is his, and this needs to be corrected immediately. You boss-him not. Capisce?

Second, your dog must know that YOU will do the protecting (with some exceptions, of course...). This is one of the first steps to solving an animal aggression problem, which also involves lots of OB training and some corrections. Re-read Ed's article on this, especially the part about how to correct your dog.

Finally, Patrick is right-this dog made you fear for your own personal safety-this has been a repeated problem, etc. The OC won't hurt him-it's just ground up peppers in a margarine base to make it stick. It will wear off in 15-40 minutes, by which time Fido will be convinced that you are the biggest bad-a!% on the block.

When the neighbors start whining (and they will), it may be time to explore notification of their insurance carriers that they have a vicious dog, and that there are police reports to corroborate this...they'll get the point.