Just want to point out that some of us attorney types are not over-bearing lawsuit happy jerks ;-) I have dogs that will fence fight with my neighbor's dogs (five foot wood privacy fence). My solution is to take them in at the first sight (or sound) of trouble and than let them out again once the neighbor's dogs go in. Problem solved.

David, further training of your dog is a great suggestion. Tiring your dog w/exercise (both mental and physical) is critical but in the interim one thing that hasn't been mentioned...I see you cannot have a privacy fence but you can do the next best thing...buy the thickest, fullest, highest bushes you can afford and line the fence abutting his yard with them. Didn't notice where you live but if you have winters by you, buy the kind of bushes that do NOT lose their leaves in the winter. And, buy the kind of bushes that stay full from the ground up, even as they mature. Not only will the greenier be pretty, it will help block the view of the neighbors and their dog.

I installed a 5' fence that you can see thru. We have neighbors to one side that have a 9 year old daughter. After seeing her and her little friends try to interact w/my dog thru the fence and seeing my dog sit by the fence watching her and her friends (he was about 15 months at the time and I think liked watching their activities w/toys/balls/swings, etc.), I decided it was time to add another dimension.

After telling her parents that she must ask my permission to interact with Gunnar, I promptly installed 7' bushes lining that side of the property, each one directly next to the other.

Not only does it completely hinder the little girl's ability to interact with my dog, the visual wall of green hinders my dog as well and, as a result, he's no longer interested in what's on the other side.

Good luck David. Lousy neighbors are bad enough, litigious neighbors are a nightmare.

That is a great idea, Judy. Great idea. I do have just one question, though. Were you afraid your dog might bite the little girls or do you just not like people petting your dog? No offense or anything, I was just curious.

But seriously, that is a great idea.

Neither.

1) One day while I was in the backyard w/my dog the little brat of a kid started poking sticks at my dog thru the fence ! My dog saw it as a game because he tried to grab the stick from her hand. I saw it as two things: my dog was going to get hurt and/or the girl was going to get bitten and a lawsuit would soon follow.

2) Caught the 9 year old's cousin (4, maybe 5 years old) pick up a rock and aim it at my dog. The parents were also in the yard but didn't see this unfolding. I yelled at him from my patio just at the point when his hand was over his head about the throw the rock. He dropped the rock.

3) Girl's friends from school playing on the swingset in their backyard...friend says, "Hey, let's go feed the dog stuff"!

I work from home so my dog is supervised 24/7. When no children are present at the neighbor's house, I'll leave my dog alone outside for maybe 5 minutes. If there are kids in the yard next door, he is never alone. Now, with the bushes, they can't get to him thru the fence. The parents are pleasant but the kid is horrible so, even with the bushes, I don't trust her. But the bushes have seriously cut down on her or her friends' ability to do anything that would injure my dog.

So until I can install a 10 foot high, 10 foot wide concrete wall, lighted towers, machine guns and sharks w/lazers , my dog will not be left outside alone as long as that kid lives next door! Put another way, my dog is like a 4th son to me - intentionally hurt him, and I will be your worst nightmare !

Hee hee hee.

Too funny Judy

By the way, if you ever get your sharks with lasers etc. please send me a couple. I can't seem to avoid the idiots in crowds or at the park who will just jump on my pup and try to grab him and pet him. My "please don't pet my dog" is usually met with a "relax will you? I know dogs and they like me!".

My pup is usually aloof and well behaved with strangers but at 10 months now he will get his hackles up and let out some very aggressive barks if people won't back off and insist on getting into a "confrontation" with me. (I have gotten into yelling matches with strangers when they ignore my request that they not pet my pup. "What part of DON'T PET MY DOG DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND, YOU MORON?!". Lol.)

Maybe I should just let my dog do the talking... my words are often ignored, but so far no one has challenged his displays of aggression

I'd never allow him to bite of course, but a 95 lbs. dark sable male GSD growling with hackles up is usually all it takes to get idiots to back off.

Um... "Let's go feed the dog stuff"??... that just made me shudder.

You guys make me glad that my neighbours aren't that way.
They have children too but they're all excellent with my dogs and in turn I make sure my dogs are well socialized and friendly with them.

Judy, have you considered an electrical fence? I don't mean an invisible fence, I mean the fences used with livestock that give a decent shock when you come into contact with them

The bushes will prevent your dog from coming into contact with the fence, but it sure sounds like that neighbour kid of yours could use some conditioning... hehe.

Getting back to the original topic (sorry for going off, lol); there's no reason to let your dogs bark out in the yard and disturb your neighbours.
Obviously in this case they're being jerks what with the ultimatum and threats, but no one likes hearing other people's dogs barking and having them fence-charge at you.

My older female shepherd's favourite activity is barking. We allow it in the house (to a degree ) but not when she's out in the yard. A firm NO is all it takes to shut her up and she's learned where she can and cannot bark.

I do this as a courtesy to my neighbours and in return I expect the same from them. If you don't want to spend money on a no-bark collar, supervize your dogs when they're out and don't allow them to go off at your neighbours.
Have them drag a leash and give a strong prong collar correction if you have to until they learn to respect the rule.

Let them bark when they're inside the house. That'll give you anti-burglar protection.

The bushes are an excellent idea too!
I'd still do the training though; having an "off" switch on a barking dog is always a good idea. It'll save you from future frustration

 Quote: yuko blum

Um... "Let's go feed the dog stuff"??... that just made me shudder.

Judy, have you considered an electrical fence? I don't mean an invisible fence, I mean the fences used with livestock that give a decent shock when you come into contact with them

The bushes will prevent your dog from coming into contact with the fence, but it sure sounds like that neighbour kid of yours could use some conditioning... hehe.

Yuko, shut up. You're gonna get me in trouble...I'm already working on it. Very quietly working on it.

judy,thanks that is the best sug. i heard....never thought of that,as of now an invisible fence is being installed and then i will add some bushes as u explaind at a latter date....and for all you individuals with smart assed answeres i have retained leagal advise.....a dog is deemed as personal propwrty and to try to take your personal property away as border line a violation of ur constitutional rights as ive been told.....so thanks everyone

 Quote: Anonymous

That is a great idea, Judy. Great idea. I do have just one question, though. Were you afraid your dog might bite the little girls or do you just not like people petting your dog? No offense or anything, I was just curious.

But seriously, that is a great idea.

Are we allowing anonymous users now?

don't leave them out when you are not home. period.