Man Fighting With Nightmare Neighbor Over Their Dogs After She Sprayed Dish Soap Up His Pup's Nose

Sep 02, 2022

Pets can give us so much joy that the more quality time we spend with them, the more they start to feel like part of the family. And, as in most families, when they are threatened, we get defensive and our reflex is to protect them. Especially since we can’t know what our pets are feeling, we have no choice but to assume the worst at times, which can make us double up on our protectiveness. Sometimes, things can get tricky when other people’s pets are involved and everybody is in protective mode.

Such was the case for one dog owner who took to Reddit in July 2022 to get some advice about a lamentable situation he found himself in with his next-door neighbor. He said he has medium-sized pooches, as does his neighbor, and their pets do not get along. This leads to habitual barking on each side of a gate that divides their properties. Because of the barking, the neighbor sometimes takes it upon herself to deal with the situation unkindly, the original poster explained. One incident, in particular, led the man to stop talking to the neighbor entirely.

“Both my neighbor and I have dogs, who dislike each other both medium-sized dogs. We have a large wooden fence between both properties. We are not on speaking terms since she tried to spray washing up liquid up my dog’s nose through a knot hole in the fence when he was sniffing through it,” he wrote.

“During the summer she leaves her back door open and her dog has free run of her house/garden. I keep my back door closed and let my dogs out after they have meals for about 10 minutes,” he continued.

He said because she lets her dogs roam free in their backyard in the summer, his dogs frequently get into barking fits with hers.

“A few times a week the dogs will bark at each other through the fence. This never happens in winter as she keeps her back door closed,” he wrote.

Unhappy with the constant barking, the neighbor approached the man to urge him to control his dogs, even as hers remains as uncontrollable as well.

“I have advised her to keep her back door closed, she says my dogs need to be trained to stay away from the fence (she cannot control her own dog either, as it runs out barking when it hears mine),” he wrote. 

He explained the neighbor is now trying to take matters into her own hands in ways he finds uncomfortable and fears she may try to get other parties involved.

“Recently, she has started making recordings on her phone with her commentary (very passive/aggressive). I presume with the intent to make a complaint to someone,” he wrote before asking the community what the likely outcome would be if she were to make a formal complaint with a body such as a local council in his native England.

Readers were quick to share their advice and suggestions, as well as recount their own experiences concerning their dogs and difficult neighbors. Many also expressed their dismay at the neighbor’s act of spraying washing liquid up the dog’s nose, saying it could be considered hostile and action should be taken against her for it.

“There’s not a court in the land that’s going to agree that you are somehow responsible for the momentary nuisance of two dogs barking at each other through a fence briefly, or that it is somehow your responsibility to train said animal to stay away from a fence on your property to avoid this while hers can do whatever,” one commenter wrote.

Another commenter said there wasn’t much that could be done.

“I’d strongly suggest protecting your dog from further risk of harm by blocking off knot holes but the barking will undoubtedly continue. There's not really anything your neighbor can do in terms of noise complaint — assuming your/their dogs are not being neglected — I think most councils would laugh in her face tbh,” the second commenter wrote.

Meanwhile, another reader said tit for tat might be the best approach.

“I’ve had this kind of situation before and my own council sided with the neighbors because I thought ignoring it was best, I’d recommend getting a pet/motion-activated camera with sound (you can get them as cheap … on Amazon) and just keep it pointing mainly at your garden with next doors garden just in view (to avoid privacy issues as the neighbor seems petty).

"Just keep the footage backed up or stored somewhere safe so if she does go ahead with a complaint you can refute it. If you wanted to be extra petty since it seems like her dog is the issue and yours are just reacting I’d record for a week then put In a complaint against her haha.”

Another commenter laid it out simply: “It’s one of those neighborly disputes in which there are no winners or losers really. Just live your life, try and ignore her.” 

Who do you think is the responsible party here, if any? Do you believe taking the matter to the local council would resolve the dispute between the neighbors? Let us know and be sure to pass this on to pet-loving family and friends.