I was checking out at the register at Petco holding my toddler in my arms and a man with a pit bull came up close behind me and let his dog come up right next to me and sniff my legs. When the dog made contact with my leg I turned around and asked him “Please keep your dog away from me”. He laughed and said “he’s a sweetie”. I said “I don’t care, I was attacked by a dog and I don’t like them. I don’t want your dog touching me”. He said “but they’re man’s best friend”. I said “not the one who attacked me”. He said “so if you were attacked by a Mexican would you hate all Mexicans?” I said “no” and walked away as he yelled “okay keep being racist, you racist!”. Like why do these people always insist that you ENJOY their dogs, then throw a tantrum when you don’t? And why do they compare human beings, specifically people of color, to dogs? I know it’s a Petco and people bring their dogs, I don’t expect to not be in line with a dog but I think it should be common decency not to allow your dog to make unwanted physical contact with strangers and to understand that some people are scared of dogs, or simply don’t care for them and not take it personally.

My local soccer team recently put out a post banning dogs from their sports fields. I’ve posted it below for some interesting reading. They mention they have been met with “hostility” by dog owners simply for making a point that they don’t want mutts pissing and shitting all over a literal in-use sports field designed for children’s soccer games...

But I can’t be the only one that feels like these type of news as a small but significant win, putting logic and common sense back into the world. I mean who even brings their dog to a sports game?

The message reads:

“Hi all, please help spread the word that there is now a blanket ban on all dogs on all grassed areas at the Rec

This has been a hard decision for the Trustees but after a recent upsurge in dog walking and exercising we are genuinely concerened for the safety of all players from dog waste

We have adults and children attending training sessions and playing organised cricket, football and rugby matches using all of the grassed areas. These areas are where they come together to exercise, compete, and enjoy physical activity in a safe environment. As an open site, we also see many children come up and play on our pitches which we do not discourage but, we are now very concerned for all of them as they all have ‘high player contact’ with the soil from sliding tackles, diving saves, falls, picking up the ball or even just sitting on what is contaminated ground.

Despite the signage around the grounds, we are fighting what seems to be a losing battle with some dog owners who are letting their dogs roam and foul on the pitches and with what now seems to becoming the norm; not bothering to pick it up afterwards. Regardless of the signs and Trustees taking the time to talk to dog owners, we are being met with more and more hostility from some who simply ignore or dismiss the severe health risks that dog faeces and its residue causes.”

The post goes on to explain some horrifying cases of children and athletes who contracted skin cellulitis due to the disgusting dog fouling after accidentally sliding in it while playing. But yet again dog nutters are unlikely to get the message, but at least it’s a nice win for common sense.

Over the ~15 years I've owned a home I've had probably 10 - 20 occassions where I found dog waste on my lawn. I would prefer that number to be zero, but here we are.

A couple months ago I arrived home from work to see two dogs off leash, one of which was perched on my lawn actively defecating. They both ran away when I pulled up. Not far behind was a group of 5 people walking. I asked them if those were their dogs and they said "yes."

"Where are their leashes?"

Two of them held up a leash.

"Why aren't they on their leashes?"

"Oh that one saw a squirrel and chased it and the other followed."

Now, to me, that doesn't explain why they were off their leashes. I suppose they let them off "for a minute" and then the feral hounds took off as feral hounds do? Whatever, there's no reasoning with these people. So I went inside to drop off my stuff, and I went back out to check if they picked up the feces.

They did not. So I was determined to give it back to them.

I grabbed a plastic bag and picked it up. I had to drive to catch up to them since they're a couple blocks away at this point. Luckily, they're at one of their houses, so I know where they live now! I get out of the car, "hey what's going on" one of them asks.

I look to the guy that had the leash (the dogs still aren't on their leashes) and I tell him "oh nothing, I'm just giving you your shit back" and I whip the bag of shit at him. Enter a chorus of gasps and pearl clutching and other such nonsense.

I yell (and I mean YELL) "you're lucky I didn't smear it on your door." I gave them two gigantic middle fingers, and I got in my car and drove away.

I haven't seen them walking their dogs on my block since.

Our neighbors are terrible people… And along with that, of course, they require them to have no fewer than four dogs at all times. One of them gets out and comes onto our property and barks and acts aggressively towards us, which I don’t do well with. It has been such a consistent thing that we even offered to buy bark collars for all of their dogs and all of the batteries that they would require. They always act like it’s just no big deal, and we have told them that they are ruining our quality of life. They act like we are the assholes.

So one night we were trying to enjoy being outside, and their dogs barked and barked and barked for hours on end, we called them, we sent messages. We asked them politely. They ignored us. So in a fit of rage, I went and got a coyote call, and if you don’t know what that is, it sends out the absolute worst barking, screeching dog sounds you could ever imagine and is designed to project sound for miles. I assumed they just really enjoyed the sound that dogs make, so I thought I would share it back with them. I pointed it directly at their house at full volume for a couple of hours while I went inside and giggled. Their dogs went absolutely insane, not knowing what they were hearing, and they finally brought them inside and started messaging us, which was comical because their phones mysteriously hadn’t been working for the hours prior when their dogs were barking. I thought it was the funniest thing ever. They asked us the next day if we had heard it and we just acted like we had no idea. So they pointed a camera at our house to see if it happened again they could let us know what it was. I hate them.

So, every Sunday I go to Starbucks before I go to the gym. I sit down for a bit in the morning and wrap up things I need to do for classes, to-dos, relax, etc.

Today was a little packed so I had to sit in a table in the middle of other ones. Which was fine, I didn’t care. There was a couple to my left and the right was empty.
Enter dog owner.
Now, I looked up the policy for dogs on the Starbucks website. They are not allowed. And this was clearly not a service dog. It was one of those white crusty ones that yipped and yapped.
The guy walks over to the table empty next to me (yay) and ties the dog down to the chair. But not tightly enough I guess? He goes to order and this dog immediately starts walking under MY table and going around my legs. I’m allergic. I didn’t get bad but still. He comes back and yanks the dog back over but there’s no reprimanding or anything or apologies either. The dog KEEPS walking under my table. Sniffing me and everything I was so annoyed. The guy just kept yanking on the collar softly but the dog did not stop.

Eventually I just cut my time short and walked out of there. Seriously how selfish can you be. I wouldn’t even feel as mad as I do now if the guy A: said sorry like a decent person or B: made an effort to get the dog to actually stop. These people are insane.

These disgusting people think because they’re walking a dog that means they’re allowed on anyone and everyone’s property to do whatever the fuck they want! They love to allow their dogs to go 50 feet into your property to sniff around your front door and landscaping. Pissing on your bushes and flowers.

I freaked out on my next door neighbor last night and I’m still in a bad mood over it. My neighbors brother is watching one of those mutated wiener dogs and last night walked it into my lawn and right on my brand new Japanese Maple Tree that I JUST FUCKING PLANTED.

This neighbor literally had a conversation with me about my trees I just planted yet had the fucking audacity to walk this rat dog to my new tree to possibly piss and shit on my tree? DOG URINE KILLS PLANTS AND TREES!!!!!

Thank GOD I installed cameras surrounding my entire property. I live at the end of a culdesac and it’s super dark out. I look on the cameras and see him out there with some animal UNLEASHED. I said WTF is that? So I ran outside and said “IS THAT A DOG?”

He really thought I was excited to see the stupid thing and goes “Haha! Yeah it’s a weiner dog!” I said “I don’t want that fucking dog on my lawn pissing on my new trees and my grass. Get it off right now!!!!!”

Of course he’s calling the stupid thing and it’s not listening to him so I reiterate “GET THAT DOG OFF MY LAWN AND AWAY FROM MY FUCKING TREES.” His response “Ok ok I get it.”

Do you though? DO YOU GET IT? WTF is in these peoples brains? It’s not your property. Why aren’t you with the dog on your lawn in your landscaping and taking it to my lawn around my trees instead? OMG I despise these people with a passion!

No respect for anyone or anything! I’ve worked so hard on landscaping and spent so much time and money. I’m beyond sick of the existence of these animals and their disgusting owners!

I work for a car rental company and I've been working here for about 3 years now and I've had to deal with entitled customers, rude people, crazy people but by far our worse customers are dog owners. We are coming up on their shedding season and I am not looking forward to these people. What makes them the worse is that we have a no pets policy that we make very clear we have. At our desk we have multiple giant signs,we verbally tell them before they walk off,its in the terms and agreements they sign,we stamp it on their contract, and there's a sticker in the window of the car. They just don't seem to care and bring their mutts along and turn our cars into straight up biohazards.

The condition they leave the cars in is so udderly disgusting. Pee and poop in the carpets,hair everywhere,the smell of dog that lingers in the car even after it's steam cleaned. We aren't properly equipped to deal with biohazards and fur so we have to send it to get professionally done. We once had send over a bronco that was so full of hair even after cleaning the car for 8 hours straight he still couldn't get out the hair. It's just crazy how someone could let their mutt completely destroy someone else's property and just walk away like it's fine. Not trying to be a corporate shill or anything I could care less about the car but they expect ME to clean all that up and that's a no.

Now the crazy part and the reason I say they are the worst. I've been assaulted by 3 dog owners over this last year. Two people have jumped over my counter to fight me and one dude caught me off guard when I was closing up for the day. The first two people weren't that bad, they didn't leave me with anything serious and walked away looking worse then I did and in handcuffs. The third guy who caught me off guard struck me from behind and knocked me unconscious,who knows what would of happened if my coworker wasn't there,she immediately contacted the police and he was arrested shortly after (we have a button we can press under the counter and the airport police are the ones who arrested the guy). I pressed charges on all of those people btw. Most people curse me out or threaten my life but it's just crazy that these people who when met with consequences retaliate this way,even my Karen customers don't do that. They also try to abuse policy to try get away with it, if you travel with a service dog you can have the pet hair fee waived. So people claim their dog is a service dog ALL the time it's ridiculous, your rottweiler is clearly not a service dog. I however found out if you charge these people anyways they then have to dispute the charge with billing and in order to do so they need proof of their dog being a service dog which most cannot provide.

Now for the fun part, I make bonuses off these people. We charge 500$ for cleaning and we of course charge for damage to the car. The guy who struck me from behind was mad I charged him 8k because his dog tore up the back row of a traverse. They'll always claim I gave them the car with hair already in it but we document the condition of the vehicle prior to renting so they get proven wrong. I make about 4K on bonuses on a good month due to these people and seeing that bonus get deposited into my account is so satisfying.

I used to be such a prolific hiker but I can't go to any of my favorite spots anymore because everyone treats them like a dog park. Can't go swimming in the lake because all these owners will let their animals charge at people in the water despite all the signs saying no dogs on the beach, and of course the ranger is never there or if they are they don't care. I was trying to birdwatch today in a *wildlife refuge*, I was standing at the edge of the river looking out at the birds with my binoculars when this pitbull mix comes charging out of nowhere, straight into the lake in front of me. I am not a small woman, but this was a bigass dog! I barely avoided getting soaked. My boyfriend asked if I was okay and then I said "I want to get out of here" and the dog owner called me a bitch under her breath. There are multiple species of ground nesting birds here!!!

We made it to the end of the trail a while later, and were having lunch sitting on this little cement wall by the edge of the river. When, what do you know, the dog comes rushing out of the woods at charges right at me! I nearly fell backwards over the wall, I would've fallen maybe 5ft onto the rocky riverbank and broken something. I yell for my boyfriend, and he distracted the dog for a minute but it was still really interested in me. It brushed my leg, and its mouth was open and it was near my knee and my instinct was to scream and kick it, but I didn't. The woman sees me having an anxiety attack and yells, annoyed, "I got him, I got him, cool it" but she did not have him, she was like 10ft away. And the other people around are looking at me like they're disgusted! Eventually she came over and grabbed him by the collar and we left. It completely ruined what had been such a special day for me. I saw 4 new species! I've been home for an hour and I'm still so upset. I wish people weren't such selfish and irresponsible owners.

I love the outdoors.

I used to LOVE going to the beach whenever I could to collect seashells, walking miles along the water. To smell the ocean air, to center myself, and enjoy peace of mind. It was very meditative for me.

I used to LOVE going hiking. To appreciate the scenery, to learn about wildlife, to birdwatch, to smell the fragrant flowers, and to admire the changing colors of fall foliage.

I used to LOVE hanging out in parks. Listening to the birds chirp as I read an article. To feel the breeze in my hair. To relax and unwind.

But guess what? I rarely do those things now. THANKS TO YOU AND YOUR FVCKING UNLEASHED DOGS.

NUMBER ONE: In New York City, IN ALL PUBLIC AREAS

All dogs in public places in New York City must be leashed. The leash can’t be longer than 6 feet.

NUMBER TWO: IN PARKS

Dogs must be leashed in public parks unless they are in a dog run or a designated off-leash area.

NUMBER THREE: ON THE BEACH

Beaches and Bathing Facilties: Dogs are not allowed to enter any bathing facilities, including New York City beaches. However, as a courtesy, leashed dogs are allowed on the sand and boardwalk at Rockaway Beach, Coney Island & Brighton Beach, Manhattan Beach, Midland Beach, and South Beach from October 1 until May 1. Leashed dogs are allowed on the boardwalk/promenade at Orchard, Coney Island, Brighton, Midland, South, and Manhattan Beaches.

Do you do any of these things? NO.

Do you respect city laws regarding leashing your fvcking dog? NO.

Do you try to smooth over your law-breaking ways by assuring passerby that when your ugly as$ unleashed dog pounces on them, they're "friendly"? YES.

Do you feel like you and your idiot dog are above the law, and that rules and regulations designed to ensure public safety and comfort don't apply to you? YES.

If Mayor Mamdani granted me ONE wish - just ONE - I would ask him to JAIL all of the dog-owners who BREAK THE LAW. Yes, that's right. Not just an inconsequential fine that NO ONE writes anyway. No. STRAIGHT TO JAIL.

That way I can go back to loving the outdoors and enjoying my favorite pastimes.

Halle-fucking-lujah. I know these dog freaks are going to cause a fuss about this, but I think it’s great. Every tenant with a dog is required to register their dog and get the dog DNA swabbed by a specific date or face financial penalties. And if shit is left out undisposed, a sample of the poop is taken and sent to their DNA testing contractor to find out the dog responsible. The tenant will be fined and after the third violation, they will get kicked out. This is what I’m talking about! I love my new apartments, not just because they are wonderful management wise, but also because their non-tolerance for problematic dogs and dog owners. They have strict breed restrictions and strict standards on grounds cleanliness.

I’m gonna consider this a win in the normalization of calling out dog owners and their nasty beasts.

I just tried to have dinner with a neighbor friend. She seems like a bit of a recluse. For context, so am I. She asked me to dinner at her house.
I was happy and excited to oblige. What a great gesture!

I arrived and the dog jumped on me several times with a hose in his mouth. He’s a purebred German Shepard. I met her by saying hello while she walked her dog. So I was fine with him jumping at the house.

But he followed me around somewhat defensively of his territory. He at one point nibbled at me. Not in a flirty dog way, he showed his teeth and nibbled harder than I was comfortable with.

I asked if he could be outside during dinner. After I hit behind a door after his nibbles.

She just went outside with him and kept the door open not talking with me. A full 10 minutes.

I leaned out and said- neighbor’s name- are you ok?

Her response, yes-I’m just texting with my brother.

She was out with her dog. I was inside trying to be cordial and eat the meal she made.

I left. I don’t want to feel threatened by a dog. I don’t accept that. Maybe that makes me not a dog person. But I graciously said thank you and left.

If you have a human guest, the dog comes second, period.

Yikes. Venting. This was so fucking weird

I have to rant.

I have been hosting some friends for game night most Thursdays. It has been going on for about 2 months. Last night, one of my friends announced that his wife wants to join in, but she can't because she has to stay home with the dog. His solution? Move game night to his house, that way everyone can join in!

Everyone else thought that was a good solution, except me. I have no interest in heading over to their house just because they have a dog. And I am pissed off that I started game night with my friends, only to have it co-opted by the dog.

I suspect that we will play at my house next week, as we are finishing a long campaign game. Then we will take the next few weeks off for the holidays. In January, they will suggest that we move it to their house. I will object and get outvoted. I will then drop out of the group, and it will implode.

All because of the dog.

It has been a while since I last posted to the Dogfree community, and in that time, I have confronted a fair number of dog owners in public. The situation each time is almost identical. I self-elect myself to be the person confronting a dog owner whose animal is in an inappropriate place. These places include supermarkets, restaurants, and public areas with specific "no pets" legal signage.

What I've discovered in my years confronting dog owners is that virtually all of the time, the situation gets hostile. Not merely unpleasant or uncomfortable, but authentically hostile. Each situation is a chance at a physical altercation. There is a real sense of danger each time you approach a situation like that. What makes it worse is that you never quite know if the danger is going to come from the dog or the owner. Both can be equally vicious. This intuitively makes sense, but it is also incredibly tragic when used to measure the integrity of civilized society.

The reason most dog owners get away with the behavior that is routinely complained about on this subreddit is because of the sheer violence of the acts. They do not poll social norms or request permission before invading other people's space. These people act like aggressive invaders, taking what does not belong to them, and acting as though it does. This is not how property rights are formed or respected in the societies most people respect or want to exist within. Dog owners force themselves and their choices upon others, without consideration for manners or decency. So it stands to make sense that any challenge to their decisions will not be met with politeness or compliance. No, instead, dog owners fight if you complain about their invasion of public or private territory, and trampling of community rights.

I cannot think of too many other groups in society that we want to protect that exhibit this behavior. Dog people are the ultimate social danger because they act as though their behavior is innocent or harmless, and respond to requests to adapt their violating behavior with immediate vitriol. This is the ultimate attempt at gaslighting the public. Dog people aren't just being parasitized by their dogs, they are also parasitizing the basic consideration we give to others in public in society.

The last time I confronted a dog person was just a few days ago, and I was forced to prepare for a fight. I was in a restaurant, and I heard a loud dog bark. I turned my head and immediately glared at the owner (a man) who was clutching a dog to his chest. I didn't say anything but gave him a stern look that suggested, "That isn't appropriate in here." He spoke first and aggressively responded to me, "what!?" I didn't avert my gaze and held firm, looking down at him. The man stood up and started to say aggressive things like "You have something to say?" He then started to approach me.

In the micro-moment I had to prepare for this unexpected conflict, the absurdity of it was revealed to me. This man with his dog wants to start a fight with me in a high-end sandwich place because I dared to confront his barking animal, which shouldn't have been in there to begin with. I have to now prepare myself for the possibility of physical contact because I simply chose to speak up (even though he technically did the first speaking). I show this man I am not willing to back down and I face him. He realized that, unlike a small barking dog, his posture was not enough to thwart me. He stopped a few feet from me and accused me of being "rude" and generally not being proper in making him feel bad. This was in front of the many other patrons in the place. I kept my cool (as I train myself to do) and responded. I realized that as long as he was feeling personally attacked my effort to reach him with logic would fail. I said (less than sincerely) that it was not my intention to hurt his feelings and that it sounded like he was upset. That was simply to de-escalate his hotheadedness. I quickly and forcefully then followed up with the fact that the rude act was him taking his pet into a public eating establishment and that he knows that animal is not allowed in here. I didn't remove my gaze, and the man backed down and then actually went outside (where he remained).

That situation went about as well as possible, but was still far more conflict than most people can handle. The outcome of a situation like that when a stranger aggressively walks toward you is also very unpredictable and dangerous. I'm the silly guy who isn't afraid of a fight if it means standing up for something I believe in. I am stupid enough to be punched in the face because I think someone should follow pet rules. I don't care about looking like an asshole in public because I don't want a dog making people feel uncomfortable. I am not everyone.

Dog people will respond to aggression and strength, but that is too much of a wall to climb for most members of society. We shouldn't have to be like hardened fighters or deputized authorities to inform dog people when they are disobeying clearly articulated rules and legal expectations. Everyone out there who has had to get into a fight simply to get a dog person to be appropriate has my sympathies. You are not alone in this. More so, I regret that being myself in public and helping others by telling a dog person to follow the rules is an act that subjects me to physical danger. I don't really mind the yelling and verbal abuse. I certainly don't prefer it, but I can tolerate being hated by dog owners. What I cannot tolerate, and what I don't think anyone in this community should tolerate, is the threat or fear of violence. Dog people's most loathsome act is how destructively they defend their bad habits. This is not something we should tolerate. Reminding a fellow member of society when they are putting others at risk (dogs in public much of the time) is not an act that we should allow them to punish. I can't give everyone the power to stand up and fight like me, but I do want to remind people that the charade of anger and aggression that dog people put up in the face of their immaturity is just a sign of their ultimate weakness and mal-adaptation to social existence. Be well everyone.

Before the dognutters moved into a house behind our property, our home was a peaceful joyful and relaxing place to live, we opened our windows for fresh air in the spring and summer. We gardened and enjoy the outdoors.

All that was taken from us.

It is wrong in so many ways.

I'm mad as hell and depressed . I have resorted to seeking help by a professional.

I'm tired of this. It's not right.

I have been called an undateable red flag, a litmus test, judgmental, hateful, off-putting, a weirdo. I’ve been accused of not being safe around kids for disliking dogs. I’ve been told I just have bad vibes and that’s why dogs don’t like me (dogs do like me, but of course the only reason I dislike dogs must be because they dislike me.)

What are some insults that have been thrown your way by dog lovers for simply having a different opinion?

Happy Monday y'all.

I have a relatively good friend who has two Pit bulls and a three year old toddler. The toddler now asks for a pit bull puppy for his birthday and of course mom is already shopping for one. (The other two were adopted as adults from a shelter)
So far so good, but.....
How do I distance myself from this friendship? Do I tell her flat out that I cannot be friends with her anymore because she puts her baby in such danger? Or do I just ghost her and explain it to her if she asks.

What would you do? I’m torn because I love her kid and I would love to stay in this life. But I’m on pins and needles every time I’m over there (not just for the kid but for myself too) and have stopped going but even in public she brings the kid and the dogs. I don’t allow them in my house and so she won’t visit. She is the classic pit bull apologist and I'm a little lost with how to handle this.

Thanks for some tips in advance!

My observation is because:

1. The parks are gross. Why? Because they are dog parks and dogs are gross.

2. Because even dogs don't like dogs and having a bunch of off leash dogs running around will lead to dog fights.

3. Because they get so much more of their entitlement fulfilled by prancing around and befouling the parks for humans.

I'm sure I must be missing some more reasons. Please add your take.

I’ve noticed recently - which is very off putting that most areas we walk there are multiple people with their dogs off a lead running wild, often the owner is not close to the dog. Specific breeds, which I can now spot tend to be jumpers, the owners don’t seem to stop them, just yelling “he won’t bite” - people don’t seam to realize it’s not biting it’s the mud, germs and slobbers..up sniffing and licking poop then jumping on children. Sigh.

I don’t want a dog, especially covered in water and mud jumping on us on a walk, is there a way to get them to stop approaching us?

Specifically at a walled garden nearby, there is a small river, a lady was with her dog it was wet and covered in mud, it jumped up from behind on me, then my child , 3rd time I put my leg up to block it and 4th time did the same and she screamed and followed us back to our car screaming - me with a 7 year old child. I’ve watched similar happen to others, it’s rare to get a walk without having to change jacket and pants from dog mud. I notice this problem in the uk, USA I find people keep them on a lead or they are more trained.

Have tried pointing and sit - stay commands but it doesn’t work..it’s came to the stage where we can’t actually go to specific places or we avoid a route because there are multiple dogs off a lead

We have a cottage rental thats pet free. I am not a dog person and I want it to be a safe space for people with allergies. My mom sometimes stays at the house and is highly allergic to dogs. Cleanliness is also our top priority.

Unfortunately, legally we have to accept service dogs under ADA law. The guest booked with two huge service dogs. They stayed a few days. She told me she would clean up after them and they do not allow them on the furniture. My Cleaner went to the house a few minutes after they checked out. She sent me pictures of huge clumps of hair all over the floor and furniture.

Her and another cleaner were there for two hours cleaning which equates to 4 hours worth of cleaning because there’s two people. Then, I was there for additional 5 hours of cleaning.

It’s unfortunate the owners could not vacuum a little bit before they left, considering we’re a pet free rental and cannot charge for service dogs. Theres a regular vacuum and a cordless one in the home for their use. Just seems entitled to book a pet free rental and not attempt to help with all the additional cleaning when someone went out of their way to accommodate you.

I’m also confused how SDs are not pets if they have names and live in your home. You also take care of them just like pets.

I was at home today having breakfast and I saw from the window quite a few dog owners crossing the grass all the way up to my window letting their dogs shit and pee on the property. Nothing more appetising than seeing shit in a plastic bag dangling from someone's hand...

For one, there's a sign that says this isn't allowed. They always ignore it and let the dog go wherever it wants. You might suggest I say something but believe me it never stops. There are endless hordes of them and some get offended or angry. So I just end up arguing and ruining my zen.

Secondly, how self-entitled and inconsiderate they have to be?! They get a dog and take it outside other people's houses to pee and shit? If I went outside their homes to do the same, they'd call the police.

They might say it's not the same because they're animals. Okay then, do they have the appropriate space to own animals? Like a big yard so it can use as its private toilet? Why should *our* properties get befouled because *you* chose to get a dog?

Edit: thanks everyone for your advice! I got some really good ideas here how to prevent this. Fingers crossed they'll work 🙏

My neighbor refuses to keep her dog in the yard because "he's so energetic and just loves to chase the mailman!". So, now all of us who live within a two block radius have to make special trips to the post office daily and pick up our mail.

From USPS; "If the carrier deems a residence unsafe because of an unrestrained dog, mail delivery service can be interrupted. When service is interrupted at an address or in a neighborhood, all parties involved will have to pick up mail at their local Post Office.".

Why is it that dog ownership constantly becomes a problem for those of us who want NOTHING to do with it? And people wonder why we hate them. Now, I have to ask to leave work early so I can make it to the local post office by 5pm before they close to get mail. And does the owner face any penalties? Of course not.

I took my pet to a spay/neuter clinic a couple days ago, drop off time for my specific animal was 6:30-7, drop off for dogs was 7:30-8. Not only is this written on the clinic‘s website, they literally tell you over the phone and then text you TWICE before your appointment about bringing your pet at the correct time. Obviously this rule exists because they don’t want dogs in there, scaring the other pets who are already terrified being there in the first place.

However, one nutter couple arrived an hour before dog drop off, and let their dog bark the entire time. They literally stood off to the side waiting for their time slot, and like all nutters, looked around smiling to see if anyone thought it was cute I guess. No one thought it was cute and their goofy smiles faded when no one pet their dog and they could tell everyone else was pissed. There were only two vet assistants for about 30 people, so they were incredibly busy with everyone else, but they did side eye the couple a bit.

I think between all the people, the fact that it was snowing outside and generally knowing how nutters are, they were probably too busy and too uncomfortable to tell them to leave (although I would have). The husband(?) did take the dog out twice for for a minute each time when it started jumping and lunging everywhere, but the door is locked on the outside and you need to personally be let in, so he‘d go out for a minute, then knock and someone in line would have to go open the door for him. I would’ve let him stand out there. There is NO reason why you couldn’t go sit in your car for a while. Just overall obnoxious behavior from dog AND owners.

Rode our bikes to the playground by the primary school like we do every weekend. Kid decides to ride through the wet grass and I ride with her to the edge of the playground. Husband stays on the paved path and approaches the center of the playground where folks usually park their bikes. Out of nowhere a nasty barking thing comes barreling toward him. He attempts to abruptly turn his bike around but in the process falls off his bike into the mud. Nutter (older female) walks over quickly trying to leash the nasty thing. Husband gets up and doesn’t appear obviously injured but is covered in mud and clearly bewildered and also trying to stay away from the nasty thing. While this takes place I am rapidly approaching the scene, having told kid to stay on the other side of the playground away from this, and in an authoritative voice that I truly don’t know where came from, I find myself ordering this woman to leash her dog immediately, and I’m barking (pun intended) all sorts of admonishments and commands at her quite loudly. She did succeed in leashing the dog and I continued yelling things to the effect of, “this is a children’s playground not a dog park” and “you literally walked right past a sign saying dogs must be leashed.” (There was no one else at the playground; the nutter was not with any children.) I continued my tirade as she hightailed it out of there. I also began filming her. As she rounded the corner of the school building, I could see that she had actually begun RUNNING away. And this lady looked like she probably hadn’t run in 15 years. At this point I realized she got her comeuppance — I scared her at least as much if not more than she scared my family. Good riddance nutter! I watched her as she continued running away for the next quarter mile, until she was out of my field of vision. (Husband is ok thankfully; just muddy.)

I live in a neighborhood that has a Facebook group where we can all discuss random neighborhood things. I’ve gotten fed up with listening to the constant barking every time I step outside, so I made a short (and civil) post asking people to please get the barking under control. Here’s one of the replies I received:

“First of all let me say Im so sorry you feel you live in a neighbor thats a nuisance to you. I could only imagine, how that feels. 2nd as a dog owner I'll apologize for Bella, she's a big dog with a loud bark and a heart of gold. But I have to wonder what you mean by getting your dogs under control?? We are very lucky to live in this family friendly community. Living in a family friendly community means you experience ALL the elements of a family community. For us that means you will experience kids running around, ringing doors bells, probably running in the street, you will hear dogs barking, you will have teenagers having a campfire all hours of the night during homecoming(that was us). I think we are lucky to experience all of this as so many others will never experience what a neighborhood feels like. When I first started this page its main intent was for us to support one another, support our local community and "hopefully" make friendships along the way. As time as gone on we have become increasingly more critical of our neighbors yards, garbage, dogs etc and that was never the intent for this site. Please know I have any open door if anyone wants to chat!!”

This comment received a ton of likes and other people commenting that I shouldn’t be spreading negativity or shaming my neighbors, and that I’m un-neighborly. Someone afterwards made a passive-aggressive post asking people to share their positive experiences in the neighborhood and it’s ofc full of people saying “I’m so glad it’s a mostly dog-friendly community!!”

God forbid someone has noise-sensitivities or wants to go outside and listen to the nature without hearing ear-splitting barking.

Thanks for letting me vent and wish me luck with living in yet another neighborhood ruled by dog nutters 🙃

I answered the prompt “you should not go out with me if” with “being a dog owner defines your lifestyle/personality”.

Anyway I haven’t logged onto hinge in ages bc it’s trash but today I did and this tool bag responded with this, word for word:

“I rescued a bully (foster fail) she comes to work with me, we sun bathe, get brunch, take walks and have the same taste in music. I would say being a dog dad has added more adventures and ambition in my life.”

Your dog has the same taste in music as you??? You are out of your freaking gourd, sir.

Haven’t responded yet I’ll take your ideas :)