$50 Fine if Your Dog Barks.....

joyce

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I live on the East Coast of Florida and there is a community close to me that is trying to pass a new law. The new law is if your dog barks for more than 5 minutes you will receive a $50 fine for each occurance. The people opposed are afraid that neighbors who hate each other will use this new law to get revenge on the person owning a dog. The way the law seems, a person just makes a call and complains and the person being complained about instantly gets a $50 fine. I admit a dog barking constantly for hours on end will drive even me nuts, but give me a break. I hope this does not pass, but I'm sure if it does there will be more tax dollars spent by stupid law suits. I don't know, but it seems like another ridiculous law to me.
 

JLCwrites

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Agreed.... they should only fine people if there are several complaints from different neighbors.

Now, if only there is something I can do about people letting their cats use my backyard as a litter box!
 

WendyNYC

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I do agree, but I have a neighbor with a dog that barks ALL NIGHT LONG. bark.....bark....bark...(much longer pause. Is he going to stop?)...bark. So I feel their pain.
A new law seems a bit extreme.

I've considered sending my neighbors an anonymous letter that reads "Dead Dogs Don't Bark."

I'm kidding, of course. I'm a dog lover.
<-----------------------Just look at Truman.
 

Shadow_Ferret

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When my dogs start barking I bring them in immediately. I expect no less from my neighbors. People who are so inconsiderate as to let their dog bark for 5 minutes should be fined.

As far as mean neighbors using it to screw you over, there are a LOT of ordinances that can be used to that effect.
 

joyce

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Truman is adorable. I do hate it when people leave their dogs out all night long to bark. I wonder if I'm not sleeping, how are they? I can see people sitting there watching their clocks, waiting for 5 minutes to be up, then calling the authorities. My male lab does more of a squeek than a bark, and only when he wants to come back inside to feel the A.C......he's spoiled. If I'm on the phone, sometimes it might take me 5 minutes and 14 seconds to get outside to let him back in.
 

KTC

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I'd get a fine every time the doorbell rings. Christ. My Franny is lovely and good...but that one bad habit would put us in a moving van if that law passed.
 

MidnightMuse

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This is a law in a lot of areas, mostly it's ignored. It doesn't bother me to hear animals making animal noises, unless that animal isn't being attended to, as in: is it in distress or trying to warn/inform (did Jimmy fall in the well again?)

While I'm trying to sleep, I could get irritated. But luckily where I live, if dogs are barking at night, there's a reason. Usually someone walking through the alley, or deer walking down the street, and they stop barking when the excitement's over.

Except for this one free-range chihuahua . . .
 

kristie911

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My aunt used to live in an area like that. Except if you wanted to have dogs there, you had to have their voice boxes removed (or something surgically done...not exactly sure what), so she did. When the dogs tried to bark, all that came out was this raspy huffing sound. It was horribly cruel, I thought.
 

MidnightMuse

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Gah! That's wrong on so many levels, I can't even go there without blood pressure medication.
 

WendyNYC

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My aunt used to live in an area like that. Except if you wanted to have dogs there, you had to have their voice boxes removed (or something surgically done...not exactly sure what), so she did. When the dogs tried to bark, all that came out was this raspy huffing sound. It was horribly cruel, I thought.

Oh how horrible!

Was this Stepford?
 

NeuroFizz

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Check your county (or city) noise ordinances. Most will allow "normal family noises" between reasonable morning and nighttime hours. The dog barking situation should be addressed there. The five-minute rule seems a bit restrictive since a good playful dog, bounding around a fenced backyard with his family's kids, in the middle of the afternoon, could easily break that rule. And there are enough crochety people around who would complain about it. The lady behind us likes to sleep in until around 10 or 11 in the morning in the summer (when her child isn't in school). For a while, she'd complain to our homeowners association everytime our dogs would bark before her beauty sleep was over. Our dogs go out for just a few minutes in the morrning to do their buiness, and its never before 7 o'clock. At most, when they did bark, it was one or two quick barks. I looked up the county noise ordinances and brought them to the attention of the homeowners association people, and asked if they were prepared to alter them for our neighborhood. I haven't heard a complaint since.
 

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That sounds very unreasonable to me. Man, my neighbors would owe millions at this point. We don't leave our dog out at night, but in the evening she barks some, usally at the neighbor dogs, people coming home, etc. But I wouldn't call her barking disruptive. Usually, if she goes on, I'll check on her or bring her in. 5 minutes? Sheesh.
Kristie, that sounds horrible.

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It is horribly cruel! Unbelieveable. Laws requiring animal abuse.

There was an incident where a neighbor's dog, a non-habitual barker, raised a ruckus one night. Later, some cretin was arrested for rape and robbery. Turns out he had been in our area earlier, but was chased away by a big dog. Same one? Don't know. Don't care. Well done, dog!

I hate the backyard litter box thing also. I have cats, but they're thoroughly trained to the indoor box before setting a paw outside. (And they're mostly inside. I have them because I enjoy them.) People can be lazy. 'Course, I also hate seeing dog-walking without seeing a baggie or scoop.
 

joyce

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Yours would be more of a piercing yapyapyapyapyap, no?

My aunt used to live in an area like that. Except if you wanted to have dogs there, you had to have their voice boxes removed (or something surgically done...not exactly sure what), so she did. When the dogs tried to bark, all that came out was this raspy huffing sound. It was horribly cruel, I thought.

This is horrible, though I can think of some people who might do good with their voice boxes removed.
 

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I have strong feelings on this and I am sorry if any one takes offense. First and for most a dog is an animal. No matter how much you baby it, love it, cuddle it, feed it people food, talk to it....what ever. It will always be a DOG....a Canis Familiaris! I agree he (we will call it a he for the sake of not calling it an it!), may be part of the family, he may be your only "child", but he is still a dog. A dog needs to be simply put, a dog. A dog poops, he eats, he sleeps, and he BARKS! Asking a dog to stop barking is like asking you to stop talking. Or writing if you want to go there. You can't stop a dog from barking. You can try, but he will still bark. It's like asking your neighbor not to drive home, open his noisy garage, park his clunker of a car, close the garage door with a bang at 2am-6am in the morning keeping you awake every morning 6 days straight. Would you put a shock/bark collar on him? Would you tell him to get a 9-5 job? He would laugh in your face. So why wouldn't I laugh in the face of some one asking me to stop my dog from doing something that is natural. Now....before you cuss me out!!
My neighbor has said my dog was barking at night. I told him I was sorry that I would try to get her to stop. I locked her in my garage at night. It was so hot in there at night I had to have a fan on. She is not house trained, she is a half grown Great Pyrenees, too big for our house. She is still in the puppy stage so I was scared she would chew everything to pieces. I had to move everything at least 6ft up on the shelves. And she pooped every where. I also priced bark collars...way over what I can afford right now recovering from cancer and having insurance premiums to pay. So I told my neighbor the price of the bark collars if he wanted to get one (he had the problem not me)and he then laughed in my face. Technically my dog is in my yard minding her own business. ON MY PROPERTY. If she wants to bark, let her. If the neighbors have a problem with it (it's only the one) let them figure it out!!
 

DamaNegra

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How can you get an animal shut up? It's not like you can tell him: "hey, please quit barking or I'm taking the fine out of your allowance!" Please.
 

RumpleTumbler

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hmmmmmm. I wonder how you could get a dog to be quiet?
 

Sunkissed27f

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Misty the Barker at 2 months: Outgrowing my laundry room!

Misty022.jpg


Catching Her at Night barking...but for 1 minute this time!
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My step son giving out the treats:
See how big my yard is and my neighbors house is a house length away from where my fence starts.
DSCN1646.jpg
 

Shadow_Ferret

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The five-minute rule seems a bit restrictive since a good playful dog, bounding around a fenced backyard with his family's kids, in the middle of the afternoon, could easily break that rule.
Not sure about the S. Florida one, but most ordinances refer to it an nuisance barking and it has to be continuous barking, not the playful yip and yow a dog would make playing in the back yard.

That vocal cord thing is most disturbing.

As far as teaching it not to bark there are several methods. A call to a trainer might be a good place to start. However, there are collars to inhibit barking. Shock in the extreme, but also citrinella spray ones that squirt citrinella whenever the dog barks. They find it offensive.