Your dogs are so stinky

I moved into a house a couple of months ago and everytime I see my neighbor she complains about how bad my dogs smell. I have three big dogs and one puppy. I’m sure there is a bit of a smell but I think my gf and I are pretty good at cleaning up after them.

For example, today the old lady next door came home and did the same thing she does everytime she sees us by flapping her hand in front of her nose and saying “stinky!”.

My gf had just finished giving them all a bath just an hour before and there was no dog droppings on the ground.

She asked me the other day if I would let two of them go on the street and just keep one, because one dog is enough.

I am worried that she is going to do something to them like poisoning them. I’ve heard of this happening but how common is it? Any advice?

And what about something I can use to wash the grass so it smells ok without killing it?

I reckon it’s psychological. Some people just don’t like dogs and they imagine, or pretend to smell, a strong odour even when there isn’t any.

By the way some Taiwanese dog owners insist on putting dog shit in the trash instead of flushing it down the toilet. Obviously then your trash will stink. Flush the shit, but don’t try flushing too much at once or your toilet will block up. Hose down soiled areas if there hasn’t been enough rain.

So now the old bag is asking us to move out. We have already sunk quite a bit of $$$ into this place trying to set up a business.

Humans dissappoint me all too often. I am trying my best to do a good thing in helping the problem of homeless animals and I have to deal with people like this.

When she first complained about the smell of the dogs I built a wall on the covered roof of the third floor so they could stay up there. Then she complained that when she goes upstairs to hang her laundry that she can smell the dogs.

I moved here for peace and quiet and now I get this. Open up your eyes world and try to give people who are trying to do good a break. :fume:

[quote=“Lo Bo To”]So now the old bag is asking us to move out. We have already sunk quite a bit of $$$ into this place trying to set up a business.

When she first complained about the smell of the dogs I built a wall on the covered roof of the third floor so they could stay up there. Then she complained that when she goes upstairs to hang her laundry that she can smell the dogs.
[/quote]

Too bad for the old hag. Maybe she just doesn’t like foreigners.

Sounds like the kind of old crank that will complain about things no matter what you do to appease her, so IMO, ignore her. If you like your place, enjoy it. You have rights too.

[quote=“Mer”]
Too bad for the old hag. Maybe she just doesn’t like foreigners.

Sounds like the kind of old crank that will complain about things no matter what you do to appease her, so IMO, ignore her. If you like your place, enjoy it. You have rights too.[/quote]

Yeah. I think you are right. But I am worried that she will tell her son how much agony it’s causing her and that my dogs will dissappear.

[quote=“Lo Bo To”][quote=“Mer”]
Too bad for the old hag. Maybe she just doesn’t like foreigners.

Sounds like the kind of old crank that will complain about things no matter what you do to appease her, so IMO, ignore her. If you like your place, enjoy it. You have rights too.[/quote]

Yeah. I think you are right. But I am worried that she will tell her son how much agony it’s causing her and that my dogs will dissappear.[/quote]

I guess that is a legitimate concern. I’m not saying to take a chance with your dogs, but do remember that most people are all talk and no action.

I personally find it offensive that she’s asked you to move out. Who the hell does she think she is? If you know in your heart you’re being a decent neighbor and doing your part to keep things clean and quiet, she’s got no beef. Avoid, ignore.

That’s my two cents anyway…

i have been asked to move out or get rid of my dogs by neighbors before.

They tried to threaten me with the law and sueing me. I asked them if they wanted to borrow my phone.

Unless your dogs are vicious or over loud at night there is nothing they can do.
Is she your landlady? If not seriously just walk away.

make sure you clean up after you and just ignore her.

Keep them on a lead when you walk them and when she appears just say " Ni hao" smile and walk away.

I was told the other day to go back down the street and not come up it because a man was walking down and he didn’t like dogs. I smiled and kept walking up the hill, to the sound of him muttering something.

As long as you are abiding by the rules and stick to your guns there is nothing they can do.
Clean up after your dogs, keep them on a lead when walking in the streets, try to keep the noise down especially at night.

Don’t be intimidated, that’s how they win. You have rights and so do your animals.

Good luck and don’t let it bother you too much. It is sad but there are many humans out there who should be put down, but there are a few good ones as well. :wink:

Take a picture of her and her son. Smile and be happy when you do it. Just be sure they know you are taking their picture. If she asks why, just tell her you want pictures of your nice neighbors to show your family back home. And just smile. Now they will know you have a picture of them.

Excellent idea! That ought to make them think a bit.

We got a note put in our elevator one day saying that the elevator stinks because of ‘stinky dogs’ (when we only had three). This was just five minutes after the garbage had been taken out to meet the garbage truck. We know what wet dogs smell like, and we know what garbage smells like, but obviously our neighbours didn’t.

We left the note up asking whoever wrote it not to be so childish and to come to talk to us if they wanted to discuss the matter. We left our names, phone numbers, and apartment numbers. The note was soon taken down and nothing came of it.

I can’t really offer you any advice other than to let people know you aill not be pushed around and are not to be messed with. Listen to their concerns and act accordingly as you have been.

It’s a shame to read this kind of thing, as, ultimately, it’s the safety of your dogs that is the main concern, and losing one would mean that you could never win the battle, as you could not reciprocate or go further than an ignorant neighbour might. Better then to make sure things don’t escalate, by doing as you have been doing and letting them know you won’t be bullied.

Also, ask a friend to come round and see if the place really does smell (we had to do that for our sanity). Use a black light to spot any areas that have dog pee on them and flush them accordingly. White vinegar is great for killing the smell completely, though you would have to first test on a small area of grass.

When I had a lot of dogs at my home and exercising in the yard, I found that laundry detergent was by far the best way to leave the entire area smelling rosy with as little effort as possible. Lavender was a favourite, and you only need a little.

Lastly, if you can find something that your neighbour is doing wrong, mention it in passing - perhaps an illegal addition to the building, or tax discs that are two years old, or something. They will know you will retaliate and hopefully will then appreciate your good-neighbourness a bit more and lay off the hassle.

Or shoot them all. :wink:

put them back in the house so nothing can happen to them when you’re not there and ignore her completely beyond telling her to call the cops or that you will if she continues harassing you. obviously this lady has got a bug somewhere about your dogs and or you, there’s nothing you could do to satisfy her beyond getting rid of them or moving, it’s not reasonable that your dogs in your apartment could be bothering her in hers if they are not making noise.

I had this problem with my dogs when I was in my apartment. People kept complaining that my dogs smelled, or were barking all the time. If they barked at all it was during the day, but usually it was the dogs around my building. Mine were just a convienent scape goat. Screw the oldlady and her complaint, she is just being a cow.

I had the same annoying problem. Many dogs in the neighbourhood; very few walked. Mine were walked three times a day and were obviously most visible - certainly more than the ones kept on balconies and never walked, who were the same ones barking all day out of frustration.

I actually had a government official come around to my back yard and tyell me that my dogs were too noisy, when all around him a cacophany of barking and wailing raged on, but none of it was from mine. I even recorded the sounds in y house to prove the point, and it really wasn’t my dogs who were barking.

Exercised dogs are far less likely to bark, but try explaining that to officialdom. I asked for proof that my dogs were barking before I would sign or accept anything; the problem soon went away.

We do have responsibilities as dog guardians, and some are annoying (I don’t see why I should really have to pick up poop in a disused field), but it’s so frustrating when you are dealing with these kinds of people, because it’s in their minds, and the only way you can really fix the problem is have them see a shrink.

I think it is likely that your dogs don’t really smell at all. I have found that most people here think dogs smell, even if they have never touched a dog. Like another person said, it is probably psychological. One of my students was telling me how dogs smell and when I asked her if she had ever been around one, she said a street dog licked her once, but she had never had any other contact. So, I don’t think you should waste too much time trying to appease people who already have it stuck in their minds that dogs smell. Your dogs could smell like roses and I am sure they would say the same thing.

I’m with Stray Dog on this one. Have them killed.

[quote=“Brendon”]I’m with Stray Dog on this one. Have them killed.[/quote]Your post is a bit misleading, Brendon. SD did not say anything about killing the neighbours. He may have mentioned CNR, though. :wink:

I’ve been reluctant to post here… Too much to say, and not much of it is nice…

Neighbours problem because of dogs? Yep, I know what it’s like, and I know how discouraging it can be when all you’re trying to do is help out. It’s really frustrating.

I’d offer some advice, but I’m at a loss myself. They won, we lose… We are currently looking for a new place. Mind me, we want to find something we can also use as a holding center, so hopefully it works out better for everyone involved when we do find a suitable place.

1- Some, but not all our neighbours often close the elevator doors as we are approaching. How courteous… More often when we are with the dogs, but also when we have no dogs with us. The lady on 8th is the worse for that. It’s to the point where I have contemplated sabotaging her scooter… She is such a witch.

2-Rumours were spread that our house was infested by fleas. That lady on eight told everyone that her baby was being bit by fleas coming from our house. We spent the time and the money to get official documents from the vet stating that the dogs were pest-free. We posted that all around our building, in the elevators, etc, with a note in which we asked for more honesty, and less lies and false rumors.

3-We rent a parking spot in B2 to store some things we do not have room for in our house, and they revoked our right to do that, although many other people do the same. We refused to remove our things, and we refused to take the rent money back, but they put a fourth note on our belongings telling us that they would move it out themselves. Couldn’t chance it, I moved the stuff today. :s

4-We were lied about officials supposedly coming to our mini-holding center and saying we could be fined, etc, if we did not remove it(the holding center). We asked for a contact number, email, name of the gov agencies doing this to no avail. We didn’t budge, and told them that it could not be true. Nothing happened, the mini holding center is still there.

5-Two months later, we found a note on the mini-holding center telling us that we had a week to get rid of it, or they would do so themselves. The note was written as if it was from the government, however there was no name, no contact number, no address, no official stamp, nothing. It was basically an anonymous note from someone pretending to be the government. They also put the same note on a garbage bin owned by the metal factory where we keep our holding center telling them they had to move that too. They were basically putting pressure on the factory owners to ask us to move the holding center. Luckily they are nicer than that, and they agreed that an anonymous note was just not legit. That was about a month ago, nothing happened about that either. :s

6-They posted a note in the elevator asking “the dog feeders” to control the street dogs as to ensure they would not find refuge at night in the B1 and B2 parking lot, and they threatened to call the dog catchers were we to not “control” the dogs. I lost it and wrote them a long reply(3 pages) which we also posted in the elevator(translated in Chinese). In the letter, I explained CNR, I also explained that all the dogs in their neighbourhood were desexed, vaccinated, and healthy. I explained how this prevents new dogs from coming into this neighbourhood, and I also explained that the dogs aren’t ours, they are theirs. It’s their country, it’s their neighbourhood, and all we have done is help them out, and helped the community in the process. I also mentioned how much all of these dogs cost us, which is about 40 000nt.

The note was received well by many, and some people even thanked us. Others were not so thankful… See number 7 below…

7-They called the dog catchers… They came around twice now… No dogs were caught because they are not easy to get close to, except for a few of us who feed them, and face it, dog catchers are useless. This infuriated some people since there is nothing they can do about it. That’s when we lost our parking spot, and that’s when the anonymous note was posted on our mini holding center…

Then of course there’s Superman who keeps telling me that my dogs are dirty. Actually, he stopped doing that once I suggested we put him down, too, because he is also sick, just like the dogs he considers dirty.(Mostly fur problems and shaved spots makes them look scruffy. But to him, it’s dirty)

We have looked at many houses already, and we are looking at more of them every weekend. We hope to be out of here by the end of January, at the latest, because we fear just like the OP, that their next move will be to simply poison the dogs which would be a real shame…

You’d wonder why we haven’t been evicted yet… Our landlady loves us. When we moved in here, the place was bashed. I fixed everything, and I re-painted the whole house. In addition to that, my wife is a clean freak. Everytime our landlady comes over, she can’t believe how good her house looks. She’s actually coming here this coming Sunday with a translator to try to convince us to stay. She’s asking us to ignore the neighbours.

We like this place, and we fixed it up into a really nice and cozy appartment, but we can’t live with “some” of our neighbours anymore… It gets to you sometimes… Besides we need more space to help more animals.

It’s a good thing that there are also people who are supportive and who respect the work that some of us do. Otherwise, I don’t know if I would bother… Too discouraging.

Chin up Lo Bo To! You are doing a good thing. Don’t let the bastards get you down, mate. :notworthy:

No, I did. All in jest … mostly in jest.

Well, quite a bit in jest.

So sorry to hear about all your troubles loboto and bobepine, too. If it makes you feel better BP, my hell kitty has become a real sweetie. He rarely bites and even when he does almost never does so hard enough o break the skin. He still has to get revenge when I stop him climbing or jumping on the table but now it usually is no more than a harmless lunge or clawless swat at my ankle. Maybe it was the NT2700 bed I bought him. Guilt. Yeah, and blasts of water to the face. :slight_smile:

Bobepine, reading your post was like reading a page from my own diary. I had all the same problems, all the fake stuff, and all the threats. I also had a fantastic landlady; I moved out in the end to save her more flak (plus I knew I would need to move to a more appropriate place anyway).

Bear in mind that this is a page in your own diary, and that very soon you’ll be in a perfect place, where you can help more animals, and where people will come to help with or adopt the dogs. The best way to beat low-life is to stay focused on your goals and better your own life, leaving them far behind where they belong.

Looking forward to reading about how you’ve found the perfect place.

(By the way, we’re ready to do that exchange if you are :wink: )

Sean