scarey! no where is safe!

[shadowpaints]

oh and i love pitties, but my home owner insurance wont let me have one

it sucks i had pitties when i was a kid!!

 

[arabianequine]

get a doberman they can be real mean and protective

 

[welsummerchicks]

But is burglary and home invasion really an issue out where you live, or is this more just a matter of one neighbor fighting across the road? Is it a one time thing or do things simmer along constantly over there? If simmering, I'd be more concerned.

Do you know if alcohol is involved, or drugs, over there? Seems like if someone was shooting someone with a 22 they had to be drunk?

And if they stay over there, and use a 22, are you likely to be harmed? I know that sounds odd but having had to live in some very bad neighborhoods, I learned to weigh how likely it was to affect me.

And did anyone involved get a little jail time, or any charges pressed? A lot of times, that can help end the problem or they will at least keep it quieter. If they aren't chronic criminals, the police being involved and charges being discussed, can scare people into behaving better. At least it's possible. The other possibility is that one of them will leave and the fights will end.

And if one of them dies, the other is pretty likely to go to jail. That would get him or her out of the house.

It seems like at least assault could be charged. But the other person does have to be willing to press charges, and they don't always. The person could say it was an accident...people have an amazing desire to preserve whatever insanity is going on.

I'm going to say...out in the country, fights don't really seem that unusual.

If nothing seems to be improving, you could conceivably get Adult Protective Services in on it, or if there is a child in the house, CPS. Most counties have to have some sort of agency like both of these, they may not have much of a staff out in the country, but if you can show a longer term pattern, you can get some one involved. They can at least get a social worker out there once in a while so you can eventually get them out of there.

The usual approach, going over with a pie, to talk and see if you can help them work it out, I don't think is such a keen idea.

I'm also not so keen on getting a guard dog. It might keep someone out of the yard, or it might get shot by a drunk.

 

[StupidBird]

waa! I miss my dobie! I can say, it only takes one instance to make me wary; and there's been quite a few. Neighbors to each side have been raided by swat team or multiple sheriff's vehicles in the last six months and let me tell you I've been thinking!
- if I still had the dog, would the cops shoot her while running across my property? Headlines say definitely.
- what is the risk of keeping the shot gun in easy reach with teen houseguests here, unfamiliar with guns?
- Yes, doors get locked when people remember it. But drywall and 2x4s aren't very bulletproof (thinking stray bullets).

I have heard of more vicious labs than dobermans or rotties, in my personal experience. And only one dangerous pitbull, but it was a stubborn lunkhead, not vicious. Your lab INSIDE with you is very good.

I think I'm gonna to a web search on passive home deterrents. Things like line-of-sight open through landscaping, keeping the house perimeter open from these shrubs and well lit. All the little psychological things I can come up with, and habits and such. I won't live in lockdown fear, but there's a lot easier targets just down the road? What fences help or hurt by providing something to hide behind? so many ideas.

I'm thinking you were tossing and turning because part of your brain heard the fighting very faintly. Our house is noisy even right now with all still sleeping - fans, a/c blower, windows closed - can't hear anything outside. Another interesting area to consider.

Eta: for homeowners insurance, the dobie was a mix with spaniel (she had a white patch with black spots) so I listed her as a spaniel mix. Her ears and tail were not docked.

 

[shadowpaints]

i now have a doberman. he is 1 year old, neutered, and he is blue! he really needed a good home his owners are moving accross the states and couldnt take him. we gave him a great home.

 

[aShMaNv]

Haha i have a redbone coonhound and if anyone gets close to the house i know about it. And he makes sure that they know he is there. His bark just echos lol. Funny thing is if anyone brave enough tried to come in the yard the only thing he would do is lick them to death lol. He is such a baby.

 

[sunflowerenvy]

do not turn off the light off on your doors at night. then pple think you not home at night. also keep the dog inside with you at all time with you. i hope your hubby can get back into your house with that new big bad dog lol
laura

 

[HeatherLynn]

Don;t underestimate that small lab either. Mine had no training, he was just my big huge black baby. He acted protective but no way to know for sure if he would if push came to shove. I went running with him by myself all the time so my dad being a smart butt decided to show me how little protection he would be. He ran at me, fist raised, yelling and I had to spend the next half hour laying on my dog to keep him from going after dad again. Dad never doubted him again obviously. Took a few weeks for my Boo to act even half way trusting to dad again though. A gun and another dog would not be a bad thing though.

 

[StupidBird]

HeatherLynn, that really brought a chuckle.

 

[Shaun]

Guess unless they are having problems over there all the time (i.e. a drug house) - in which case the cops are already cleaning it up, I wouldn't worry too much. We had neighbors one time that had domestic issues - and she got mad and grabbed a gun. He started taunting her saying she'd never shoot him. So she did. We lived there many years afterwards and never had another incident.

A dog may or may not help. If he's the type to growl at everything, he'll just freak you out over nothing! On the other hand, a good vigorous barker is sometimes a good deterrent. A gun is only good if you're willing to use it and are ABSOLUTELY SURE you can hang on to it if someone is trying to take it away from you. Do you want them pointing it at you if you can't bring yourself to shoot them when they try to get it away from you? And are you a good enough shot when you're rattled? If you've got kids in the house, you need to keep it unloaded and where they can't get to it anyway, so it's not going to be at the ready.

Take a deep breath, you've had a bad scare. On the other hand, seems like the cops arrived and took the matter in hand. Not so bad.