Neighbor dogs sharing a fence, advice?

AdrianneIsabel

Glutton for Crazy
Joined
Aug 29, 2010
Messages
8,893
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
Portland, Oregon
#1
I grew up in a rural area and in Vegas we had cement block walls for fences. So, I'm rather inept here and am curious how others have handled this. Our new house has one dog to the left which shares a wood fence and three dogs to the back which share a wood (their side) and chain link (our side). The dog on the left is reactive but didn't seem that worrisome, however, the three at the back are nosing under their fence and pushing against ours.

Our goal is to refence the whole yard with buried bottoms but that will have to come after the inside remodel.

Backup today was clueless, which I love, but my other three won't be so easy going.

I will definitely work on my dogs reactions, they're almost never outside alone anyways, and the owners at both homes seemed to react and recall (effectively) their dogs within a few (2-3) minutes but... Suggestions? Has anyone tried befriending? Or deterring? Suggestions for cheap fencing as added security for our side right now until we can afford a new fence?
 

Saeleofu

Active Member
Joined
Oct 9, 2009
Messages
9,036
Likes
0
Points
36
#2
We have three dogs to one side, one dog (and currently a litter of pups) to the other side, and 1-3 dogs (some visit and one stays) to the back. It involves a lot of calling dogs in from all sides when someone decides to start something (usually, that "someone" is either Gavroche, the Shiba next door, or the pittie in the other next door). All my neighbors are really good about calling their dogs in when they get noisy (which is the only time they all react and get annoying) except for my neighbors on one side...they seem oblivious to everything. Logan doesn't start anything, he just stares at the chickens :rolleyes:

We have wood privacy fence on two sides, and double chain link in the back.Gavroche could jump the chain link if he wanted, as could the boxer behind us, but so far nobody has found the need to do so (and I've been living here with mine for roughly 2 years, and off and on visiting before that). I think the 6-foot buffer between the two chain link fences helps that tremendously.

So, I guess all I can really say is supervision until you get to know the other dogs and how your dogs will react. Gavroche is quite reactive and he generally doesn't have many issues, other than occasional barking. The only fence incident I've had is when Logan tried to steal a chicken quarter from the pittie next door, and he got his foot stuck in the fence and tore it open a bit (poor pittie was just going to let him have the chicken lol). It healed without incident and we've had no more issues.
 

SaraB

New Member
Joined
Mar 31, 2011
Messages
5,798
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
St. Louis, MO
#3
Classic would fence fight with the dogs around us, mostly the GSD behind us. We were friendly to the neighbors about it as it all started with their GSD becoming fence reactive. We were both aware of the problem and wouldn't leave the dogs out unsupervised, however they were unwilling to really work on the problem with us and it turned more into a management thing. We even put up a tarp against the fence and that seemed to help.

The other neighbors have this little white thing that is super fence reactive and will redirect onto them. My girls ignore him but it is super annoying because he'll sit at the fence and bark forever and that gets old if I'm sitting outside reading a book. He's normally out with one of the kids and they don't do anything to get him to stop, understandably so because they get bit if they try. I finally had enough and snapped at them one day to get their d*** dog inside. Not one of my prouder moments.
 

Southpaw

orange iguanas.
Joined
Jul 31, 2005
Messages
7,788
Likes
1
Points
38
Age
32
Location
Minnesota
#4
We have dogs on all sides. Thankfully we have a privacy fence so their view is pretty blocked. Mostly I just stay aware and supervise, Juno & Lucy are generally pretty okay aside from maybe a little barking. At the first sign of ANYthing, from either my dogs or the neighbor dogs, I call them back inside.

It helps though that my dogs don't spend a lot of time out in the yard, and neither do the neighbor dogs... so the vast majority of the time I don't even have to think about it.
 

Aleron

New Member
Joined
Feb 19, 2011
Messages
2,269
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
NE Ohio
#5
My advice is...it sucks to share fences with other dogs :/

IME is that even dogs who are "friends" will often fence fight in these settings. So I don't know how far trying to get them to be friends could go. I think you've said your dogs are trained to bark collars. I have had good luck preventing fence fighting with those. However, that won't solve the entire problem obviously. The best solution I have come across seems to be the "fence within a fence" idea, where you put up another barrier a couple feet in from the main fence. The purpose is just to create a buffer more so than to contain dogs. You could say put up some cheap posts with chicken wire or rabbit fencing or if you want sturdier, livestock fencing. If it's possible where you are, let the grass grow up around this barrier. Or attach these to it for an additional bit of visual barrier. http://www.homedepot.com/buy/backyard-x-scapes-6-ft-h-x-16-ft-l-reed-fencing-hdd-dan-rf01.html For a more permanent, long term extra barrier, you could always plant shrubs or crazy vines along the main fence and/or interior fence.

Of course, that depends on what is or isn't allowed or frowned upon where you live. If you have wooden and chainlink fencing on different sides of the yard though, I'm guessing there's probably not real strict rules.
 

Kilter

New Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2012
Messages
536
Likes
0
Points
0
#6
We have a yapper next door, that LOVES to fence fight with my guys. So if I hear noise I bring mine in right away, only time I can't is when I'm off to work and they're out for the last few minutes before coming in for the day, so I just suck it up. It does help that she's going to work at the same time, so she's up and her dog is out.

Also helps that her dog does tend to wander, and has even had the nerve to come into our yard and stand there watching the dogs freak out - I handed him back to her over the fence. The dogs did buy him some cookies for Christmas, I'll get those dropped off tomorrow.
 

~Dixie's_Mom~

♥Chloe & Violet♥
Joined
Aug 22, 2006
Messages
8,159
Likes
1
Points
0
Age
32
Location
Tennessee
#7
We have two dogs on one side of us. Our fence is a wooden privacy fence on all sides. Violet isn't a barker, but she'll run up and down the fence while the neighbors dog barks lol! It's actually kind of funny. But Chloe will bark back and she goes completely deaf and won't come inside when I call her, so if the neighbors dog is out, Chloe isn't. It just doesn't work. Both dogs go crazy.
 

JessLough

Love My Mutt
Joined
May 16, 2009
Messages
13,404
Likes
2
Points
38
Age
33
Location
Guelph, Ontario
#8
We have 4foot chain link fencing, and have had dogs beside us. Honestly, I haven't really known a difference between when we had dogs there and now, when we don't.

The only time we had an issue was when there were little yappy dogs next door, and they squeezed under the fence through a hole Rosey mostly made. The dogs would want to play and Rosey... well... doesn't.

We just made sure that we introduced ourselves to the owners, told them our worries. When we told them their dog was coming into our yard, and Rosey didn't appreciate it, they started tying their dogs up so they can't get in the backyard.

We have much more problems now, with this bully breed mutt that isn't even legally allowed to be here, a few houses down. They taught it to jump the fence, so it now just helps itself into our yard whenever it wants.
 

crazedACD

Active Member
Joined
Mar 13, 2012
Messages
3,048
Likes
0
Points
36
Location
West Missouri
#10
We were concerned in FL when we moved in, our neighbor had a pit he left outside everyday. Our dogs were fine for the most part, got adjusted pretty well, they didn't fence fight. The problem came when he started digging under..he was ok for the most part but him and Boomer would get huffy with each other. Didn't help the owner wouldn't be home and I couldn't 'return' him to them right away. And then he started pulling the fence slats off, and pulling out the concrete blocks, and the bedframe we buried, and so forth.

So we had a foster rottie pup, let the dogs out one night...the pit got through and just about mauled the puppy to death. The owner paid the vet bill, but because we took it to the vet, the vet filed a report with the county and the county went and threatened him with not vaccinating for rabies. He kept the dog tied outside from then on, but he got over once in a while still. It was pretty much a nightmare and I have no helpful advice other than if you do get in that sort of situation, just keep calling animal control. My mom didn't want to cause strife but it's not worth the headache.
 

Flyinsbt

New Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2012
Messages
886
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
Portland, OR
#11
My advice is that if there is fencefighting, it sucks. I've got that problem with my neighbor dog, and I hate it. My dogs are not naturally fence aggressive, they wouldn't really care about any dog on the other side of the fence (wood privacy fence). But they don't react well to the death threats. It used to be only Tully who responded, but Pirate is such a boy, he got involved too. And with Tully incapacitated and then gone, Tess decided she had to back Pirate up.

I've had injuries from my dogs charging the fence (Tully lacerated a pad bad enough to take her to the vet once), as well as the major incident where the neighbor dogs mauled mine, of course. And I worry about the behavior my dogs are learning.

The inner fence is probably the best option. A hotwire will also work, and is relatively inexpensive, but I think it's illegal here.
 

crazedACD

Active Member
Joined
Mar 13, 2012
Messages
3,048
Likes
0
Points
36
Location
West Missouri
#12
The other problem is if you get multiple dogs of yours fence fighting, there is a possibility of redirected aggression/a very quickly escalating fight. Sometimes mine run into each other when they run the fence line (barking at a cat or a squirrel), and they get into tiffs. It really sucks.
 

jenv101

Bite Club
Joined
Jul 14, 2010
Messages
1,590
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
Ontario
#13
We befriended our immediate neighbors when we got Riley because they had two labs. So it was easier to do when he was a pup. Now they are friends and don't concern each other two much. Riley only gets worked up if they are out playing and he wants to join in. Our back fence is part chain link with some bush cover in the neighbors yard. No dogs there currently but Riley will bark at anything so we put our shed back there with a small garden and used really high chicken wire to block off the whole section. Eventually we will put up a real fence there.

Extra buffers really help and prevent the digging issue too.
 
Joined
Feb 26, 2011
Messages
6,405
Likes
0
Points
36
Location
Minnesota
#14
We have dogs on two sides, and in the back is an alley so no immediate neighbors but people do walk their dogs there. Our dogs get along fine with the neighbors' dogs themselves, but our neighbor on one side brings a very DR bordering on DA dog over for a few hours during the day 3-4 times a week. This dog and Maisy absolutely despise each other.

We ultimately ended up just replacing our chain link with a 6' privacy fence partly because of that although mostly because Maisy learned to jump the fence in back into the alley. It is not perfect, but at least when they can't see each other things peter out pretty quickly. There are no gaps at the bottom on that side, either.

Before we got the privacy fence, we put up some visual barriers on that side of the yard... we just used some big sheets of plywood which were ugly as hell but oh well. We also just coordinate with the neighbors so we know when that dog is there and manage accordingly. Even with the privacy fence I just try to not let her out when that dog is over there, or if she absolutely must go out I go out with her and just keep redirecting her away from the fenceline, long leashing her if I have to. That dog is fine with our boys, though.
 

AdrianneIsabel

Glutton for Crazy
Joined
Aug 29, 2010
Messages
8,893
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
Portland, Oregon
#15
My advice is...it sucks to share fences with other dogs :/

IME is that even dogs who are "friends" will often fence fight in these settings. So I don't know how far trying to get them to be friends could go. I think you've said your dogs are trained to bark collars. I have had good luck preventing fence fighting with those. However, that won't solve the entire problem obviously. The best solution I have come across seems to be the "fence within a fence" idea, where you put up another barrier a couple feet in from the main fence. The purpose is just to create a buffer more so than to contain dogs. You could say put up some cheap posts with chicken wire or rabbit fencing or if you want sturdier, livestock fencing. If it's possible where you are, let the grass grow up around this barrier. Or attach these to it for an additional bit of visual barrier. http://www.homedepot.com/buy/backyard-x-scapes-6-ft-h-x-16-ft-l-reed-fencing-hdd-dan-rf01.html For a more permanent, long term extra barrier, you could always plant shrubs or crazy vines along the main fence and/or interior fence.

Of course, that depends on what is or isn't allowed or frowned upon where you live. If you have wooden and chainlink fencing on different sides of the yard though, I'm guessing there's probably not real strict rules.
Thanks, I am less worried about mine than maybe I should be. I do worry about Arnold turning on the girls when excited, so we'll be rotating in the yard until I have a better grasp on things. Sloan will probably love the excitement but she has a great recall. Shamoo will probably be the biggest problem, it's no secret she's just naughty and her recall against stimuli is barely a glance to humor me anymore. She'll need a leash.

The visual barrier seems like a great idea. The previous home owner put in cement garden edging bricks along a lot of the fence and I found a mostly buried nylabone on our side of the fence which makes me wonder if they used to get through. In that case my dogs will fight, I have no question about it and I worry. They're tough and I hate for them to hurt anything but the three to the back and big pit bull/bully/ambulldog looking creatures which could probably eat my dogs alive. I was impressed they're not redirecting on one another though so maybe it's not as aggressive as it sounds. They seemed confused by me calmly kneeling by them and my dog trotting in circles ignoring them.

Here is what I would do. This is assuming I am understanding your back fence set up correctly.

Untitled5 by RedChrome, on Flickr

Here is what my fence on the shared side looks like. (well it isn't green and blue. lol)

Untitled6 by RedChrome, on Flickr
Thanks! I'll look into this fencing!

The inner fence is probably the best option. A hotwire will also work, and is relatively inexpensive, but I think it's illegal here.
I would be tempted, I'm so afraid of hurting someone's dogs though, more for retaliation. I have seen too many movies. I don't think I need a hotwire for my own dogs.

Maybe we'll just layer more cement bricks where the dogs are close to digging through. Just as a precaution. Denis suggested for now we xpen off the yard closest to the house and use that as the potty break area and the rest of the yard for engaged playtime only. At least until we're re-fenced and feel it's more secure.

I could easily be overreacting as well, I've now seen their dogs once and we've been to the house a lot already at all hours of the day. Maybe they're not that big of an issue and mostly reacting to strangers in the yard being noisy while demolishing the interior of the house.

The other problem is if you get multiple dogs of yours fence fighting, there is a possibility of redirected aggression/a very quickly escalating fight. Sometimes mine run into each other when they run the fence line (barking at a cat or a squirrel), and they get into tiffs. It really sucks.
Yeah, with Arnold that is a very real concern, he's not allowed to get excited with other dogs so we're used to recalling and putting him up first if anything exciting happens.


Thanks to everyone, all of your advice has helped a lot. I'll start seeing what I can move around and stack at that point in the fence until we can get new fencing or a visual barrier. We don't plan to be moved in for another week or two (It's now kitchen and floorless lol) but when we do we'd like to be as safe as possible.

The back fence, which is the one of concern.
http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/3844_983748583028_947921257_n.jpg
 

Dizzy

Sit! Good dog.
Joined
Sep 14, 2005
Messages
17,761
Likes
1
Points
38
Location
Wales
#16
I have no advice.... But this does make me appreciate not having any immediate neighbours!
 

Red.Apricot

Active Member
Joined
Aug 28, 2011
Messages
2,984
Likes
2
Points
38
Location
Southern California
#17
It might not go too poorly! We have a rickety wooden fence between us and our back neighbors, and when we first came to look at the property, their two large dogs barked non-stop.

Now the big ones never bark at us. The little one does, but Elsie made friends with him (through the fence--I've never seen that happen) and they play chase on either side of it now. That's not typical though.

Maybe it won't be so bad?
 

Shai

& the Muttly Crew
Joined
Dec 14, 2009
Messages
6,215
Likes
0
Points
36
#18
Well we don't have a fence yet. Apparently the folks who lived here before us had an invisible fence.

One immediate neighbor has no dogs, but an indoor/outdoor cat. The other doesn't technically have a dog but their kid does so he visits over the holidays...big male Lab. Both houses two-away have dogs...one is a Lab chained outside, the other has two ACDs behind a fence which is backed up with an invisible fence.

Apparently the dog who used to live here would have barking/charging contests with the various neighbor dogs. Like the ones behind you, when we first moved in their dogs would all charge and bark and then look disappointed and sort of bewildered when there was no reaction. Overtime they gave and not having any feedback apparently bored them into quiet and now they just ignore us, with the exception of the holidays-only Lab next door who has come into our yard on a couple occasions. The resident dogs gave up.

So maybe if you can keep your dogs from engaging with any of them they will lose interest and go about their business, but their edging under the fence and possibly getting into the yard would really worry me. Whether it takes stacking some cement blocks for now or double-fencing or providing some sort of additional visual barrier I don't know but that would be my biggest worry for sure...
 

Flyinsbt

New Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2012
Messages
886
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
Portland, OR
#19
I would be tempted, I'm so afraid of hurting someone's dogs though, more for retaliation. I have seen too many movies. I don't think I need a hotwire for my own dogs.
The hotwire is safe, you get the one intended for pets, and it's a very mild zap. Not dangerous at all, just discouraging. But, after the mauling incident, we got one (the neighbors did actually) which we had on both sides of the fence. (it worked way better on my dogs than on their stupid, psycho Wirehair, who had to get zapped every day for a week before she decided to stay away from it). Then when their dogs got out and killed a cat, and Animal Control got involved, they were told that the hotwire was illegal. So, they took it down on their side. I still had it on my side, but it wasn't "hot" since they were the ones that had the box for it, so the dogs figured that out pretty quick. I miss it, because it really did solve the problem when it was operational.

I've not a clue why it would be illegal, since it was entirely safe to humans and pets, and if they had it around their entire yard instead of just the fence they shared with me, somebody's cat would still be alive.
 

AdrianneIsabel

Glutton for Crazy
Joined
Aug 29, 2010
Messages
8,893
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
Portland, Oregon
#20
Looks like they have a hot wire at the top(I honestly don't know but they have something strung across the top). I piled rocks and bricks at every spot I deemed weak and spoke to the neighbors to the left. They were pretty nice, they said their dogs will chill out once they get used to us. Their dogs weren't was worrisome anyways, seems they have two after all. The ones at the back haven't shown up all day so that's good.

I brought Arnold today and while he made one dodge for the fence he remained pretty calm. The girls are the worry (humorously they are dog friendly but love a good argument) so we'll bring them when we have less work and more supervision time.
 

Members online

No members online now.
Top