I have the nicest, across the street neighbor with the most annoying, constantly barking dog

[Siwsan]

Not a big dog so I don't think it is a security measure. Not a little yappy dog. Just a medium sized cute, shaggy and very annoying dog. They tie it on a tether in the front yard where every single person, car or other animal it sees sets it off on a LONG spree of barking. I can't do any front lawn/garden work without getting serenaded. And it escapes. A lot. And is almost impossible to catch.

Why they don't put it in the back yard where there would be fewer 'triggers' is beyond me. Unless, of course, they did, it barked at squirrels and birds, and their back yard neighbors complained.

Oh well. Tomorrow is going to be hot so my windows and doors will be shut and the AC will be running. I will have peace.

[nature-lover]

1. There are several kinds of "anti bark birdhouses" on the market. Worked for me. Neighbor never knew.

[ShazzieB]

2. I never heard of these until now, so I googled them.

They sound like an amazing invention. If I ever have a problem with barking dogs in my neighborhood, I will definitely look into these things.

For now, we don't have to worry about it. We live in an apartment complex which is extremely pet friendly, but dogs are not allowed to be left outside unattended. I see people walking their dogs on the property all the time but practically never hear a bark.

I'm not a dog expert, but in my experience, dogs that are nuisance barkers are often ones that are left tied up outside for extended periods of time, like the one Siwsan describes. From what I've read, being tied up like that is stressful for a dog. Here's an article that talks about the reasons why: https://trustytails.com/3-reasons-you-should-never-tie-up-your-dog-outside/

Basically, dogs can get stressed, lonely, bored, and anxious when they're tied up by themselves for long periods of time, and they express their frustration by barking. This is especially the case if the dog isn't getting enough quality attention from its humans. Dogs are very social creatures, and they thrive best when they have lots of opportunities to interact with other living tings like humans, their fellow canines, and/or other critters in the household.

As I said, I'm not a dog expert, but I read a lot, and I've watched plenty of dog training shows on TV. From what I've been able to pick up, a dog that barks constantly is almost certainly unhappy and not having its basic needs for socialization (not to mention training) met.

Unfortunately, there's not much most of us can do to fix things for a dog that belongs to someone else, and animal welfare authorities usually won't get involved except in cases of really blatant neglect or abuse. That being the case, I can't blame anyone for using an anti bark device such as one of these birdhouses to get some relief for humans and other critters in the vicinity.

[nature-lover]

3. My neighbor's dog had anxiety and other issues. This kept her further away from our fence.