scared of neighbour's dog!

The new neighbour has a pitbull terrier who he brings into our house (with permission of my housemates). He says he's only young, and swears he's dead friendly. I'm scared witless of him! He does run around greeting everyone and the tail going ninety, he appears friendly alright. I tend to be afraid of all big dogs who I don't know personally, especially a breed with a reputation.

Any advice, please! I Can't really insist on the dog not being in here, it's a sort of free-for-all with animals in this house, plus my housemates don't have a problem with him.

juniord

if you cant accept the dog is friendly, if you are genuinely afraid, tell your housemates how you feel , be careful of the tail them waggley tails can hurt lol;)

The dog seems friendly, I'm not overly keen to make friends with it though. I'm just trying to ignore it. I just can't trust it. I know already that trying to explain this to my housemates would fall on deaf ears - it was understood moving in here that dogs are allowed here, one must like dogs to live here.

alroley

Is he there all the time? Could you not stay in a different room while he's there?

juniord

move out then , my daughter has a chihuahua that would bite you for touching my granddaughter ,how small does a dog have to be before you trust them ,your fear is based on ignorance

I don't really want to spend weekends confined to my bedroom. But I guess that's what it'll come to. Was so looking forwards to watching the football tonight. Guess it's my problem though. I don't feel comfortable with a large dog I don't know sitting on my couch and tearing my kitchen apart.

juniord

you never mentioned the dog doing damage in your o p all i read was fear based on what you read in papers , anyone letting a dog damage a property needs there head seen to

It's just being hyper and jumping up on the furniture and looking for food in the kitchen. I'm trying to work on the basis that if I mostly ignore the dog, it'll probably ignore me. I'm mostly frightened of startling the dog. I tend not to like any dog that I'm not familiar with.

DamagedTrax

Take a look at the dog's general disposition. if he seems happy and you know the owner is decent then you've nothing to worry about. Many people (myself included) swear by the bull breeds (pits, staffies etc) for their extremely even temperment with humans.

Dont let what the papers say make your decisions for you, like all 'for profit' business they have an agenda to sell their product.

As for the bad behaviour, i agree thats not acceptable. have a word with the owner, if he's decent he'll take steps to correct it with no arguments.

the_syco

Maybe use the time to overcome your fear? I used to be terrified of dogs, but when my family got a westie, the fear went away.

Qualitymark

Hm.

On the one hand, the dog is probably perfectly nice, if ill-disciplined.

On the other hand, it's pretty unmannerly of the neighbour to bring his (or her) dog into a place where someone's scared of it, and of your housemates to value the neighbour's and dog's presence over their housemate's comfort.

I think maybe I'd ask the neighbour not to bring the dog there when you're there. This is your home, and should be a place of shelter and gentle kindness. Talk to your housemates and explain how you feel.

If this doesn't work out, I'd find a different place to live, with more considerate housemates and neighbours. Of course, it might happen that you'd become the dog's most devoted fan, but this really shouldn't be assumed.

DBB

I think qualitymark is right on the money here op. It's absolutely pointless for anyone to say to a person who's afraid of dogs "ah you'll be fine, he's only saying hello", or "don't believe what you read"... This is absolutely no consolation for a fearful person.
It's your home op, you're paying the rent... The dog and his owner aren't. I think it'd be perfectly reasonable for you to tell your housemates that you feel uncomfortable with this dog, and would rather he's not in the house whilst you are.
For you to hide away in your room, and miss stuff you want to watch on the tv is just not acceptable.

Knine

As much as I love dogs, I'm not sure I would appreciate someone else's dog coming into my house bouncing around the place.

OP I hope you can sort something out soon. Maybe the dogs owner does not even realise he is being a nuisance.

Thanks everyone! I think this is a housemate issue as much as a dog one. Turns out another housemate was just being polite, she didn't want the pitbull here either - in both our cases it is mistrust of a large dog (especially one who appears undisciplined). There are two dogs in residence here, and the little man of the house and the pitbull do NOT get along. I think it's unfair to the small dog to bring the pitbull into his space. Another housemate thinks we're over reacting, but there will be hell to pay if he continues to invite the neighbour to bring the dog in. Thanks again.

DBB

Ah, it's nice to not be a lone voice budgese! Not only are your other housemates being unfair to you and the other girl, it is profoundly unfair on the small dog to have his space needlessly invaded like this.
Whether or not you're over-reacting is not the point (and I don't believe you are!). If you, as a rent-paying tenant, voices concerns such as this, even if they may not agree with you, they do need to respect you.

juniord

in the op nothing was said about another dog ,nothing was said about complaining about the visiting dog, the last place a dog fearful person should live is in a place where its a free for all for animals, i fully accept people have a fear of dogs and would not allow my dog near such a person ,my take on the op was fear based on breed which is the root cause of bSL

tk123

Op tell them the other dogs have fleas/something contagious that the dog might get too.

ABajaninCork

juniord wrote: »

in the op nothing was said about another dog ,nothing was said about complaining about the visiting dog, the last place a dog fearful person should live is in a place where its a free for all for animals, i fully accept people have a fear of dogs and would not allow my dog near such a person ,my take on the op was fear based on breed which is the root cause of bSL

I think the OP isn't happy with dogs they don't know, especially the larger breeds.

Deleted User wrote: »

The new neighbour has a pitbull terrier who he brings into our house (with permission of my housemates). He says he's only young, and swears he's dead friendly. I'm scared witless of him! He does run around greeting everyone and the tail going ninety, he appears friendly alright. I tend to be afraid of all big dogs who I don't know personally, especially a breed with a reputation.

Any advice, please! I Can't really insist on the dog not being in here, it's a sort of free-for-all with animals in this house, plus my housemates don't have a problem with him.

juniord

especially a breed with a reputation????? i know there are big variations in size with pitts but i wouldnt class the majority as big

juniord

juniord wrote: »

especially a breed with a reputation????? i know there are big variations in size with pitts but i wouldnt class the majority as big

I swear that dog weighs as much as I do.

Bottom line is I am afraid of this dog. I don't feel comfortable with ut in my home. Neither does my housemate who also grew up with large dogs. They're not labled a dangerous breed for nothing. I would be a lot more comfortable with this dog if it appeared more disciplined. I know the two dogs who live here. That's the difference. I don't trust any dog, especially a large dog, that I don't know. I had a Lab as.a kid that you wouldn't throw off the couch. I don't want a strange pitbull sitting on my couch. May be bias, but I'm glad the dog is not welcome here now. I was mostly worried about coming home late and startling him. He is fiercely protective even of our front door.

juniord

so because they are labeled as dangerous they must be ,i understand you now , if the dog is as heavy as an adult person then its not an american pitbull terrier

ABajaninCork

juniord wrote: »

so because they are labeled as dangerous they must be ,i understand you now , if the dog is as heavy as an adult person then its not an american pitbull terrier

Look. The OP has stated she is frightened of the dog. Doesn't matter whether it's American, English or Arabian! Stop putting them down, and stop belittling her fears.

juniord

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Look. The OP has stated she is frightened of the dog. Doesn't matter whether it's American, English or Arabian! Stop putting them down, and stop belittling her fears.

i totally accept the person is afraid of that dog why mention the dog is a pitbull and infer its dangerous because of that , if you have access to a photo of an english or arabian pitbull terrier feel free to post it

ABajaninCork

Deleted. Getting bored now.

juniord

juniord wrote: »

i totally accept the person is afraid of that dog why mention the dog is a pitbull and infer its dangerous because of that , if you have access to a photo of an english or arabian pitbull terrier feel free to post it

The owner told me it is an American Pitbull but registered as a Staffie.

juniord

so you are,,,, us all ??

I owned a bad tempered Lab. I know how strict you have to be with them. Dangerous breeds are labelled for a reason. This Pitbull is young, but not very well disciplined, so I have reason to be anxious. If it was an undisciplined Lab I'd feel the same. This Pitbull does leap at our front door and snarl when he thinks someone is there - and this isn't even his house. I don't wanna come home drunk at 2am and encounter this strange dog snarling at me.

I have problems with all strange dogs, but the two in my house now I know and love. Same with my parents' dog who I don't see that often. If me and another housemate are uncomfortable with the dog, I don't think it matters what breed it is. Also I have three budgies upstairs and would hate if the dog accidentally got into my room. Plus another housemate is about to get a cat. We need to be sure of every animal we have in here, and three of us do not want the pitbull here. Call it bias if you want.

I posted this thread for advice because I thought I was gonna have to get used to the pitbull and looking for advice about how to approach and deal with the dog. I didn't mean it to turn into a thread about certain breeds! I posted it while the dog was here stretched on my couch and coming into my kitchen. I'm sorry it turned out this way, but I think some decent debate has been had too.

juniord

we will agree to disagree on BSL and leave it at that, i hope things work out for you

zenno

Deleted User wrote: »

The new neighbour has a pitbull terrier who he brings into our house (with permission of my housemates). He says he's only young, and swears he's dead friendly. I'm scared witless of him! He does run around greeting everyone and the tail going ninety, he appears friendly alright. I tend to be afraid of all big dogs who I don't know personally, especially a breed with a reputation.

Any advice, please! I Can't really insist on the dog not being in here, it's a sort of free-for-all with animals in this house, plus my housemates don't have a problem with him.

The only thing this dog will do to you is lick you to death.

People still don't understand this breed. These kind of dogs are completely different. They are extremely affectionate to humans, but other dogs can be a problem for them (they don't get on well) . They love people.

They look hard as nails and can be intimidating to look at, but they are very friendly to people, i have been around them for years, i don't own one, i own a border collie but i know those dogs very well.

People need to educate themselves in relation to these dogs because the assumption is that they are "dangerous", and this is totally false in all sense of the word. The real problem is assholes that use them as fighting dogs, if you treat any dog badly, the dog can turn bad, it's the people that do this that i'm more worried about, not the dog.

slim223

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Also I have three budgies upstairs and would hate if the dog accidentally got into my room. Plus another housemate is about to get a cat.

Are you not afraid the cat will attack you budgies. It's not the breed of dog is a problem, it's the way any breed of dog is treated that makes them dangerous