For the vet bills, take your neighbor to small claims court. You can also use that to recoup the cost of fence repair. You might also try to add a claim for the loss of Ollie, although that might be difficult since there's not really direct evidence so much as there are suspicions. As for Animal Control, just keep up the complaints. Perhaps try contacting one of the TV stations in town to see if they'll help. It might make for a particularly heart tugging story while Hussy is still recouperating.

I'm so sorry to hear of the entire ordeal, of Hussy's suffering and the unknown fate of Ollie.  Shwaine's advise sounds excellent, this neighbor should not get away unscathed, hitting him in the wallet is probably the only way you will have any effect on the jerk.   Good Luck to you and your four legged friends.  

I'm so sorry you had to go through this. I lost my kitty to 2 pit bulls who were on the loose in the neighborhood. I contacted city police dept. and they took the dogs.  Prayers and big hugs for you, hubby and Hussy. Prayers for Ollie.

The fact this the neighbors dog destroys the fence to get to your babies and he does nothing about it suggest he is a complete moron. Might I suggest a six foot block wall fence. That is what we did in order to not have to deal with one of our neighbors who reached over the 5 foot wood fence to try and hit my dog. What kind of dog does this neighbor have? Need to bug animal control constantly until they do something. Do you live in the city or county? City control is better to deal with then county. Drag out all your vet bills from previous attacks and show them to animal control so they know this has happened before.

DG:  If animal control is not available, call Bakersfield Police Dept. and report a vicious dog - they should/usually will come out. Bug them too until everybody is tired of hearing it and they will DO something. Squeeky wheel!

I am so sorry~ what a shame. Having to deal with a healing pet,grieving over the possible loss of another ....you shouldn't have to deal with a callous bad animal owner. But I'd call anybody that I could that might respond~ Shwaine's advice(witters too!) is great. I especially like the TV idea. Best wishes to you and yours.

Thank you all for your encouraging words.  Animal Control is coming out to take a report.  Since this is the third attack, I'm hoping something concrete will be done.  We've considered a block wall, but the same neighbor has a huge Cottonwood tree that has grown through the fence, pushing the concrete curbing and the entire fence up about eight inches.  They refuse to remove the tree.  Hubby called code enforcement about the fence this morning and they said they didn't handle these issues.  They suggested we call an attorney.

As much as I'm hurt over the loss of Ollie and Hussy's injuries, I'm livid over the neighbor's callousness.  They haven't shown an ounce of remorse, only anger over my calling Animal Control.

Who "OWNS" the fence?

If the tree is the cause of the fence not holding up, there must be someway to make them remove the tree.  At one point I was told, by the police dept., that my neighbor could legally cut any branches from my tree that hung over his fence AND he could throw the cut branches back in my yard for me to clean up!!!! Needless to say, the neighbor and I had a "discussion"!

At any rate, it might not hurt to call one of the attorneys who offer free consultations.

When it comes to the fence, it would be cheaper to pay for an assessor to come out and determine the official property lines. If the tree is truly encroaching upon your property, as officially determined by the assessor, then contact an attorney about the issue. You might even find out that the tree is fully on your property because fences are rarely put up exactly on the property line. If that's the case, you can take down the tree and put up the block wall on the official property line. You might also find the fence actually gave you a little extra property (i.e. the property line is a foot or so inside your yard from the fence) and that the tree won't interfer with putting up a block wall on the official property line. But never count on an existing fence actually marking true property lines.

I bought my home 25 years ago.  We were the first family on our block.  The only other homes were a 1950's home that had been moved in across the street, and the builder's model home next door.  The neighbors bought this home about 7 years ago. 

When we put the fence in, we put concrete curbing all the way around the property and used steel posts rather than wooden posts.  As wind storms have blown every other fence in the neighborhood down, ours has remained erect.  We've replaced pickets over the years and made repairs as needed.  The problem is the neighbor's dog, and the tree which is in his yard.  The dog tears the pickets into splinters to gain access to our dogs and the tree is encroaching on our property. 

Hussy is at the vet's again, having her drains and dead tissue removed.  She'll spend the night and we'll pick her up in the morning.  I got her to eat some chicken earlier today.  She hadn't eaten anything since Saturday, so I'm very pleased about that.

I'm still waiting for Animal Control.  I called again, but the recording said they're experiencing a higher than normal volume of callers and to call back later.

Just a thought since you have the metal posts and concrete, they make artificial lumber out of recycled plastic that look very realistic these days. They might be more resistant to the attacks of the neighbor's dog. Usually it's used for building a durable deck, but I seem to recall Ed Begley has used it for a fence too.

Thank you Shwaine, that is a great idea!  I'll check into it right away.  Hussy is back at the vet.  She went in yesterday to have her drains and some dead tissue removed and we thought we'd be able to pick her up this morning.  But the vet called and said they changed her antibiotic and wanted to keep her a few more days to see how much more tissue they're going to have to remove.

I went online and filed another report with Animal Control.  Hubby talked to a some friends at Bible Study last night and was given a few bits of advice on how to proceed.  It's just frustrating.

 I had a similar problem about 10 years ago. There’s a rental house behind my home, with a slatted wood fence as a barrier.

Some pit bull owning lowlifes moved into the house behind mine. The dog was viscous, and kept trying to break through the fence into my yard.

Animal Control proved to be useless.

I purchased 100 foot of #12 wire, and strung the wire as a live and grounded pair on the bottom of the fence. 

The wires were plugged into a utility plug on the side of my house.

I rigged a switch to the cord.

The next evening, I placed my lawn chair near the fence while holding the switch.

Soon, the dog came to the fence. 

Turned on the juice.

After just two “lessons”, the stupid dog wouldn’t go near the fence.

Problem solved.

After each “lesson”, remove the extension cord. Wire on the bottom of a fence is completely legal.

You could use a similar setup with some plastic mesh cover on your side of the fence to protect your own dogs.

This is also a case for small claims.  I would go after them for every dime of the vet bills (which will be considerable with all the stayovers) and with your reports to animal control you'll win hands down.  When you hit them in their pocketbook maybe they'll decide it's cheaper to dog proof their fence on their side.

When I first moved in here, I got a visit from animal control that my Lab was rushing the fence and scaring the lady behind me.  It was MY responsibility to put barriers up to keep the dog from hitting the fence.  Who knew when it might break with her hitting it?

Good neighbors don't allow pets, kids, or themselves to annoy or put others in danger.  Obviously your neighbors missed that basic lesson.

I had a headache and was fighting the idea of waking up at all this morning when the telephone rang.  It was the Vet.  Hussy passed away.  Her injuries were just too serious and she wasn't able to fight infection.  I had hoped to see her yesterday, but it just wasn't possible.  Maybe if I had.....................now I'll never know. 

I want to thank everyone for all their kind words and well wishes.  Were that all it took, Hussy would be in the back yard romping with Scout right now. 

I'm sorry for your loss. Has animal control done anything about this dog that has now killed another animal? Isn't that supposed to be grounds for confiscating the dog?

As far as I know, Animal Control has done nothing.  I called this morning to tell them that Hussy had died as a result of the attack, and after waiting on hold, I was hung up on.  It's something I witnessed while down there filing my report the other day.  The call goes through the recording and waiting period, it rings through to the office, and they pick it up and hang up.  I'll be making another trip down there this afternoon. 

I've talked to many people in the past two weeks, and they've all had the same thing to say regarding Animal Control.  If you want NOTHING to be done, Animal Control is the agency to call.  We hold them to such a low standard, and they can't even live up to that.  The whole thing sickens me.

dgrealish, I just saw now saw this post ... my most sincere condolences. 

If you don't mind, I'd like to send some heartfelt best wishes to you as well as our other fellow blogger whose best friend recently passed. 

RIP, Hussy & Bailey.

Dgrealish-So sorry to hear about this.  Definitely pursue every avenue possible, this is not right!

I'm so sorry to hear your baby didn't make it.  I would definitely present the neighbor with the vet bill as well as dameages to your fence.  And I would let him know that you intend to pursue it legally if he doesn't pony up.  People should not be allowed to let their dogs destroy property, especially when it puts other animals at risk.

I spoke with Animal Control again and was told that they "made contact" with my neighbor on Dec. 3.   He assured them that he had repaired the fence and has gone to extremes to insure my dogs aren't attacked again.  (I guess death could be considered and extreme)  I was given the name and number of the Animal Control officer who "made contact" with my neighbor and I called and left a message.  I haven't heard anything from him, but I'll keep calling until I do. 

Everyone at San Joaquin Veterinary Hospital on Allen Road was wonderful.  The girls made a plaster print of Hussy's paw, and when we buried her, she looked like she was sleeping.  She was curled up with her head resting on her paws.  They went to so much trouble, above and beyond the medical care they gave her.  They have been so kind and caring through all these attacks.  I know Hussy was in loving hands.

I"m not backing away from this.  All my dogs were sweet natured, harmless, loving pets.  They didn't deserve this.  Where are my rights as an animal owner?  And what the H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS are we paying Animal Control for, if not protection from vicious animals? 

dgrealish, So sorry to hear of your loss. This is maddening to say the least. Does anyone do their dang job anymore? Stay on them like flies on dodo! Been going through stuff myself. Has to do with little people though. I swear, it seems that bad wins over good these days. I'm beginning to believe evil is taking over this world. Criminals are the victim, and visa-versa. I feel like I understand people in high places less everyday. Either people are to lazy to do their job, or money rules the day. It doesn't matter that you did nothing wrong, and they were negligent. Have you by chance called the police and asked them for advice? It was LE who actually helped us with a dog problem. They got animal control to do their job. Just a thought...Some of my thoughts I will keep to myself as they are not nice. Good luck with getting something done on this. 

I just got off the phone with Jason Smith, the Animal Control officer who "investigated" my report.  After listening to the laundry list of lies he'd been told by my neighbor, I tried to give him "the other side of the story".  It was obvious his mind was made up and I was the one at fault.  He told me he wasn't going to "analyze splinters" from the fence to see which dog was chewing it.  He also said he wasn't going to talk of the dog's past history.  And he said if I had a problem with him before, I should have reported it.  When I told him I had, he said there was no record of a previous report. and asked me to describe the officer who came out.  When I described her, he changed the subject. 

All of the attacks have happened within one year.  ONE YEAR.  How can a report disappear in one year?  I finally asked him if he was friends with my neighbor.  He told me I was ridiculous.  I asked to speak to his supervisor.  He transferred me to his desk, and I left a message.  I'm on my way to the animal shelter now.

BTW, if you make a report to Animal Control, be sure to ask that the officer contact you.  Apparently it's a requirement if you wish to speak to them.  It doesn't necessarily mean they will, but if you don't ask, they definitely won't.

I am so sorry DG~ go get 'em!

Sue the pants off of the owner of the dogs. Seriously, you should try to speak to a lawyer about this matter.

This site might help as well

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/

Well, well! I hate it when people don't do their dang jobs. This whole thing has been eating at me, as well as other issues that seem others don't care to resolve. I can't get what I want to get accomplished, but thought I could try to help you out if I could just find the card I was given by the gal that helped us with the dog problem we had. Finally found it! The gal that helped handle our situation was Jacquelyn Bailey ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER-OPERATIONS DIVISION. As I recalled it was a person from BPD. I was right..Phone #326-3436 Pager#627-3487...Hopefully all the info is still the same. If you can reach this young lady, I'd bet you'll get the attention you deserve. Good Luck, and let me know how it goes.

proam~ I am glad I am not the only one that has noticed that( people not wanting to do their jobs) I thought I was just getting old and grouchy! I hear all the reasons for just "getting by" on the job and I want to scream...

Good link Pete and good info proam!

sage, As far as getting old and grouchy, I've questioned that myself. My children assure me that they are just as irritated by the lack of work ethic these days. My children are in their 30's. I was raised with the idea that when you work for someone you treat that job as if you owned the company yourself. I raised mine the same way. What bothers me most I guess is that it doesn't really seem to matter the age of the worker. Nobody seems to give a care anymore. People that are considered professionals even. Maddening to the point of wanting to pull my dang hair out at times. Hopefully the info I've given helps those who might need it out, especially dgrealish.

Hubby and I went to the Animal Control office this afternoon.  I asked whether there was a record of my previous report, and indeed there was.  I told them of my conversation with Officer Smith and that it seemed to go nowhere.  I referenced his "splinter analysis" comment then reminded them that this dog was able to shake a 54 pound dog.  Then I told them about my 13 grand children.  Some of whom weigh less than 54 lbs.  I showed pictures of Olive after the last attack, and reminded them that all the attacks happened within one year.

I have to say, the response I got was so much different than the response I've received before.  Officer Osborne was more open and listened to what I had to say.  She took notes and left them for her supervisor, who was off work today.  She said he will be contacting me for a personal meeting and suggested I bring in all my pictures and documentation with me.  I came away feeling much better than I have in weeks.

proam and pete, thank you for the information.  It will be put to good use, I promise. 

dgrealish, So glad to hear that just maybe you are getting somewhere with those folks. If not please call the number I provided. Off topic- Your avatar MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME, CLEAN MY KITCHEN reminded me of a plaque my Mama use to have on our kitchen wall. It said COME IN, SIT DOWN, RELAX, CONVERSE, OUR HOUSE DOESN'T ALWAYS LOOK LIKE THIS, SOMETIMES ITS EVEN WORSE. Should have mentioned this the other day when one of the ladies on here had the problem with the smoke alarm, and was horrified that her house was a mess when the firefighters came. Just having sweet thoughts of my Mama...

If you have not already done so you should request copies of the vet records as documentation of the injuries.  Take some pictures of the fence also.    When we have pets we always know that at sometime we will have to say goodbye.  But to have your pets attacked and killed when they are hanging out at home is just horrible.  

dgrealish,

Take a pound of Hamburger, add ground up glass and antifreeze (Prestone). It needs to contain Ethyline Glycol. Make about three meat balls (RAW) and throw them over the fence. The dog will eat them and that'll be the end of it. The dog'll be dead in a few hours.

Living in the country as I do, we just shoot them. Living in town, you can't do that because of an ordinance outlawing the discharge of firearms.

My Dad's dog was killed by a vicious dog and the Shafter Police Department did nothing because the owner worked for them. I hate to say it, but you're on your own to deal with it.

This is a hard answer, but you asked and I answered.

Poisoning a dog is just as illegal as discharging a firearm in the city is. Although the gun idea is something to consider for self-defense in this case. If the dog breaks through the fence and goes after a person, normally you wouldn't be cited for shooting it in self-defense. And a gun might be the only thing that would stop the dog from attacking one of the grandkids. Of course, with children around, you would want to keep the gun well-secured for their safety, so it might not work in this case (since damage could be done before you could get the gun out of the gun safe).

I would also say that if you do not get a response from Animal Control shortly, go straight to the head of Animal Control. Call, write, stop by... do whatever needs to be done to make him aware that his staff are not properly handling this case. I still think it would be a good idea to contact a TV news crew about this as well. At the very least, if Animal Control tries to freeze you out, a TV news crew could probably stop that and make sure your case gets handled. Nothing like a squeaky wheel in these situations.