Read the furious note the neighbor wrote about a barking dog – and the simple reason why the owner says they’re wrong
- Barking dog prompts angry note from neighbor
- The owner said the dog hadn’t even been home
An irate neighbor’s note to an Australian woman about her barking dog has sparked controversy after the owner claimed the pet wasn’t even home.
The woman, who lives in the scenic Ku-ring-gai Council region of northern Sydney, shared a photo of the handwritten note on social media on Wednesday.
‘To the dog owner, Your (sic) dog has been barking all day!’ the note reads.
The neighbor said they could hear barking from their living room “with the TV on” until 11pm and threatened to report the woman to the council.
But in a response to the anonymous neighbor in a Facebook post, the woman said her dog hadn’t been home all week.
The note an angry neighbor dropped in a woman’s letterbox in northern Sydney about her barking dog (pictured)
The dog owner claimed the pet had been working with her all week and that she wasn’t concerned if the neighbor spoke to the council
“He’s working with me from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day,” she said.
“He also sleeps in a crate and goes to bed when I do, usually before 10 p.m..”
She then admitted that the dog “has a habit of barking at backyard birds,” but she brings him in when he gets “too carried away.”
The woman added that she wouldn’t worry if the neighbor contacted the council because she would “tell exactly the same thing.”
Commenters on the post were divided, with many saying the other residents had a right not to be disturbed, but some backing the dog owner, saying the neighbor was being overly sensitive.
Across Australia, the laws around barking dogs are fairly consistent.
As a first step, councils recommend talking to the dog owner directly, but if a resolution cannot be reached, councils have the power to intervene.
In NSW there are also Community Justice Centers (CJC) that can help mediate the problem.
In the event of well-founded complaints from the municipality, a nuisance or noise order can be issued that carries a fine.
Tracking the dog’s barking is also encouraged.
The law in SA specifically states what is considered excessive noise: 240 barks per day between 7am and 9pm and 35 barks between 9pm and 7am.