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Post #7 Another dog next door is driving my Maltipoo crazy

By The Team
•
11 Aug, 2016
•

An owner worries about her Maltipoo being bothered by a hyper dog in the neighboring town home

Question:

Hi, I have a 2 year old female Maltipoo, named Mandipoo. I live in a townhouse, I'm in the corner unit so I have one neighbor to one side. I've been having a problem that's been causing both me and my maltipoo tons of stress. My neighbor also leaves his dog home alone. The problem? It's a huge Boxer dog and every time I'm walking from my car into my house, I can hear him going nuts. From inside my house, his barks are LOUD. The owner comes home about a half hour after me and then the dog is quiet. But my Maltipoo is completely worked up and shaken. Any suggestions besides moving?

Thanks, Jessica

Answer:

Hi Jessica,

We can imagine how stressful this must be and having to leave your Maltipoo home alone when there's a big dog barking through the walls is indeed a tricky situation. One thing to keep in mind, is that the other dog may not be barking all day long. He may be responding to hearing your car pull up or even hearing you enter your home. You may want to test this by parking some distance away and quietly walking up to see if he's barking. Though, since you do say that it goes on for a half hour once you're home, it may unfortunately be an all-day thing.

If this other dog is indeed barking like mad for perhaps hours, we'd suggest having a talk with the neighbor. Maybe he's not completely aware of how much of a disturbance this is or that his dog is having trouble being home alone. He may just need some help in the form of suggestions. If he's open to listening, you might want to suggest such things as him ensuring his dog has proper toys (treat release, etc.), having cool water available, possibly closing drapes to block the dog's vision to triggers, extra exercise in the morning before he leaves, and perhaps even a dog walker.) If this fails and if your townhouse is part of a condo association, it may come down to reporting the dog as a disturbance.

In regard to your Maltipoo being upset at hearing this dog bark through the walls, there's a few things that may help out a bit. We'd suggest setting up your Maltipoo as far away from the shared wall as possible. Though your Maltipoo will still hear the other dog, he may feel much safer with a good distance between them. You can also counteract this a bit by leaving on a TV or radio (just be sure that the channel or station tends to have calm, easy-going shows or music).

Hopefully, some of the readers here will have additional advice!

Love, Hugs & Maltipoo Kisses,

The PetMaltipoo Team

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