Susan Edwards
5000 Club Member
- Joined
- Nov 28, 2016
- Messages
- 5,473
- Reaction score
- 7,030
- Location
- Tracy, California
- What state or country do you live in
- California
So I'm hoping to be back and more active again. Life intruded when our neighbor of 18 years started harassing our dogs, and me. He's been a good neighbor, my husband has always helped him out as he doesn't read, taken him to dr appts, emergency rooms, etc. He and my husband even used to go to breakfast every sunday as he's a divorced lonely man. He stopped that last year and withdrew completely. Even did ATV riding together. Since about 2014 he started doing things in his back yard (banging on fence, kicking fence, banging his bbq, his alum. ladder, etc) when my dogs bark. I have 2 small dogs. So over the years, he's trained my dogs to bark at any noise he makes. Well, over the years, it's gotten worse but then he'd stop for a while. Not this year. Starting this year, it got worse month by month until June when he called animal control.
Now my dogs are NEVER left outside, NEVER allowed to just bark. Ever. Animal control said we didn't have problem dogs, didn't hear them at all when they were called, but they had to respond. So I started recording my dogs every time they went outside. And logging them. In June he started calling the police or animal control when the dogs barked. Literally for 6 seconds. LIterally for 1 bark. Every time they came out, there were no barking dogs, even within 5 minutes of his calling. He complained that I took the dogs back inside.... He even called for barking when I was out calling them from the garden and they barked in response.
When the officials wouldn't cite us, told him we were recording the dogs and they weren't problem barkers. Even recorded him trying to entice dogs to bark as he's on phone to dispatch saying can you hear them now--as he's opening and slamming his patio door shut. Played them for the cops everytime they were called. We also had to put up cameras as we found our side gate, and the inner gate open twice and I know one time he peeked over fence on his ladder to rile the dogs.
Then he started calling code enforcement on our 2 sheds--1 he helped us put up, the other had been there for 30 years--previous owners. We had to spend over 1000 bucks to move the newer shed away from the shared fence. Reason he wanted that one moved? That is where I sat with my phone recording the dogs and he couldn't see me from upstairs window. He also started spying on me when I was in my office as one of his windows looks down into that bedroom. We had to put up reflective stuff on the window.
Cops suggested a civil harassment restraining order. Researched lawyer, filing, wrote up a 30 page document of events, all cop calls, got copies of all reports, etc. Even did a barking spreadsheet in increments of 5 sec. to show at a glance when my dogs barked, how long, and if he was enticing or exciting them. Went to court in Sept. While we lost, as a judge cannot tell anyone to quit calling police or code, she said that we'd proven our case that we'd lost the right to enjoyment of life and had substantial emotional damage. If it had been small claims or regular court, we'd have won the damages and costs which were a good 8000 bucks, with lawyer fees, security cameras, shed stuff, and redoing the landscaping so we could move the shed.
Judge then told him that if he's sensitive to noise (he had a medical note from dr saying this) then either sleep elsewhere in his 4 bedroom house, (he sleeps couch in family room which is close to our fence) or get noise canceling headphones or ear plugs. She also made it clear that what is in our side yard (he complains about stuff there) is none of his business. And my lawyer got him to admit to the reason he wanted the shed moved. She also told him dogs are allowed to bark, even at 11pm and they are allowed to go out at all hours. She told us he can make as much noise as he wants but then he has to put up with the dogs barking.
Since then, he's stopped his harassments. I've stopped my logging which took hours. And we have the option to file in court if he starts up again, using what I submitted previously. So that long six months basically means my fish tanks suffered horribly. Even after, I've just been so exhausted mentally. Couldn't even write during those months. Except court stuff... It's all so sad really. So many good years and for what? He is an ocd man who likes to control everything--neighborhood bully. His other neighbor has had issues with no dogs, and the couple behind him have dog issues and they do not have a problem barker either.
My tanks have all suffered. My 66 gal got brown jelly and I've lost almost everything but the softies. Last micromusa is on its way out. Need to figure out why and how and what to do. The 125 got low on parameters as I wasn't testing and didn't have the doser hooked up yet. Not many corals there, but lost the nice duncan and the pagoda not doing well. Frag tank is over run with aiptasa.
Working to get back on schedule, get alk and calcium up where they need to be. Back to better water changes. I did add fish to the new tank and didn't lose any fish due to neglect. Had 1 wrasse jump when scraping glass and didn't notice in time.
Will go update my build threads and get back to contests etc.
Now my dogs are NEVER left outside, NEVER allowed to just bark. Ever. Animal control said we didn't have problem dogs, didn't hear them at all when they were called, but they had to respond. So I started recording my dogs every time they went outside. And logging them. In June he started calling the police or animal control when the dogs barked. Literally for 6 seconds. LIterally for 1 bark. Every time they came out, there were no barking dogs, even within 5 minutes of his calling. He complained that I took the dogs back inside.... He even called for barking when I was out calling them from the garden and they barked in response.
When the officials wouldn't cite us, told him we were recording the dogs and they weren't problem barkers. Even recorded him trying to entice dogs to bark as he's on phone to dispatch saying can you hear them now--as he's opening and slamming his patio door shut. Played them for the cops everytime they were called. We also had to put up cameras as we found our side gate, and the inner gate open twice and I know one time he peeked over fence on his ladder to rile the dogs.
Then he started calling code enforcement on our 2 sheds--1 he helped us put up, the other had been there for 30 years--previous owners. We had to spend over 1000 bucks to move the newer shed away from the shared fence. Reason he wanted that one moved? That is where I sat with my phone recording the dogs and he couldn't see me from upstairs window. He also started spying on me when I was in my office as one of his windows looks down into that bedroom. We had to put up reflective stuff on the window.
Cops suggested a civil harassment restraining order. Researched lawyer, filing, wrote up a 30 page document of events, all cop calls, got copies of all reports, etc. Even did a barking spreadsheet in increments of 5 sec. to show at a glance when my dogs barked, how long, and if he was enticing or exciting them. Went to court in Sept. While we lost, as a judge cannot tell anyone to quit calling police or code, she said that we'd proven our case that we'd lost the right to enjoyment of life and had substantial emotional damage. If it had been small claims or regular court, we'd have won the damages and costs which were a good 8000 bucks, with lawyer fees, security cameras, shed stuff, and redoing the landscaping so we could move the shed.
Judge then told him that if he's sensitive to noise (he had a medical note from dr saying this) then either sleep elsewhere in his 4 bedroom house, (he sleeps couch in family room which is close to our fence) or get noise canceling headphones or ear plugs. She also made it clear that what is in our side yard (he complains about stuff there) is none of his business. And my lawyer got him to admit to the reason he wanted the shed moved. She also told him dogs are allowed to bark, even at 11pm and they are allowed to go out at all hours. She told us he can make as much noise as he wants but then he has to put up with the dogs barking.
Since then, he's stopped his harassments. I've stopped my logging which took hours. And we have the option to file in court if he starts up again, using what I submitted previously. So that long six months basically means my fish tanks suffered horribly. Even after, I've just been so exhausted mentally. Couldn't even write during those months. Except court stuff... It's all so sad really. So many good years and for what? He is an ocd man who likes to control everything--neighborhood bully. His other neighbor has had issues with no dogs, and the couple behind him have dog issues and they do not have a problem barker either.
My tanks have all suffered. My 66 gal got brown jelly and I've lost almost everything but the softies. Last micromusa is on its way out. Need to figure out why and how and what to do. The 125 got low on parameters as I wasn't testing and didn't have the doser hooked up yet. Not many corals there, but lost the nice duncan and the pagoda not doing well. Frag tank is over run with aiptasa.
Working to get back on schedule, get alk and calcium up where they need to be. Back to better water changes. I did add fish to the new tank and didn't lose any fish due to neglect. Had 1 wrasse jump when scraping glass and didn't notice in time.
Will go update my build threads and get back to contests etc.
