# Unsolicited Comments From My Neighbor (A Rant)



## MissLilyBean (Dec 22, 2012)

It happened a few hours ago and I'm still so angry. I was just coming in from a walk with Stella. At the same time, my neighbor's daughter was leaving. She was obviously nervous about Stella. Here's how it went:

Neighbor's Daughter: "I'm just gonna stay right here till y'all get inside."

Me: "OK. But you don't have anything to worry about. She's as friendly as can be."

Neighbor: "That's the same thing my son said. He had a dog just like yours and it turned on and tore up my grandson. That's what those kinds of dogs do."

Me (as congenial as possible): "Well it's all in how you raise them."

Neighbor: "My son treated his dog good, too."

At that point, I just walked inside without another word. It might've gotten really ugly if I took her bait.

As a quick back story, this isn't the first time she's made snide comments about our dogs... among them that she's "not a dog person." 

Ugh!!!




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## Pax8 (Apr 8, 2014)

I know that sort of thing can be frustrating. I get it all the time around the town anytime I take my pup anywhere. The "he's going to turn on you" and "no matter how nice he acts, he's just waiting to bite". It makes me want to scream sometimes. But the best thing you can do is focus on your dog. Keep working her so you can rub her excellent behavior in their face anytime they want to say something!  

I'm not above calling my dog to a snappy heel when a stranger's made a snide comment, asking them to leave, and telling Kaiju to wave goodbye to them. The look on their face when he actually waves is pretty priceless.


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## KaiserandStella (Feb 27, 2014)

Don't let what others say get to you. You know your dog better than anyone else.

I'm going to add my opinion on what they said - Dogs are not unpredictable monsters that will attack randomly and they are not "fur babies"/humans. They do not attack out of nowhere and with no warning signs. When attacks happen it's human error that led to it. They didn't see the signs or they were in denial that there were any. They completely neglected the dogs needs or didn't take action to improve the crumbling relationship. Failed to prevent the dog from doing harm to others and vice versa. Sometimes just generally in over their heads. Raising a good dog citizen takes more than just giving affection, food, and a comfortable home to live in.


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## lawmarshall (Jun 26, 2014)

I think you handled it well.... ^_^ neighbors can be like that if they are not dog lovers or even an animal person...


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## Shade (Feb 20, 2012)

I would have just shrugged and said "ok." If she wants to inconvenience herself I don't see a problem with it, snide remarks only work if you're listening to them. Otherwise they're just hot air being wasted ;) 

You have absolutely nothing to prove to them outside of the fact that your dog doesn't do anything to bother them


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## JeanKBBMMMAAN (May 11, 2005)

The above, and respect their discomfort with your dog. If my neighbor became a clown all of a sudden, and they didn't respect that I was highly agitated by them in their get up I would get pushed into a fight flight flee mentality with the anxiety. 

And it's not how they are raised necessarily and people who are wary are not going to buy that. It’s Not How They’re Raised, It’s How Dogs are Managed That Matters Most | notes from a dog walker


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## blackshep (Aug 3, 2012)

I don't believe it's always how you raise them, although it plays a big role.

I agree with Jean, respect their discomfort with your dog, and not everyone is a dog person, and that's perfectly fine.

Maybe one day your dog will make your neighbor see that GSD's are wonderful dogs, but they have obviously had a very bad experience.

Sorry they said that, don't let it get to you.


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## Blanketback (Apr 27, 2012)

blackshep said:


> Maybe one day your dog will make your neighbor see that GSD's are wonderful dogs, but they have obviously had a very bad experience.


That's exactly what I was going to say! 

This is what happened to me, when I was getting to be friends with one of my neighbors: I was invited over and I asked if I could bring my pup along. I didn't know this woman had had a bad experience with GSDs in the past - all I knew was that I'd have to decline the offer if I couldn't, because it was after I'd been working that day (he was crated for hours and I wasn't going to add to that, just so I could socialize) and she graciously said yes. Fast forward to today, we're close friends, and she loves my GSD.


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## blueangele (Aug 5, 2013)

This is one thing that having a white GSD has never been said to me, I guess people are so shocked by his color that they don't even think about the fact that he is a GSD LOL.


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## Thewretched (Jan 1, 2014)

blueangele said:


> This is one thing that having a white GSD has never been said to me, I guess people are so shocked by his color that they don't even think about the fact that he is a GSD LOL.



The average person probably doesn't know white GSD are a thing.


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## misslesleedavis1 (Dec 5, 2013)

The fact she went on about indicates a mental issue and if i were you i would stay far away from the whole mess.


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## blueangele (Aug 5, 2013)

yep, almost everyone we meet ask if he is part wolf (he is a champagne color) or just ask me what kind of dog he is, when I say GSD they look at me strange


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## lesslis (Sep 23, 2007)

Guess folks have real fears and just cant gandle certain things. My sister is a airline captain, in charge of tons of steel going 500mph but wont come near my very stable Germanshepherds. Me, I gave problems with horses. Awesome majestic animals but they scare me. Weird humans we are!


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

We can't be in denial about the fact that there are a lot of bad Shepherds out there. 

If this woman experienced her son's dog tear up her grandson, I would say she is justifiably scared of the breed.


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## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

There is a good chance your neighbor is still shaken up by the fact her grand child was torn up by a dog. Instead of placing blame on her son, she is placing blame on the breed. I feel pity for the neighbor.


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## SuperG (May 11, 2013)

*Neighbor: "That's the same thing my son said. He had a dog just like yours and it turned on and tore up my grandson. That's what those kinds of dogs do."

*If in fact the above is true to the degree stated, it is very hard not to be a bit sympathetic toward the experience your neighbor had. I rather doubt there were any words you could have said which would have changed her mind....such is life. 

Her comments certainly do not define reality when looking at the big picture but they most definitely express her reality and it is tough to expect someone to change their opinion after an event as she described.

Time and patience might win her over someday but I wouldn't worry about it rather I'd feel a bit of empathy for her.

If she is embellishing the story and the grandson took a nip or two....then your neighbor is a lunatic and I would simply steer clear of her as no good will ever come from her regarding you and your dog.

SuperG


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## misslesleedavis1 (Dec 5, 2013)

I do not feel pity for the neighbour, in my experiance people like that get all riled up and cause problems. The minute you try to pass peacefully and they are still rammbling on spells out "oh boy here we go with the crazy", do yourself a favor and avoid that person like the plague, the last thing you need is some crazy made up "your dog is vicious" story floating around.


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## lesslis (Sep 23, 2007)

No pity, just a healthy respect for peoples true fears. Yea, she should of just moved on and shut up but humans are humans. Just do your thing on your property and enjoy your dogs.


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## Yoshi (May 12, 2014)

blueangele said:


> yep, almost everyone we meet ask if he is part wolf (he is a champagne color) or just ask me what kind of dog he is, when I say GSD they look at me strange


Yeah, I got that with my White Swiss Shepherd. Everyone would be like "wow, what breed is that dog? Is it a wolf? No, wait, it must be a pure white Husky/Malamute"! Actually, I even had one person think that he was a white dingo and I was baffled. :crazy: Dingoes have short coats and they are much smaller and slimmer, like a Kelpie. My dog was a long coat. Then for some reason my friends always said that he was a horse and I was even more baffled until someone pointed out to me that they meant size, not his actual appearance . . . Still horses are _way_ bigger . . . 



lesslis said:


> Guess folks have real fears and just cant gandle certain things. My sister is a airline captain, in charge of tons of steel going 500mph but wont come near my very stable Germanshepherds. Me, I gave problems with horses. Awesome majestic animals but they scare me. Weird humans we are!


I can agree with this. I have grown up with horses all my life and I used to love them. I loved riding them, especially my mum's black Arabian gelding named Nip. Then one day when I was about 6 my sister took me out riding on her pony mare and one of the stallions escaped his paddock, I think one of the helpers mustn't have closed the gate properly, they were difficult gates, and the stallion wanted to make love with the pony while I was on her back. Luckily I fell off just in the nick of time but it was scary. As a matter of fact I was scared of horses for a while but now I have almost gotten over it. Instead, as a kid I opted instead to riding rams.  Now I can pat horses and feed them, and have really come to admire their beauty and power. I guess that experience made me realise how dangerous horses can be.


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## MissLilyBean (Dec 22, 2012)

Thanks so much for the kind comments everyone. Even after some sleep I'm still a little annoyed, but this has been an ongoing problem with her for quite some time.

I suspect her story about her grandson is embellished simply because she's had negative things to say about my Cocker as well. If it's not her accusing my dogs of pooping on the sidewalk out front, it's something else. She even got bent out of shape one day when I found her son's social security card on the sidewalk. Slammed the door in my face after I delivered it to her.

In contrast, her husband is a delight. He's helped us with car repairs and we have regular conversations with him.

And THANK YOU for the article Jean. I agree! The author put it all so well, too! I'll be putting those responses to use from now on. If you don't give your dogs the proper outlets (e.g. regular exercise, training) and you ignore the signals they give, you're certainly setting them up for failure. I'm not even gonna try explaining that to this woman though. It'd just be a waste of my breath. LOL!






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## misslesleedavis1 (Dec 5, 2013)

Uh huh. Crazy. 

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## MissLilyBean (Dec 22, 2012)

All this talk of white shepherds! I'd love to have one! Very gorgeous!

As for my Stella, she's a bicolor. I've had folks insist that she's not a german shepherd because of her color. I've had just as many recognize her breed right away. 

Sometimes I wonder if the fact that she's almost all black has a hand in people's perceptions. I know from my volunteer work at the shelter that black dogs in general have a hard time finding homes. A lot of times it is a psychological thing. Black = evil. But both of mine are black. LOL!


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## MissLilyBean (Dec 22, 2012)

Yoshi - Horses are amazing. I had several in my childhood. I had many bad experiences with them - getting thrown, bitten, stepped on. But the good experiences outweighed the bad. Like you said, it taught me to respect them. To this day, I dream of having some again. ;-)


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## lesslis (Sep 23, 2007)

Lol missless. Could be. Seen a few of those also! ; )


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

MissLilyBean said:


> I suspect her story about her grandson is embellished simply because she's had negative things to say about my Cocker as well. If it's not her accusing my dogs of pooping on the sidewalk out front, it's something else. She even got bent out of shape one day when I found her son's social security card on the sidewalk. Slammed the door in my face after I delivered it to her.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Well, that changes things, then. 

I wonder if she has any animals at all. Cat, maybe? :wild:

And I can say that because I do have a cat  SOme of my "cat friends" are very anti dog.


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

Well, take this as a warning and stay away from her. Don't try to prove her wrong by showing her your friendly dog - keep your dog(s) away from her no matter what. Look at it like protecting your dog(s) from HER


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## MissLilyBean (Dec 22, 2012)

Sunflowers - No animals at all. Not even a cat. All she has is a miserable attitude. I'll just keep killing it with kindness. LOL!


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

MissLilyBean said:


> Sunflowers - No animals at all. Not even a cat. All she has is a miserable attitude. I'll just keep killing it with kindness. LOL!
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Well, that says even more.

We, here, love your gorgeous girl! I have a special fondness for bicolors.


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## SuperG (May 11, 2013)

*"She even got bent out of shape one day when I found her son's social security card on the sidewalk. Slammed the door in my face after I delivered it to her."*

Okay, I take back my " try and be understanding, high road solution"

She's a loon...


SuperG


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## misslesleedavis1 (Dec 5, 2013)

Nailed it.
SuperG 

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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Shade said:


> *I would have just shrugged and said "ok."* If she wants to inconvenience herself I don't see a problem with it, snide remarks only work if you're listening to them. Otherwise they're just hot air being wasted ;)
> 
> You have absolutely nothing to prove to them outside of the fact that your dog doesn't do anything to bother them


I agree. Smile politely, and move on. I understand the urge to defend your dog, but if you had just accepted her original comment without engaging with her further she probably wouldn't have continued making statements that offended you. Less stress and bother on both sides. It's really not worth arguing with ignorant people, and as Jean said, respect their discomfort around your dog. Whether you feel it's justified or not isn't really the point.


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## blackshep (Aug 3, 2012)

oh, yeah she sounds a little unstable. 

Even more of a reason not to get upset over what she said 

Too bad she may miss the opportunity to see how awesome your dog is. Her loss.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Cassidy's Mom said:


> I agree. Smile politely, and move on. I understand the urge to defend your dog, but if you had just accepted her original comment without engaging with her further she probably wouldn't have continued making statements that offended you. Less stress and bother on both sides. It's really not worth arguing with ignorant people, and as Jean said, respect their discomfort around your dog. Whether you feel it's justified or not isn't really the point.


This, exactly.

But further, if you allow her exchanges to annoy you, then you are allowing her to disturb your inner peace. Unnecessary. Consider the source and move on. 

The first part of the conversation -- I'll just stay back here -- 

perfect. "Thank you" and move on through. 

Also, you can shut people down cold by agreeing with them. 

"He turned on my grandson and tore him up, that's what those kind of dogs do." Answer, "Yes, they do, you'd better steer clear of Killer here, she's less stable when she's hungry." 
But that would be engaging her further, not being PC about her real or imagined or made up for the sake of having something to say fear of the dog, and it would not be a very good ambassador for the breed. An outside chance also, of having the neighbor go around spreading stories about you and Killer. so best to just thank her and move on by. The other is just so tempting, but immature. 

What makes me wonder is why people get a breed of dog who is known for protection, guarding, military work, police work and then are incensed when people cross the street to avoid them, or make a comment about their fear/distrust of them. They are formidable dogs. They have huge werewolf teeth that will do damage if the dog is provoked beyond its threshold, and their popularity leaves no shortage of stories about them -- human nature makes the negative stories stand out with greater weight.

So, it's ok to have people say they are uncomfortable around your dog. Good. Take that as the person being impressed with your dog, and maybe even impressed that you can handle and manage the dog. It is a complement. Don't let a complement annoy you. Say "Thank You."


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## Yoshi (May 12, 2014)

MissLilyBean said:


> Sunflowers - No animals at all. Not even a cat. All she has is a miserable attitude. I'll just keep killing it with kindness. LOL!
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Now that sounds like someone I know. They hate animals and the only thing they like about them is how good their meat tastes. It's sad because there was a time when she had a pet chicken and she really loved it, and one time she was excited that her family was maybe allowed to get a puppy, but it never happened. 



MissLilyBean said:


> Yoshi - Horses are amazing. I had several in my childhood. I had many bad experiences with them - getting thrown, bitten, stepped on. But the good experiences outweighed the bad. Like you said, it taught me to respect them. To this day, I dream of having some again. ;-)
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Haha, you should come and visit mum's place, she has horses galore, all Arabians. :crazy: We have one mare who was abused and ever since then she has hated a lot of people and she would attack them, but I am one of the few that she regards with indifference, unless, of course, if I have some jubes then she loves me! :wild:


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## KaiserandStella (Feb 27, 2014)

MissLilyBean said:


> this has been an ongoing problem with her for quite some time.
> 
> I suspect her story about her grandson is embellished simply because she's had negative things to say about my Cocker as well. If it's not her accusing my dogs of pooping on the sidewalk out front, it's something else. She even got bent out of shape one day when I found her son's social security card on the sidewalk. Slammed the door in my face after I delivered it to her.


Seems she has other issues going on in her life/mind. Her reasoning albeit understandable (bad experience) is not healthy. A mindset fueled by fear is never a good place to be. I wouldn't argue or try to change her perception unless she showed an openness to it. Just go about your business and don't give her any more reason to believe your dog may be an unpredictable danger to society.


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