wrote in message
ups.com...

Yes...I do want to be direct...but I want to choose my words
carefully...I want to make my wishes clear but not derogatory or
inflammatory to them or the dog...I was thinking of different various
situations and "if this comes up, say this" or "if that comes up, say
this"....I want to make my position low key, but firm..polite, yet not
timid...HOW something is said, I think, can make all the difference in
the world. They come to visit when we're there and sometimes the big
old dawg comes with them...I was thinking of saying something like
"Josie's a good dog, and welcome here anytime on a leash, OR with you
guys."
Yes, Lynne...I agree...I need to speak up...but my main concern is
saying the right thing the right way....the husband looks as if he can
get kind of bent out of shape (he likes to think of himself as a
kingpin)...the wife looks to be ok....

One of my pet peeves - people who have the attitude that their dogs can
wander in the country, where there is no animal control.

Just tell them that he's a really nice dog, and you're so sorry to restrict
his wanderings, but he is something of a nuisance at your house. He pees on
everything, you thought after the first time he would stop, but he keeps on,
and you've got to wash everything, blah blah blah.

Offer to split the cost of a fence between your two properties. Four foot
welded wire is about $60 for 100 ft, and the T posts (pound-in posts) are
roughly $4 apiece.

Alternatively, if that would be too much fence or they are uncooperative,
you could put up a fence that delineates your immediate yard from the rest
of your acreage, to keep him out. That probably wouldn't be a bad idea,
anyway, as it will help discourage wildlife like possums and skunks from
making a home under your deck, etc. If you use welded wire to surrounded
your house, you can easily camouflage it and make it more dog-proof with
attractive landscaping.

I'm not going to suggest you tell them how to manage their dog, unless you
think they might take very tactful hints. But the fact is, even in the
country you are responsible for your animals, be they livestock or pets.
Critters need to be confined to their owner's property so as not to cause
damage to others' property. Dog owners can be liable for other people's
rabbits, chickens, pigs, calves, or auto damage. You should keep this in
mind, yourself; your neighbor won't like it if you get chickens, let them
free range, and they destroy her flower beds or vegetables.

How we deal with this is, we have fenced around our house, so that we have a
suburban-yard-sized area for our dogs. They aren't let out to wander
around, although they come out on leash. We were the objects of some
hilarity when we moved in and people saw us fencing in our DOGS, which
nobody in the country does here - until I said, well, I don't like buying
other people's dead livestock, or scraping my dogs off the road.

flick 100785