MaggieDog Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 Cautionary tale that I unfortunately get to tell. I posted about the neighbor who had loose dogs I reported to management on the clueless owner thread. Well today we met again and if I had had my cell with me, the cops would've been called. The woman had her dogs on flexis and followed us until I was up next to a building where she proceeded to let her dogs out to the end of the leads and began yelling at me. I was effectively pinned to the building because Maggie was flipping out and her aggressive dog was between me and escape. I had to try and talk to this person for 5 mins until I could turn around and go behind the building to get away - she followed us until I started heading toward the office for the complex. At that point she stopped and walked her dogs around in a grassy area at the end of the building, watching me (she had threatened harassment if she knew where I lived). I skirted the office and doubled back through the woods, checking to see if she was still watching before heading into the office to report what had happened. I told my manager the story, she called her boss and the woman will be gone by tonight. They are also calling her corporate office to report the incident and explain why she is being kicked out. The girls will be heading to work with me tonight (I work til 9) and my boss will be coming home with me to make sure I can walk the girls unmolested. I'll be carrying my cellphone anytime I leave the house. BE CAREFUL - People are crazy and you never know what might happen when you make them leash their dogs!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aBC4me Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 Oh my gosh I have never in my life... I am so sorry! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seelie Fey Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 Wow! What an idiot that lady is. She's making a minor inconvenience of leashing her dogs and arranging for it to majorly screw up her life (and yours - - but it sounds like soon you'll be rid of her) Glad you're getting support from you boss and the management. Keep the girls tucked away safe with you 'til she's well gone. Sorry you're going through this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurae Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 What a nutter. Erin, I'm so sorry you're going through this. I don't want to be overly dramatic, but considering she has displayed intimidating behavior toward you and your dogs, threatened to harass you if she finds out where you live, and likely will be angry that she is being evicted and thus may be motivated to seek revenge, I would contact the police and perhaps even file a restraining order. What a bad deal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbc1963 Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 I'm guessing this woman has had run-ins with other tenants, too. One semi-nice thing about dealing with irrational people is that they rarely act irrationally to just one individual - they generally scare and freak out others. So eventually, they get their due. I'm crossing my fingers that you manage to get through this without any trouble. Scary people... ugh! Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixie_Girl Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 Erin, I am so sorry you have to go through this! Jeeze, some folks just don't make sense! Please be extra careful! Be watchful of any strangers looking to see where you live. It won't take long though, she will find someone else to be ill with, and forget all about you! If you need any help, I'm only an hour away! I can be pretty scary! I scare myself sometimes. Take care. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle K Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 OMG! I'm sorry to hear this. Erin, you be careful! There are too many crazy people out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OffTopic Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 Erin, I don't know where in SC you are, but I will also offer you a safe escape, for you or your dogs. I'm in Columbia. Just say the word. I can also supply pretty effective back-up. Mike is 6'6" and 275 lbs and can look REALLY mean if he needs to. Be careful. Watch that your dogs don't find any "surprise treats" lying around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jackieandryan Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 Pepper Spray Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted February 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 Thanks guys! No pepper spray for me as I don't trust myself not to spray into the wind or at myself. I do carry citronella spray which looks like pepper spray from a distance, so that might act as a deterrent at least. For now I'm being very careful - keeping my eyes open outside, locking all the locks on my doors, taking the girls to work tomorrow, etc. I have cell numbers for both my bosses and my apartment manager plus 911 of course and carry my cell at all times. My apartment manager will be coming over when I go to walk the girls tomorrow morning to be sure I have no problems on that front and she says security has been stepped up around my building. If the woman harasses me again, I'll involve the cops. Anyway all is well thus far - just got back from work and running the dogs at a friend's house, so off to get food and catch up on housework. Thanks again for the concern and suggestions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WyoBC Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 That's crazy. Although it doesn't surprise me. We (staff) at the shelter I work at have to carry pepper spray no matter where we go. There are some really wacky people out there. Be careful. Let us know if you need anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bo Peep Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 What a nut! If not pepper spray, try your whistle or a water spay thing from the dollar store, for a mean dog- or person- add ammonia!!! Did I spell that right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nik Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 Erin, If this person is as "off" as she's made herself out to be towards you I wouldn't wait until the next time to get the cops involved. I would go to them now and let them know what threats have been made toward you and what steps you have taken to this point to have on record what's going on. Just one less step to take in case things get even more out of hand. Even if nothing is officially reported the cops will know what your situation is already if you HAVE to make another attempt at contacting them. God willing you won't have to though. Stay safe and alert. Hopefully the eviction will be enough to deter her from doing anything more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcnewe2 Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 I have a friend who had this same type trouble with her neighbor. It was long ago. the last straw came when she was digging a hole out in her yard and the guy came up effectivly trapping her in the hole. She freaked out for quite some time and had to figure out a plan because they both owned the houses and land. Her solution, she started taking self defence classes, Aikido to be exact. She never had to use her lessons with the guy but her whole attitude changed, no more fear, confidence instead. (not that you're not being confident) but now my friend is a 4th level black belt. She teaches aikido at the local sports complex. It started her on a whole new journey in life. One that she was in control of. I hope your story ends with something like the same type expereince. Not trapping you in a hole but you feeling better about this situation btw, the mean neighbor never moved but he quit bothering my friend because she was no longer afraid of him. Good luck and keep a bubble of confidence around you. People can feel what you're thinking. I think I'd also contact the police now, just in case she keeps going and causes you to have to react. You'll have a record that this was not started by you. Kristen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
painted_ponies Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 Wow, Erin, that must have been a pretty scary experience. But what a good thing you went ahead and reported her right away, both times - by bringing this thing to a head you probably avoided something worse happening in the future. I'm glad you're keeping your eyes open - not a bad habit to get into, even when you're not actually expecting lunatics. And if you want to get out of town for a while, you and the girls are welcome at the farm anytime. Nobody'll find you at my place - or, if they do, it'll just mean I won't have to buy dog food for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gypsy84 Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 And if you want to get out of town for a while, you and the girls are welcome at the farm anytime. Nobody'll find you at my place - or, if they do, it'll just mean I won't have to buy dog food for a while. My grandma used to live in a very rural area. There was a bad group of native Americans that would constantly bother her and the other people in that area - she's told me horror stories that I wouldn't believe are real if anyone else was telling them to me. Anyways, she had a big black shepherd cross named Ty that was scary to look at, but basically the sweetest dog in the world, loved everyone but especially my grandma. One day he had been gone for a while, and a few of the guys came to her house to cause trouble. She was out chopping wood at the time (70 years old then, living on her own and still doing all her own work) and couldn't get inside to get her gun before they pulled in between her and the house. They got out and started sizing up the situation - they knew about Ty but saw he wasn't around so they started coming towards her slowly. All of a sudden, Ty comes trotting down the road carrying a huge bone from a nearby slaughter yard. He came up to my grandma, sat at her feet and dropped the bone. She had taught him how to "smile" by nudging the back of his neck, so he gave those boys one of his best My grandma then said "If you don't get off my property right now, I'll tell my dog do to you what he did to the last guys that came bothering me.. And this is all that's left of them." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 Ditto the suggestions of making a police report. It's important in harassment cases to document a clear trail of threatening behavior. You should have this "on the record" in case (heaven forbid) she bothers you again, then you have more than one incident, and it will be taken more seriously. I'm glad you guys are all ok! That had to be scary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted February 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 Thanks for the offers of assistance Sally and Linda. I'll keep them in mind in case anything else goes awry. I loved the story about Ty too lol. So far so good - she's on schedule to be gone by tonight and I've had no trouble to date. My apt manager has been keeping an eye on me and made sure to hang around while I was walking the girls this morning. I now know what the woman drives so i can keep an eye out for that in the future as well (very distinctive thankfully - a Jag). Found out one of the reasons why she was out so fast is that the apt was a corporate lease and thus easier for the complex to break. I'm guessing she also had a history before this whole incident given the lightening fast response. I may call the PD today sometime and see what they suggest re: reporting/recording the event for possible future use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 If your PD is like ours here, you can just make a report over the phone, they'll give you a report number, and it's documented. Easy peasy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katelynn & Gang Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 People are crazy. My last ex asked me if I loved my dogs after our very last fight. You can bet the dogs go no where alone (not even out to go potty) and I carry pepper spray now. I'd make a report. It will only benifit you if something happens again. Good luck and give the girls a pat for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoku's mum Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 Wow, glad to hear you have such good support from your appt manager. Sound to me like this nutter has a long list of trouble, given that she is OUT now. That is often the case... Keep safe, and give your girls a scritch for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tranquilis Posted February 2, 2008 Report Share Posted February 2, 2008 Concur with the others that you need to have a police report on file. What this woman has done is typically classed under assault or communicating terroristic threats. It's clear to me that she's dangerous, and you need to have a police report on file, to back up any stronger measures, should they be necessary. Never leave the house without your cell phone - not even for a dog walk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silhouettestable Posted February 2, 2008 Report Share Posted February 2, 2008 Do be careful. A friend of mine had a run in with a woman who owned a pair of spaniels too. Apparently they kept getting loose and my friend had returned them before. One weekend she picked them up went to return them but nobody was home, driveway was barred and there was no apparent place the dogs were supposed to be, no food, water or shelter and we don't have a local shelter. She hung onto the dogs, took care of them and left a note or message for the owner. Owner returned, retrieved her dogs but then later came back over acting all aggressive. She assaulted my friend (who's boyfriend wasn't home at the time), my friend managed to get inside her house but the woman forced her way in before the door was shut and continued the assault. She finally left but again came back later or next day and wanted my friend to come outside, saying she just wanted to talk. My friend called the police, and got a restraining order against the woman. After that though she never has felt safe to stay alone in her own home again. When her boyfriend had to be away for a few days she came to stay with me because she couldn't sleep there alone. You never really know just how nuts some people are, better to be safe than sorry and report what happened to the police. One positive about the dogs in my friend's case, they did finally end up at a shelter, got spayed and neutered (yes, she was a backyard breeder type) and found new homes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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