[MunchingonHay]

Thanks everyone, I do realize that I should not have pushed her. That was my bad.

I am going to talk to the leasing office, give them the case number and find out of the other tenet filed a charge against her from a few months ago.


And yes, I will be getting some mace or some sort of spray in the very near future. A big stick? I would most likely end up tripping over it, yes I am that much of a klutz. And I need to make sure the spray I get has a fool proof spray head on it. I am the type of person that would spray myself in my face.


Thanks everyone!

[Superminion]

Oh man. I feel your pain. I got to deal with the poodle from hell that ended up getting shot by the police. *sigh* Things never got physical with his owner, because she was pregnant... I did want to deck her ever so badly though.

There is a reason that JRT's are roughly shaped like a football. I wouldn't hesitate to punt the little terror next time, his owner might not learn a lesson, but he might. They are smart little devils.

I also agree with arming yourself with mace. Check the wind direction before you spray, however (even if your well-meaning husband is yelling at you to 'use the spray!'), because it's a PITA to get out of your eyes... even after afforementioned husband sprays you in the face with the garden hose. I'm not speaking from experience or anything.

Good luck! The police are your friends in this instance.

[NorthwoodsRider]

I am going to talk to the leasing office, give them the case number and find out of the other tenet filed a charge against her from a few months ago.

I don't know what the laws are in Fla, but here, if they have her name and can track her down, a property owner (in this case the leasing office) can serve her with a "trespass notice" which bans her from the property. It is a lot easier for the police to do something if she has been issued this notice in advance. Here stores routinely issue them to known shoplifters.

[jetsmom]

Well I for one, will openly admit a pit bull dislike. I have three neighbors with them, all of whom swear up and down they are sweet as can be. Two have attacked people or children and the third is a replacement for one that nearly killed an old gent on the bike path and the people were told to gave him away. None of them are neutered.
I readily admit it is the owners and not necessarily the dogs, by I don't get their denial and I really resent their desire to own nasty dogs trumping the safety of others.
Florida is becoming a huge turn off to me. As soon as the market opens, I'm selling and going back to sanity.

It is the owners and not the dogs. I've had 3 renters with PB's. All were very friendly and well behaved. One of them is a therapy dog. He spent Friday at the local elementary school in a "Dogs as Tutors" class, having the students read to him while he lays there paying attention to them. It helps the kids that have difficulty reading out loud to have to read to a nonjudgemental dog. He takes his job very seriously. The owner also owns 2 Chinchillas, and the dog will put his head in the cage and rest his chin on the bottom, while the chinchillas groom his muzzle. It's very cute.

[Sannois]

Holy hell PEople are so scary anymore. I wished you had a good big GSD trained on heel to bark and guard her, She would have never set foot near you.
So glad you are okay. I would have never even gone out there. Too chicken!!!

[JanM]

It might be that when the police or your management talk to the other complex manager that the woman is violating her lease. And it could be she may be leaving soon, and I certainly hope for that. It sucks that anyone has to worry about who is trespassing on their property, and causing problems. If all the other woman was doing was using the dog park, then I bet no one would care, but she obviously wants to intimidate people, and cause confrontations and fights.

[Bicoastal]

Talk softly and carry a big stick or mace ;p

Ditto this. Hugs to you. What a stressful situation! Be extra careful now in case there is retaliation. Mace, mace, mace.

[tallyho392]

MAYBE you and several other tenents tht have been harrassed by this woman can chip in and buy a small survellience camera (sell it later and divi up the money)..........they are not super expensive, and if you have the veiw, you could mount it from your window/balcony......................having her aggressions on tape would really burn her bacon

[BuddyRoo]

This is one reason I'm thankful to have two big dogs of my own. That lady wouldn't have been able to get close enough to me to throw a punch.

I've only seen my otherwise very friendly lab get "aggressive" three times in 9 years. In each case, someone was being aggressive towards me.

Glad you're okay. Be careful out there!

[MunchingonHay]

I just spoke with the leasing office, there is no "sister" that rents here, we figured so much. I asked about the other run in with tenet that happened a few months ago with this same person and he never filed a report. We called him and asked. My leasing manager is going to comb though police reports to see if there is anything, just in case. From the previous run in there was a sheriff called and dispatched to our complex.

I do have a large (65lbs) pittie mix who was in the apt watching everything from the window, I am actually surprised he did not jump through the screen (so he is smarter than he looks thank god). Had he been down there with me there would no longer be a JTR. He is not aggressive, but very protective when the situation arises. And I did not want to have to take him to the vet should something happen. (which is why I left him in the apt) I may just spring for a camera myself, surely there are holiday sales coming soon.


Thanks for all the support everyone!

[Alagirl]

if your window overlooks that corner, don't forget the power of the webcam! They are ultra affordable these days!

[BuddyRoo]

Not sure if it will make you feel any better, but I once had someone come over the counter and take a swing at me when I was working in a vet clinic. They were long time clients at a rather upscale clinic. The guy just got really agitated when we asked him to pay his bill! some people are just bar brawler types at heart and it doesn't take much to incite their violence.

You were probably wise to leave your pooch in the house. While I have no issues with PB's in general (my family has one), I also know how hard it can be to break them up if there IS a fight. I broke my toe a few months ago getting my neighbor's PB off of my dog. (kicking barefoot is not wise, but hey, I was in my bathrobe and such!)

Glad you're okay.

Good luck.

[Alagirl]

Not sure if it will make you feel any better, but I once had someone come over the counter and take a swing at me when I was working in a vet clinic. They were long time clients at a rather upscale clinic. The guy just got really agitated when we asked him to pay his bill! some people are just bar brawler types at heart and it doesn't take much to incite their violence.

You were probably wise to leave your pooch in the house. While I have no issues with PB's in general (my family has one), I also know how hard it can be to break them up if there IS a fight. I broke my toe a few months ago getting my neighbor's PB off of my dog. (kicking barefoot is not wise, but hey, I was in my bathrobe and such!)

Glad you're okay.

Good luck.

not to mention that it will always be the PBs fault, even with evidence to the contrary....

not a situation I would want my pet in.

[BuddyRoo]

I apologize, Ala, didn't mean to give that impression at all.

As I said, my family has a PB too. I'm not averse to the breed. It's the PEOPLE that are the problem.

In the case I mentioned above, I was over feeding the neighbor's dogs. (pet sitting) My dogs (who have played with the neighbor dogs for several years) were there too. One of the dogs got pissed and cornered one of my dogs on the deck outside the house and was all over him. Would not get off. I wasn't going to stick a hand in that mess. I yelled and then I kicked until I broke it up. The difference sometimes between a terrier breed and others is that they are very very focused.

[MunchingonHay]

thanks for adding your own stories too. At least I am in good company!

[Alagirl]

I apologize, Ala, didn't mean to give that impression at all.

As I said, my family has a PB too. I'm not averse to the breed. It's the PEOPLE that are the problem.

In the case I mentioned above, I was over feeding the neighbor's dogs. (pet sitting) My dogs (who have played with the neighbor dogs for several years) were there too. One of the dogs got pissed and cornered one of my dogs on the deck outside the house and was all over him. Would not get off. I wasn't going to stick a hand in that mess. I yelled and then I kicked until I broke it up. The difference sometimes between a terrier breed and others is that they are very very focused.

oh heck, no, I thought I was adding that to the idea you posted.
If the Pit is in a fight he certainly must have instigated it, never in a million years the lab, the Chi or the JR Terrorist, I mean terrier....

main reason I am for not bringing a pit to a serious situation - unless of course you have to fear for your life.

(gosh, I need more coffee...)

I mean, you are completely right it is almost always the people.
but those people will also blame the 'dangerous' dog, getting him in all kinds of trouble.

[BuddyRoo]

I've been bitten (or attempted bitten) by more cockers and doxies than anything else. But the dogs who have really scared me because they were going for broke were chows and PBs. Not gonna lie. My SP got "attacked" by some JR terrorists at the dog park the other day. He was scared, I was not. I can beat them off easily. But a bigger dog? Not so much.

Like you said though, my dogs could be dangerous too in the right situation. I dare someone to mess with me when I've got mine in hand.

[JGHIRETIRE]

Isn't it amazing how it's always someone else's fault and never their own. WOW
Sorry OP you got decked but excellent try.

This sounds like exactly the situation that that castle law was designed for.

Just kidding, sort of.

Stuff like this makes me crazy angry. I had a very similar encounter a few years ago with a girl in my apartment complex. I was walking my dog (on a leash) down the steps and across the lawn area to get to the sidewalk. All of a sudden a loose lab comes barreling toward us. I scooped up my dog (a 17 lb Shiba Inu) and start looking for the lab's owner. The lab is leaping up on me to get to my now snarling shiba, so I kneed it in the chest to get it to get off me. That brought the owner running - "DON'T KICK MY DOG!!!"

I was shaking I was so angry, but I really didn't want a problem, so I politely asked her to please control her dog. She responded with "It's your dog that needs to be controlled!" Yes, my 17 lb shiba who is ON A LEASH and CURRENTLY BEING HELD IN MY ARMS is the out of control one.

The girl then proceeded to tell me that I shouldn't have come down the stairs of my own apartment complex because she was playing fetch with her loose dog. Whatever. I gave her a dirty look and walked away.

Not two minutes later, the lab comes barreling up to me again, this time screaming owner in tow - "Now my dog is going to follow you! Why did you come down the stairs!?!" She continued to scream at me about how it was my fault that her dog wouldn't come and she had every right to have her dog loose, yadda yadda yadda...

I pretty well lost it. It didn't get physical, but unfortunately for the girl, I'm pretty familiar with law enforcement in the area. I called the cops. She was ticketed for violating the leash law, having an unlicensed animal, not having proof of rabies vaccination, and warned that I had a pretty good case for assault.

I didn't press charges, but I did get her evicted. Our complex has a pretty strict 20lb weight limit on pets and they were not impressed with the loose, out of control, 70lb lab.

Good luck, OP. I've come to conclusion that there is nothing worse than an entitled, bad dog owner.

[SmartAlex]

My sister works at a vet hospital as an animal caretaker. Before that she worked at a humane society. The top "beware of" breeds on her list are Chows and Springers.

In my experience.... mut collie mixes make me the most nervous.