FAQ about keeping dogs out of your yard
We don’t recommend using mothballs to keep dogs out of your yard. For starters, they’re hit or miss in their effectiveness as a dog-repellent. And sometimes, dogs end up eating the mothballs, which contain toxic pesticides that can cause serious illness or even death when ingested.
If a stray dog keeps pooping in your yard, the dog-repelling scents and methods we talked about in this article should still keep her out of your yard. Do you want to help the stray dog get off the street? American Humane has advice on what to do with a stray animal on their website.
Good old-fashioned poop-scooping or picking it up with a bag and throwing it in the trash is the best way to get dog poop out of your lawn. There are some commercial products and home remedies that can dissolve dog poop, but they don’t always work. Even when they do, they take several days to work and might damage your lawn.
Method Use Dog Deterrents to Discourage Neighbor’s Dogs from Defecating on Your Lawn
Generally speaking, dogs with excellent senses of hearing and smell are on the alert of any sign of trouble.
Why not take advantage of their nature to scare off neighbor’s dog on your lawn?
Some useful dog deterrents:
Tip Always Keep Your Dogs on Leash & Attended
In some places, there are strict dog control ordinances requiring that dogs within the city shall be on leash or under control. So it can be against the bylaws that you let your dogs run free to poop in your neighbor’s yard.
To prevent your dogs from defecating randomly, it is best to keep them leashed on a walk and also confine them indoors or within certain areas when you are not at home.
Ask Amy: How Can I Stop My Neighbor Dogs Pooping In My Yard?
Q: Can anything at all be done about a person walking their dog and deliberately allowing it to take a poop in their neighbor’s yard and not even carrying a bag to clean up after their own beloved pet? See it all the time. Help!!!!
A: Dothan does not have an ordinance addressing this issue, but if you want to go beyond talking or putting up signs to discourage owners from letting their dog poop in your yard you could sue.
A blog by Le Trinh on the findlaw.com website entitled “If a Neighbor’s Dog Poops in Your Yard, Can You Sue?” says one option could be suing for trespass.
If a neighbors dog is coming onto your yard without your permission, its probably trespassing. While trespass laws may vary among states, the elements of trespass are generally:
» Unauthorized entry – A dog stepping onto your land without permission, regardless of whether or not it knew that it wasnt allowed, is an unauthorized entry.
» Onto land possessed by the plaintiff – To bring a claim for trespass, you must either own the land or have control over the land. This could include your front and back yards, but would not include common areas such as a shared park in an apartment complex.
» Damage – Usually, the act of trespass itself damages your right of possession. However, the compensation is usually nominal, as low as $1, to signify that the intruder was wrong in entering your land. However, if the dog causes any damage to the land while trespassing, its owners could be liable for the cost of repair.
So if a dog enters your property without permission and damages the condition of your yard or lawn, the dogs owners could be liable for the cost of repair. Maybe, that will finally encourage them to keep their dog off your lawn.
If you believe a neighbors dog is trespassing on your land, an experienced attorney may be able to help you evaluate your options.