Woman Who Dreads ‘Confrontation’ Wants to Write an Anonymous Note to Neighbors About Their Dog’s ‘All Day’ Barking 

A woman who says she is “dreadful with any sort of confrontation” wants to write her neighbors an anonymous letter about their dog’s constant barking — but she’s unsure if it’s the right thing to do.

She shared her story on the “Am I Being Unreasonable?” forum on the U.K.-based site Mumsnet.com, where people ask others for advice on different topics. In her post, she said her neighbor “has a little dog that barks all day,” starting around 6 a.m.

“[It] runs outside, barks for about five minutes solid. [This] will happen throughout the day, including if anyone walks past, pulls up, if anyone has a delivery, if anyone goes to their car or [trash] bin,” she explained. She added that the dog usually does its last “round” of nonstop barking by “about 10:00 to 10.30 p.m.”

“It’s been grinding on me for a while, but is now seriously pissing me off,” the woman continued. “When they first got this dog, they’d occasionally say ‘no’ or ‘stop’ (which obviously didn’t work), but I am not sure if they have made any other attempts to do anything about this.”

She also wrote, “I am dreadful with any sort of confrontation and would prefer to put an anonymous note through the door, saying I am not sure if they realize the frequency of the barking and is there anything they could do to please reduce [it].”

“[Would I be unreasonable] to do this?” she asked at the end of her post, adding that she might report her neighbor to their housing council instead.

Most Mumsnet users advised her to speak to her neighbors directly. “From personal experience, it’s a bit sh—y making someone paranoid and suspect the entire street. If you’re going to do it, go through the [housing] council; that’s anonymous anyway,” one person said.

“Anonymous letters are weaselly and cowardly. Just talk to them,” another user wrote.

“Talk to them,” agreed someone else. “Chat to other neighbors and encourage them to talk to the neighbor as well. The more people complain directly, the better. The dog needs training; it must be very annoying for everyone.”