Good Fences.

I wish I liked my neighbor across the road, but that's never going to happen. I went upstairs to get Joe up from her nap and heard a dog barking--not one of our dogs--so I peak out the window and the neighbor's dog is in our pasture carrying on about something in the grass. Almost all of my poultry are able to go as they please around the farm, so I figured I better go check it out.


I went out there and found that she was barking and nipping at one of our barn cats. I yell at her to get home, and chase her to the road. Our neighbor is mowing his yard and ignoring me while I frantically jump and wave trying to get his attention. I'm getting madder by the minute. Finally he stops and I tell him what his dog was doing.


"Well, did you make her come back home?" He asks like it wasn't a big deal that (a) she was on my property and (b) she was trying to tear up my cat.

"Yes, but you realize that I've got my poultry running loose now too, so she really needs to NOT be on my property." I say a bit shocked that he's unapologetic that he has a roaming dog.

"Well she wouldn't leave the property unless she was chasing a squirrel or rabbit--I guess a cat or chicken is probably the same to her, huh? Well you realize that the coyotes and foxes will be after your chickens too."

"I take care of the coyotes." I said without a smile and with a very serious tone. "Plus, I put them up at night, so I don't have to worry about much besides your dog."

"Well if you need to buy some rock salt for your shot gun, that's okay. Do what you have to do." He says and he goes back to mowing.

UNBELIEVABLE.

I would expect him to shoot any of our dogs if they were attacking one of his animals on his property. It would be our fault for not keeping them on our side of the road--it's not my responsibility to control his dogs. I have my own animals to control without having to add his to my list.

I guess it annoys me more because I just finally am rid of my husband's dog that he had since before we met who always attacked and ate any of my animals she could get ahold of. A couple of months ago she started looking at my daughter the way that she used to look at the chickens, and since she was an older dog we just put her to sleep at the vet's office instead of taking a chance with her hurting Joelee. She wasn't a pleasant creature--and I waited five years with my chickens penned up tight and no goats--now I have the ability to have the animals loose and happy and here comes this little obnoxious terrier mutt from across the road bothering my stuff. Not cool.

So my request for today is that if you have some extra spending money and you're a nice person--please go and buy the farm across the road from me so that I can have a neighbor I can tolerate. Otherwise I'm going to start building a huge stone wall around my property so that I don't have to even glance over and see the idiot.

I feel that I should add that this isn't my first run in with this man or his dog. She comes over to poo in our yard often and has been behind our house barking at my chickens when they were in the coop (and our house is quite a ways back from the road). He tries to be a farmer and boasts about his cattle, but he has all of fifteen acres and about forty head of pitiful cattle that are constantly bawling because they are hungry. Farmer John he isn't. Just a wannabe--but you try to be nice to him and he gets all 'holier than thou' and tells you he knows it all. Anybody in this county you mention his name around will give you a knowing look--believe me, my feelings are justified.