BARKS TRAVEL
- A requested reprint by Jay Pennington -

Lately I’ve had a number of different residents call me about their neighbor’s dogs barking and asked that my earlier article be reprinted. Please take a moment to consider if your pets are barking too often or are barking too close to your neighbors’ homes.

More houses in Cordillera means more neighbors and closer neighbors. Sound travels very well out in the hill country...too well sometimes. Because I manage the pet database I occasionally get calls from fellow residents related to pet issues. I’m increasingly getting calls from residents about the volume and frequency of their neighbor’s barking dogs. Sadly one lady who just moved into Cordillera said that she had to keep her television volume turned up each evening in her home to keep from hearing her neighbor’s loud and incessant barking dogs, much less spend any time outside her house. It was sad to hear her tell me that Cordillera was promoted to her as a quiet place to live and now she has to stay inside with her television volume turned up.

I try to spend time outside each day. My wife and I especially love to sit on the deck and watch the sunset. I’ve found that depending on the weather/wind that sound can travel too well. We can hear dogs—not from the next block over— but the next hill over. We can hear a children’s swimming party from two and three hills over. It’s possible that sometimes even your own patio conversations may be heard by the folks on the patio in the home next to you—and especially if you decide to play some music on your patio, your neighbor might prefer the sounds of the birds and the wind through the trees instead.

So please take inventory of your environment to be considerate of your neighbors. For example, dogs that bark a lot at night could be kept inside each night. Non-stop barking dogs could be given a bark collar for training. Obedience classes can be fun to attend, plus the dogs can be trained to stop barking upon command. You may even check with your vet for other solutions.

Here’s a tip—if you decide some day to add an additional dog to the family, think about whether it will be an inside or outside dog. If it is going to be an outside dog, will it get lots of attention from you? Lonely dogs bark more often. Plus when trying to decide what breed of dog to have, you can research which dogs are yappers, howlers, calmer, and those breeds that bark less than others…..this will help you pick a dog to fit your lifestyle as well as being considerate of your neighbors. So, please keep in mind that voices, music and barking travel very well out here in the hill country…..sometimes too well. Please be considerate of your neighbors!

Tag Update. December 2006. We now have smaller Cordillera tags for medium to small dogs and for cats that wear collars. If you need a replacement tag please email me. If you are one of the few families who have not yet registered your pets, please call me at home during the daytime and I can take your contact and pet descriptions over the phone. I will then drop a tag at the Cordillera sales office for you. Please do not leave the information on my answering machine—just your name and number for me to call back. Thanks and Happy Holidays!
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