Unfortunately I doubt that your note will alter her behavior. Even if you had spoken to her when she hit the dog it probably wouldn't change things. If it's so easy for her to hit him for barking she probably also hits him for other things as well. That's just the sad way some people treat their pets. I think the only thing you can do is keep alert to see if the dog is abused and then report it to the proper authorities if need be.

You can also hope that maybe she accidentally stepped on the dog's foot in the dark and that she wasn't hitting him on purpose. That might be a stretch but it could be the truth.

You can't fix or treat stupid..so I doubt if the note or saying anything will help! I'm not sure what I would have done, but I think I would have probably SAID something right then..maybe hollered and ask if her dog was OK!

Get your tape recorder out and record what happens if it happens again. I had to do that with past neighbor and their constantly barking dogs

I think I'll speak with her the next time I see her. We both have been raking leaves a lot, if I see her I'll ask about the dog. Otherwise, I'll keep my eyes and ears open. If it happens again, I'll call our Animal Control dept and describe what happened. My daughter says, give her the benefit of the doubt and let it go. She might have been having a bad day. I don't think I'll go the tape recorder route.

I'm with you, never hit! But.....it's not going to be seen as abuse if you call it in.

I "had" a neighbor that came over to my house to retrieve his standard poodle...he started beating it. I screamed at him to stop, lunged forward with my hand in a fist like I was gonna punch the owner and threatened to call animal control. The guy said he walked the perimeter of his propety to show the dog where the imaginary fence was, he was a smart dog and knew better. ???? Huh>>>>?

The neighbor witnessed the incident and later offered that if he wanted to give the dog away her mother lived on acreage and could give the dog the room it needed. He ended up giving the dog away.

Poor dog, I despise people who are mean to animals. Is the dog outside all the time? Chained up or free to run around? Does he have shelter? Does he look thin and/or neglected or does she give him food and water every day?

She has a bad history with pets. She had a Chihuahua (sp) that stayed outside all the time, even one 7 degree morning. Another neighbor broke down her back door and put the little thing inside. Had a basset for a while, but it "smelled bad" and was re-homed. Had a cat that ran around the neighborhood terrorizing birds. Till he "disappeared". I think a kibdly person in another part of town took him in. Hope so.

Jannie, that woman clearly needs to do research before getting another pet, although I think she's had enough "strikes" to be called out of the pet-owning game.

Most all bassets smell a bit (unless you use very strong shampoos on them, which is not recommended because they are scent dogs), tri-colors more than the others. How could she have not known this? I loved a basset once (well, still do), even though he was stinky. A good hand-washing helps.

So she keeps this dog outside all the time as well? She really does not need pets, I've never heard of anyone stupid enough to leave a Chihuahua outside in freezing weather. I would turn her in and point out her history of pet neglect to the person you talk to. She must be an idiot to keep getting pets when it's obvious she does not care for/about them.

We do have an Animal Abuse Registry in my county. If you are on their "list" you cannot adopt pets from shelters or breeders who are members. I will contact them and give them a long history of her and her pets. The current dog Rufus is outside a good bit of the time. But I know he's rarely outdoors after dark. He looks well fed and groomed. I remember with that poor Chihuahua. The family went away for summer vacation for 2 weeks. They left him locked outdoors with a big bowl of dry food and a big bowl of water. I will tell the Animal Abuse Registry all about that.

So they left him alone for 2 weeks without anyone looking after him and making sure he has fresh water and food. That should be enough to never allow them to have a pet again.

What an example they are setting for their children. What happened to the Chihuahua? Some people are so uncaring and awful, it's mind-boggling.

When we lived in Colorado, the people who lived behind us went on Christmas vacation for 3 weeks and left their new small kitten behind outside. No food, no water, no shelter. We intervened and I've never regretted it.

I forgot to add the Chihuahua was also re-homed. I heard he's living with an older lady on the Eastern End of Long Island, that she cooks him chicken every day and treats him like a prince.