‘My neighbour has a massive dog and won’t get rid of it but I’m allergic’

The woman had just purchased the property but had already taken issue with the dog next door – she was claiming it was making her sneeze and also made her feel intimidated

Sometimes, if your neighbour has a noisy pet it can be disruptive to your routine – nobody wants to be listening to a dog barking manically every morning at 3am when they’re just trying to get some shut-eye before work. But if you were allergic to your neighbour’s pet, would you expect them to get rid of it?

One woman headed to Mumsnet to explain that she was allergic to the dog which belonged to her neighbour, and even hinted at the fact she was hatching a plan to try and make it so the dog could not live there anymore. Needless to say, dog lovers were not impressed with the woman’s demands.

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She wrote: “I am at the end of my tether and need advice. I recently bought a flat, its lovely and I’m really happy with it, but my neighbour has an absolutely huge dog and I’m allergic.

“She insists on taking it out for a walk three times a day through the communal hallway and I find it quite intimidating and it is making me sneeze.

“I wasn’t told about the dog when I bought the flat, and it doesn’t make any noise. Apparently, she has permission for it and permission can only be removed if it is making a noise or fouling – but not for any other nuisance. What can I do?”

People were quick to point out that the woman doesn’t actually live with the dog, so it shouldn’t bother her too much.

One wrote: “The dog isn’t bothering you and being walked three times a day is a good thing. Just try to avoid it if you’re allergic.”

Another suggested some antihistamines, writing: “There’s nothing you can do. She has permission for him to be there and if you say he’s a large dog and she’s walking him three times a day then she sounds like a responsible dog owner. He’s also not a nuisance as you say he makes no noise. Could you try some antihistamines?”

One Mumsnetter commented: “I don’t think there is anything you can do if the neighbour has permission to keep the dog and it’s clean and well-behaved. Is there any other route out for the dog besides your communal hallway – if so your neighbour might co-operate from goodwill, to help you avoid the dog, but you can’t force her to.”

“Are you seriously after trying to get your neighbour to get rid of their well-behaved pet?”, asked one unimpressed dog-lover.

Others said that if her allergies were that bad, she should’ve checked beforehand, writing: “If your allergies are so bad a dog walking down a communal hallway is a problem the onus was on you to check there were no dogs in the building.”

“Another option is to climb in and out of your window and avoid the streets in case you come across other dogs”, one user sarcastically wrote.

One suggested: “You would be best served buying some face masks and use them when you are in the community areas.”

What do you think the woman should do? Let us know in the comments.