Neighbours! Please Help!

[starbunny]

I live in council accommodation and for the past 15 years have had trouble with neighbours. The first worked in the police station and made false allegations towards me, such as I was poisoning her dogs/plants etc and caused no end of grief. I moved. The second neighbour unfortunately did the same, and started videoing people coming in and out of my house and placed cameras pointing towards my front gate etc and spooking my friends out. I never complained about either of them. I remained calm, but unfortunately I got the reputation of there's no smoke without fire :-(, despite me having several witnesses to prove that I did not participate in these false allegations..
Now I have new neighbours again, and I am desperate to get on with them, but two days after moving in, their three alsation dogs jumped over the garden fence and mauled a little boy I was looking after who was playing with other kids in the front green, and today they reversed into my car and caused damage. I have never complained about a neighbour before, and am soooo worried that the pattern will happen again that has gone on in the past, but when it comes to children's safety I feel I have to do something. I am so frightened that I will come up against the violent threats and abuse I have been subjected to in the past. I also have a diagnosed mental condirtion which the council are aware of and am afraid If I do report the incident that they will not take me seriously. Any tips on resolving this situation without aggrivating it? Any help would be appreciated.

[specialmom]

Oh goodness.  Well, one thing you just can't feel guilty over is a dog that will attack people.  That is dangerous.  Sad---------  I agree.  I hate for any animal to be euthanized but what else can you do?  I'm an animal lover----------  but safety has to come first.  

Anyway, I'm glad that they are being reasonable about the problem and maybe doing something like baking them some cookies or something will soften the aftermath of it all.  Maybe they will actually end up being friendly with you.  Best of luck and let us know how it goes.  

[starbunny]

Just to say the dog is getting destroyed on Monday. I feel terrible about the whole thing but that's life I suppose. The neighbours have apologised as the dog also attacked another person since the first attack.

[starbunny]

Thankyou so much for understanding, I feel so much better now. You're right about friendly polite business like, and facing up to things, sorry if I sounded defensive. it's just been an emotional couple of days. >.<

[specialmom]

Starbunny, I wasn't saying it is just your issue to look inward.  I meant if you move to a new place and continue to have issues with neighbors, that perhaps the problem is also with you.  But was not insinuating that this is the case now.  I think once you've had a bad experience somewhere and everyone knows about it . . . it is hard to get a fair shot again.  

That is why I suggested moving because it is hard to have a "do over" with all the same people.  But I now understand how difficult that is.  I'm from the states and things are a little different here.  We have slightly more control over where we live.  So, until you have the transfer, you'll just have to deal with this place.

I also misunderstood what you meant about your car.  (I've got young kids and my brain was a little fried today, sorry!).  I thought you said they broke in---------  they backed into your car!  Well, that is a little different.  I think that you can talk to them, right?  Ask them about backing into your car and what their plan to fix that would be.  Be friendly, polite, business like.  I'd handle the dog issue the same way.  Friendly, polite, business like.  That is really the scary part of the situation.  You can't have a viscious dog that can get over your fence ready to terrorize you and kids.  Next time it could be a more serious injury.  So that one, you really do have to take more extreme action.  But always with them-------- friendly, polite, business like.  

I wish you luck---------  may that transfer come through someday soon!

[starbunny]

I'd like to also point out that in every other area of my life I couldn't be happier and have excellent relationships.I have a wonderful partner, friends and family, it's just the neighbours I seem to be unlucky with.

[starbunny]

I have put in for a transfer away from this location and have been on the waiting list for 3 years so far. I have supporting letters from my GP/CPN and everything is in place, but house swaps/transfers to this location is rare as nobody wants to live here.

I don't believe the neighbours are 'out to get me' they just reversed into my car, as their parking space is in front of mine, they never broke in and I'm sure it was not personal just an accident, however annoying.

Yes It would be great to move and the only real other solution is to move into private accommodation, however I am a one parent family on an extremely low income and this could take a while to find affordable housing.
Believe me I am and will continue to do the responsible thing, and I have now reported my neighbour. I guess I'm just uneasy with it all because of what I have had to put up with in the past. It's my issue, and yes I will have to look inward on that one. x

[specialmom]

My suggestion is for you to start fresh somewhere else.  Of course you must follow up on a police report about a dog attack of a child.  Don't you need to know if the dog is up to date with its shots?  You can't have a viscious dog next door without doing something, can you?  No.  You must go ahead and act on this.

Breaking into your car?  If they are new . . . why do you believe they'd choose your car?  You must report this.  

But frankly, I'm not sure why you stay in a location that has brought so many difficulties and worry to you.  If you move somewhere completely new and still have neighbor trouble, then the issue would more likely be for you to look inward for what is going on.  But if it is a reputation thing ------ a move solves the problem.  

Good luck!!

[Vance2335]

I don't know what to say because why would any mother let someone else handle something when there child was attackd?

[starbunny]

Yes, and I will. I am very sad about this situation because I was really hoping I would be able to get along with my new neighbours, but not to the point where I would allow this kind of risk to my children/family. I was too frightened to report it at the time because of the awful ongoing abuse my family had been through before (to the point where we were too afraid to leave the house) and was hoping to resolve the situation without triggering another. The boys mother has left the situation for me to deal with. He is OK now apart from the bite marks/bruising but this is totally unacceptable. I am just so dissapointed that things have got to this already  :-(  and am now worried about the reaction of my neighbours towards my family.

[Vance2335]

Let's not worry about what happened in the past but lets worry about what is going on now. So they have dogs and they attacked a boy...why did you not report this to the police? Is the boys parents around? Did they not do anything?

Also if these people backed into your car and caused damage to it...again why have you not reported it to the police?

It seems pretty cut and dry that these activities are criminal in nature and need to be reported.