Woman in 'quiet suburbia' puts up a sign for neighbor's dog, 'I tried to be polite.' AITA? 'It's disgusting.'
"AITA for getting into a huge argument with my neighbor over his dog using my lawn as a toilet?"
So, I (34F) have been living in my house for about four years now. It’s a quiet suburban neighborhood with well-kept yards, kids riding bikes, and the occasional block party. Honestly, it’s been great...until my neighbor "John" (40sM) and his dog "Buddy" moved in last year.
Now, don’t get me wrong I love dogs. I have a dog myself, a sweet golden retriever named Daisy. But John’s dog, Buddy, has become the bane of my existance because John refuses to pick up after him.
Every morning, like clockwork, John takes Buddy on a walk, and every morning, Buddy makes a pit stop right on my front lawn to do his buisness. And guess what? John just leaves it there, acting like it’s some kind of natural fertelizer or something.
At first, I tried to be polite. I waved at him one day and said, "Hey John, would you mind picking up after Buddy when he goes on my lawn? I’d really appreciate it." He gave me this half-hearted smile and said something like, "Oh, yeah, sure." But nothing changed.
So I escalted a bit. I put up a little sign on my lawn that said, "Please clean up after your dog!" You’d think that’d be enough, right? Nope. Buddy’s "gifts" kept appearing every morning.
Finally, I’d had enough. A few days ago, I saw John out with Buddy, and I marched outside. I’ll admit, I was already pretty heated. I told him in no uncertain terms that he needed to stop letting Buddy use my lawn as a bathroom and that if he couldn’t clean up after his dog, he shouldn’t own one.
John got defensive. He said something about how "everyone’s grass is the same" and "it’s not a big deal," and then he accused me of being a bad neighbor for making a fuss over "a little dog poop."
I fired back, saying that it was about basic respect, and if he wanted Buddy to poop in someone’s yard, he should let him do it in his own. Things got pretty loud, and I’m sure a few other neighbors heard us. John stormed off, dragging Buddy along, and now he’s been giving me the cold shoulder.
To make things worse, I’ve started to hear whispers from other neighbors about how I "overreacted" and should’ve just let it go. One neighbor even sugested that it’s not worth ruining the peace over something so small.
But I don’t think it’s small! It’s disgusting, it’s rude, and I shouldn’t have to deal with it. Still, now I’m wondering if I’m the AH for how I handled it. Should I have just kept quiet or tried another approach? So, AITA?
Here's what top commenters had to say about this one:
Candid_Process1831 said:
NTA! John is the real AH he should clean up after his dog!
AvaHomies said:
NTA! Seems like John thinks his dog’s poop is magical lawn enhancer or something. You’ve got every right to a poop-free yard. Politeness didn’t work, signs didn’t work, so yeah, raising your voice is the next logical step.
People who say you’re ruining the peace probably haven’t stepped in unexpected “lawn enhancer” on their way to work. Stick to your guns. Nobody should have to tiptoe through the tulips and the...you know.
RJack151 said:
NTA. Time to return his dog's poop to John's porch and next to the driver's door of his car.
Few_Lion_6035 said:
NTA - grab a shovel and start throwing it on his front porch/door
BLUNTandtruthful58 said:
NTA, Put up a chain link fence with two giant signs saying no trespassing and clean up your dog's poop
boopiejones said:
NTA. If I knew who was doing this to my lawn, I would collect the poop, walk over to their house, and smear it all over the windshield of their car. “Everyone’s windshield is the same.” Whatever TF that means.