What is the name of your state? Utah
Today I was cited by an animal control officer for a nuissance dog. She stated that the neighbor behind me signed a citation and I will be going to court.
What I would like to know is do I have grounds to countersue for harrassment?
Here is the story:
Five years ago when I purchased the house I also got a Yellow Lab puppy. Within a month I was approached by a neighbor (who lives behind me with a 30-ft irrigation easement separating our yards) saying that my dog was barking continually. I was apologetic and offered her my phone number and said that I didn't know he was barking because I was at work all day long. I told her to please call me if it was still a problem and I would see what I could do.
Well, the saga begins....
I received numerous phone calls within a short period of time and instead of her asking me to do something about it she proceeded to threaten to take me to court. I must have received these calls at least once a week. After about 4 months of her leaving messages on my answering machine I had enough. I called her up to talk about it and she proceeded to threaten to take me to court. I finally told her that if she didn't leave me alone I would file a harrassment suit against her. Well that worked for a while. After about 6 months I get another phone call and then a couple notes on my door stating that if I did not do something about my dog she would see me in court. So, I went out and purchased a $50 bark collar. Apparently the collar did not work because she kept calling and finally she called animal control and they gave me a warning (you can get two in a years time frame before going to court). So, I then went and bought an actual shock collar with higher voltage ($400) and proceeded to train my dog.
The barking only seemed to be a problem to her because whenever I was home the dog would not bark. I even went to the extreme of parking down the street and sneaking into my house to see if he was barking when I was not home. Well, she called again this time complaining about the dog jumping on the fence (solid white vinyl). Mind you, we don't even share a fence. So, I decided that to pacify her I would put my dog in his run during the day when I was not home.
Meanwhile both the neighbors to the North and South of me have gotten numerous warnings and even been to court over the issue. The particular neighbor that is complaining is the only one. Animal control even claims she calls so much they even ignore her sometimes.
What I need to know is do I have any recorse in countersueing this person? My neighbors have said they would be willing to testify and also be part of the law suit.
Today I was cited by an animal control officer for a nuissance dog. She stated that the neighbor behind me signed a citation and I will be going to court.
What I would like to know is do I have grounds to countersue for harrassment?
Here is the story:
Five years ago when I purchased the house I also got a Yellow Lab puppy. Within a month I was approached by a neighbor (who lives behind me with a 30-ft irrigation easement separating our yards) saying that my dog was barking continually. I was apologetic and offered her my phone number and said that I didn't know he was barking because I was at work all day long. I told her to please call me if it was still a problem and I would see what I could do.
Well, the saga begins....
I received numerous phone calls within a short period of time and instead of her asking me to do something about it she proceeded to threaten to take me to court. I must have received these calls at least once a week. After about 4 months of her leaving messages on my answering machine I had enough. I called her up to talk about it and she proceeded to threaten to take me to court. I finally told her that if she didn't leave me alone I would file a harrassment suit against her. Well that worked for a while. After about 6 months I get another phone call and then a couple notes on my door stating that if I did not do something about my dog she would see me in court. So, I went out and purchased a $50 bark collar. Apparently the collar did not work because she kept calling and finally she called animal control and they gave me a warning (you can get two in a years time frame before going to court). So, I then went and bought an actual shock collar with higher voltage ($400) and proceeded to train my dog.
The barking only seemed to be a problem to her because whenever I was home the dog would not bark. I even went to the extreme of parking down the street and sneaking into my house to see if he was barking when I was not home. Well, she called again this time complaining about the dog jumping on the fence (solid white vinyl). Mind you, we don't even share a fence. So, I decided that to pacify her I would put my dog in his run during the day when I was not home.
Meanwhile both the neighbors to the North and South of me have gotten numerous warnings and even been to court over the issue. The particular neighbor that is complaining is the only one. Animal control even claims she calls so much they even ignore her sometimes.
What I need to know is do I have any recorse in countersueing this person? My neighbors have said they would be willing to testify and also be part of the law suit.