Erm

[tonicha]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34100488

Dreadful, awful thing to happen.

But I know how he feels - once one dog starts, the next one does, and so on.

And next door but one - an Alsation - barks almost non stop all night and only stops when they've let him inside - and then they go to work

And no good complaining, he's one of the local high up police

[Ally]

Oh gosh!

A barking dog would drive me nuts Ton.

Can the 'local high up policeman' not be served a Denuncia?

[tonicha]

He is a very very high up policeman and and his wife is a solicitor so no joy there, I'm afraid.

Another of our neighbours is a judge, another a local councillor and if they won't/can't complain, then what hope do we have? Oh, and across the road, the other way, we have the president of the local Junta.

Actually, I think the Portuguese, mostly, just ignore it.

Drives me scatty

[Workingman]

That is bl**dy awful, especially as it was innocent people who were only doing their jobs and or trying to help who were murdered.

[Ally]

He is a very very high up policeman and and his wife is a solicitor so no joy there, I'm afraid.

Another of our neighbours is a judge, another a local councillor and if they won't/can't complain, then what hope do we have? Oh, and across the road, the other way, we have the president of the local Junta.

Actually, I think the Portuguese, mostly, just ignore it.

Drives me scatty

That stinks!

I know it goes on but it stinks!

[tonicha]

Another reason for moving

When I spoke to the lovely lady - and she really is lovely - she said that the dog only barks if he doesn't know you.

He's now 4 and still bluddy barks at me

And the wind

And talking of not knowing you - we get a lot of gypsies around so he barks at them, that sets the other dogs off - you can actually work out where people are walking, by the different dogs barking But this is Portugal and we were told, before we moved here, that the background to Portugal is not the wind, the sea, but dogs, barking

[Ally]

[Workingman]

Ton, did you know that you can stop a dog barking?

If the dog in a place where you can see and talk to it go to it and talk to it calmly. It does not matter what the owner does, in fact it works better with strangers. Approach it quietly and talk to it in whispers. Stroke it if you can. Keep doing it deliberately as you pass and eventually it will calm down.

It's a pack animal and is sending messages to the rest of the pack, even when the pack is not there. If you keep doing it and it feels 'safe' it will eventually assume all other walkers are safe.

We had a barking Lurcher and a neighbour calmed him down using the same method. It took a while but it did work.

[pederito1]

That tops my barking doggy story, Ton. I once stayed overnight in a flat I was looking after for a friend in Nueva Andalucia and when I went to bed a dog was yapping loudly quite near. This went on and on but I did go to sleep and woke up some time later it was still at it. I lay awake for a while trying to sleep again and after some time there was a loud bang, followed by silence. I dont think I would try to stroke a barking dog WM

[victor]

I know what you mean Ton,we have one in front f us that seems to bark at the wind.

There is a whistle that only dogs can here that appears to work,a friend swears by one.