LONG Neighbor kids vent

[JamesMama]

We live one house down from the corner, our road is a dead end with a T intersection at the other end. The neighbor across the street (but basically our neighbor 2 houses down) has 2 younger boys (6 & 9). They are ALWAYS causing problems. They throw rocks at passing cars, snowballs, balls, etc. They play chicken by darting out from behind their grandma's (they are being raised by their grandmother) van, that is parked in the street, into on coming traffic (no lie, you have to go 3 MPH down a 25MPH road to avoid hitting these kids). They stand in the street and won't move so you can pass. And their grandmother makes no move to STOP this behavior, all she does is scream at them from the window or when she gets home from wherever she goes (I don't think she WOH) It's always "NAME, GET YOUR BLANK OVER HERE RIGHT BLANK NOW!" "BLANK BLANK, get the BLANK in the BLANK BLANK house BLANK BLANK!!" Last week she BACKED OVER the youngest one with her van, he wasn't hurt badly enough to go to the hospital.

Well now these boys have started to come into my yard and mess with my dog. My dog has mysteriously managed to get off her chain without taking her collar off, and ended up in their yard, twice. Yesterday she got off her leash (magic), and DH saw her dart past the front of our house and was right after her and he followed her into their yard where she promply vanished. He walked up and down the block calling for her and when I got home from the store I went down the next block, and what do I see in their back yard? My dog. I jump out of my car and cut through someones yard hollering for my dog the whole time, every time I'd say "SHADOW! COME! HERE!" they would say "Here, doggie! Here, Shadow! Get the ball, doggie!" : I walked up to the bush fence between their yard and the next peoples yard and I yelled at the grandfather "HEY! Thats my dog!" he looked at me like I was speaking Korean. And turned back to what he was doing. So I called for Shadow again and one of the kids reached down and GRABBED HER COLAR! I said again "THAT IS MY DOG! SHADOW! COME HERE!" and the kid let go and Shadow ran over to me.

Now I'm beyond annoyed. They have came into my yard TWICE and stole my dog. I don't have the option of putting up a fence (I live in a trailer court, it's against the rules) I'm to the point now where I only take Shadow out to pee and keep her cooped up in the house the rest of the day, which isn't fair to her because she loves being outside when it's nice. I hate keeping her cooped up in our house, it's not really big, she doesn't have room to run and she's not a good dog to take on a walk because she pulls on the leash, I can't manage her and DS.

Shadow isn't a mean dog, she would NEVER ever bite. But I'm scared something would happen and I don't want to deal with the legal issues from that.

I'm scared to talk to the Grandmother, she's strange and mean (she's not THAT old for a grandmother, I think she was a young mom and her daughter was a young mom, I'd guess she's in her later 40's early 50's at the MOST)

Do I talk to the Grandma anyway? Call the police next time? I'm going to talk to the manager of the trailer court, but I don't know how much good that will do since they aren't part of the trailer court, they are in the houses across the street....

Any advice?

Thank-you so much if you've made it this far.

[angelpie545]

If they are standing in the middle of the street and trying to steal your dog, I'd definately call the police. I'm not trying to sound rash, but it sounds as if that's the only thing that will get through to those folks. Obviously the boys aren't being properly looked after if they are allowed to play in the street and endager their lives as possibly others' lives. The fact that the grandmother RAN OVER HER GRANDSON would prompt me to call social servcies personally-that is, if she did it intentionally.

Another idea-is there management of the community that you can possibly contact about the situation?

[MaryLang]

Call the police. This is nothing to fool around with, in fact I think that their street antics alone warrent a call to the police. Their lives are in danger and no adult but yourself seems to care. Yes, they may get really mad, but you have do what you have to do and taking your dog is crossing the line.

[JamesMama]

Thanks, we'll be watching better. The problem is I can't PROVE that they are the ones letting Shadow off her leash, but I know that it's not possible for her to unhook her leash...and there is no other explination. DH saw them walk through our yard yesterday afternoon (Shadow was inside) and just circle between our house and the house next door and then go back to their house.

I don't think the grandmother backed over him on purpose, I'm pretty sure it was an accident, but DH and I both have had near misses with her because she just flies out of the driveway without even looking...it was only a matter of time.

I was going to call DHS after she ran him over but since the police were called DH said not to since the police (and therefore DHS) were already involved.