Laws regarding unleashed and unwatched dogs

Hi,

I am new here. I have a question though, that I hope the community can help me with.

I live in a 3-flat house. My landlord lives on the ground floor, me next floor up, and someone else above. The landlord has a German shepherd dog that he allows to sit in front of his door when he (and his wife) leave the house. They prop their apartment door open with a door stopper and let the dog sit outside on the stairs unleashed and unwatched. So if I was coming home into the house, the dog looks like it's guarding the front door (just behind it) and I have to pass by it to get to my apartment. Or if I'm coming downstairs, the dog is laying there blocking the front stoop which I need to use to get out of the house or to the basement.

Isn't this illegal somehow? Especially if I complained and asked him to stop doing that. Basically the dog is blocking the public stairwell, he sits behind the main door of the house so he's inside, but he's outside the owner's apartment. So if I am going up or down to the front door or basement, I am confronted by this dog. Now, I have told him I have a fear of big dogs (being bit by one as a kid) and that the dog seriously blocks the walking path when I need to carry things up and down (groceries, laundry baskets, luggage, computer bag, etc.). Also, what about the safety of my guests when they visit me? He says that I knew I had a dog when I signed the rental contract and have not said anything for 3 years (I've simply tolerated it). I say, that's irrelevant. I never knew the dog would be unleashed and unwatched and sitting on the front stoop every time I try to go in or out of the house.

So once, I shoo-ed his dog into his own apartment and shut the door. Then he claimed I "trespassed" into his home and went to the police. I never stepped inside, I only broke the plane of his apartment with my arm in order to shut the door. The state attorney dropped it because it was so stupid. But it was still an annoying matter to deal with. In any case, the landlord continues to ignore my request (out of spite - much longer story) and has actually purposely pushed the deadbolt out so that I cannot close his apartment door anymore when I see the dog laying there.

Are there any legal actions I can pursue? I know there is a "dog law/order" (Hundesverordnung), but I don't understand it enough to know if I have any case against him. Since the dog is not literally "outside" but rather outside his apartment in a communal area (the stairwell). I also plan to reduce my rent since he is not providing a safe and decent quality of living in the house (it's not just because of the dog; he's done other stuff to harass me to get me to move out on my own without any compensation). Are there any good measurements on how much I could/should reduce my rent?

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

I have no idea what the law says but considering that you've tolerated the situation for three years I don't see on what grounds you hope to achieve anything now.

Do you honestly expect to take legal action against your landlord regarding his dog and then remain living in his building?

if you've lived with the dog for 3 years then surely you've overcome your fear of it? If it's just laying around and no one has ever had problems (minus stepping over it or telling it to move) then it's not as if the dog is aggressive and threatening.

Get yourself a pair of steel cap boots and kick his mut as hard as you can in the head, then let it bite you, then proceed to kick it to death.

You'll get no grief from the law for killing the fleabag as you were defending yourself from this vicious animal, and then you get to sue the landlord for millions because his now dead dog bit you.

With the proceeds from the lawsuit you can buy the block of flats you live in and throw your now ex lanlord out on the streets.

Problem solved.

Actually he/she can't.. Its against the Housing laws and requires many years of lawyer/court meetings/cases to do so...

yeah that's a wonderful solution

I hate to tell you, but many (if not most) even tempered dogs, especially sheperds, if kicked they'd slink away and most likely not attack back.
Also, if you were to kick it as hard as you can in the head then I highly doubt it'll be able to go and attack you anyway so now you've injured a harmless animal for no reason and you're the one who will be in trouble.
brilliant plan...
Also, 'vicious animal' wouldn't hold up since it has no history of attacking and has not attacked for three years he's been there.

The dog may not bite but you certainly did.

huh?
that makes no-sense.
the dog may not bite you so... there goes the rest of your argument of defending yourself from attack- so no attack means you're in trouble for an unprovked beating/death of an animal.

just leave the door to the street open and let the dog wander on its own.When your landlord asks where the dog is tell him you do not know.When the dog is walking on the streets without a leash and the police bring it back and fine him then he will learn to lock it in

and that is exactly why the police use them, cowardly nature. Have you ever been a "volunteer" to run away from an alsatian during a military display? No, (but I am sure you "know HUNDREDS" of people that have and some of them are your "best friends") Unfortunately I know of no-one...except me. Take it from me, these dogs are tough, brave and do have a reputation for biting for no apparent reason. They are used by the police and military for many reasons but one of them is not that they run off when kicked.

Your knowledge of the breed is only confirmed by your spelling "sheperds".

Now, back to some sense. If the dog has been there for three years and not troubled the original poster but is now wanting to pursue legal action, etc I can only assume that the poster is trying to extract money, is bored and trying to start a flame war (dog owners/lovers vs non dog owners/haters) or is a woman with pms/pmt and needs to find something with which to vent her hormonal imbalance

My suggestion was sarcastic,however without a " " smilie you ami's don't seem to know what sarcasim is.

I knew either you or ruthie, being the "dog lovers" that you are would reply telling me how evil a person i am.

Therefore you "bit"

I think his initial post was not to be taken seriously.

Edit: As (pre)confirmed above.

Actually, this "dog lover", which I am, was going to give the same tongue-in-cheek answer as Mik Dickinson: that of letting the poor dog wander out onto the street (which is of course NOT FAIR, as the dog has done nothing wrong).

My shepherd (spelling ok?) would definitely not bite if kicked in the head. But he´s not typical. And he´s not a military police trained dog...

oh sorry, a spelling mistake (missing an 'h' in shepherd) as i quickly type discredits me from knowing anything.
Yes, i do know the breed.
If you would like to know why the breed is sometimes used in military and police training I can give an indepth explanation and also go into how the individual dogs are selected, worked with to get an enhanced drive, trained and how they differ from the common GSD.
I suppose you already know all that and are aware that in general GSD are VERY soft dogs.

Yes, move to a cheaper apartment. One without a dog or manufactured drama.

Wow, didn't realize I would start such a commotion over this. I am neither a dog lover nor dog hater. And yes, I am at war with the landlord. He started it, and yes, unfortunately, I am stooping to his level. But it's a matter of principle. This particular landlord couple has no tolerance of people who are different from them or of people who challenge their idea of "what is right". A very common mentality that I am experiencing first-hand in this situation is the "I am right" attitude or rather, "I have the right". I didn't share the never-ending long story about the war that he started. The net of it is: he already tried to evict me based on weak grounds ("Eigensbedarf" cause his bedroom is at the front of the house and there's too much outside noise so he needs to use my apartment to put his bedroom on the back side of the house). He lives in the same house, has a similar floorplan, and was well aware of the sources of the noise before I moved in. Anyway, after I suggested a peaceful and mutually beneficial resolution, he took me to court, nonetheless, and lost. Now he's a sore loser and is harassing me and annoying me to death so that I'll move out on my own. He's being picky about the communal housecleaning, about where my bike is "allowed to be stored" per contract, that a building inspector must inspect the condition of my apartment (even though there's no damage), that I'm making too much noise (impossible, I'm never home and live alone and don't wear shoes in the house)...etc. etc.

I am planning to move out anyway since we are working out an agreement for him to pay for some of the costs.

I was only wondering if the German law and "Hundesverordnung" contains any provisions that say the owner must keep its dog under leash and surveillance even within his own home. Here, it's tricky because he is inside a building but outside the landlords' actual apartment door. Sure, the dog has not done anything over the last 3 years, but what's to say it won't? When I bring food home, he jumps up, sniffs me and gets excited. Or if I bring a guest home and the dog simply doesn't like him/her for some odd reason and attacks? It's still an animal right? Unpredictable? It's still a matter of safety, I would say. And it is very reasonable to ask the dog owner to keep the dog in the confines of his apartment rather than in the communal public stairs. And if asked verbally and in writing several times, I find this to be enough proper warnings and he is just blatently ignoring them, therefore having complete disregard for the comfort and safety of his tenants. Is there no other course of action I could pursue?

No


If the dog hasn't done anything to anyone over the last 3 years, then it is highly unlikely that anything will ever happen. (unless the dog is seriously provoked in which case not only might the dog retaliate, but the owner and the cops, too.)


I get excited by the smell of fresh baked goods. While having a coffee at the local bakery, I'll jump up and sniff, too, and then rush over to the counter and order a fresh hot whatever... so?


I used to have this same concern about bringing home boyfriends. Daddy never did attack any of them, though he did growl occasionally.


errr... yeah... so are you. So am I.


No... humans are much more unpredictable than dogs. I'm more likely to predict correctly what a dog will do rather than what a person will do.


Here you're actually right. But it is a matter of the dog's safety, since he might easily be exposed to dangerous and unpredictable humans.


If you had made an issue of it at the very beginning just after having moved in, then perhaps I'd be more sympathetic. After three years with no attacks or bites, it looks as though you're just trying to settle a score and grasping at anything that might make a case. Forget the dog and find something else to complain about.

Yes, many is the day I walk around inside the house with the dog on the leash. It is for the safety of the squeaky toys.
Why are you wasting your time and breathing my oxygen?

I now have an image in my head of Cookie thinking "i'm going to get you..." the squeaky toy looking at JJ with panic stricken eyes and yelling "saaaave meee".

I just think it´s an extra perk. You have extra security in the house, plus a dog that´s happy to see you when you come home without your having to take him for walks, feed him, or take him to the vet. Seems like a win-win situation. Still seems odd that the owner leaves his apartment open, though.

Still, find something else to fight with him about. There are many dog-haters in Germany, but enough dog-lovers and/or sensible people that this particular squabble holds no water.

Alright, thanks for the oh so "useful" commentary. I was hoping that this forum would be helpful (and respectful of others) who are living here in a country where we don't fully understand the language and laws, try as we might. But thanks for showing me I no longer need to waste my time here. The sarcastic responses to my serious question were just a way to amuse the commentor. I wish I had so much free time on my hands. Good 'nite.

Not bad. I'd give you 3 out of 5 for the flounce. Sign-up to departure, five and a half hours. That's natural selection at its finest. That cuteesiv thought that daft story was going to garner sympathy is the most telling part of this sorry tale. Thin skin, very thin skin.

Geez.... I only growled a little.

She brings food in the house, we wag our tails and sniff, and she runs screaming...

another newbie bites the dust!

Fact is, as long as the dog is not a danger to others the guy can leave it in the yard, the stairwell or the communal laundry room. His behavior may be unreasonable but it is not illegal. If you're planning on moving anyway why still get upset? Just count the days until you can kiss the mutt and its owner good 'bye.