So you've got a dog barking non-stop in the neighbourhood.

Maybe your first instinct is to write an angry anonymous letter and leave it in the offending owner's mailbox?

Perhaps you'll just vent on the local community Facebook page, gain the sympathy of others but fail to address the owner of the problem at hand.

On Wednesday, the ABC Brisbane Facebook page asked its followers: "How do you deal with a neighbour when they've got an excessively barking dog?" after one Queensland woman shared the unnamed letter she received in her mailbox.

The woman, who wants to remain anonymous, said she wished she had more information to help her solve the apparent problem.

"I would have loved for them to leave their details or at least times of day when they were barking as I was completely unaware that they were doing it," she said.

"It [the letter] just felt very rude."

Noise complaints are an issue wherever you go — Brisbane City Council (BCC) receives on average more than 29 noise complaints each day, with nearly two-thirds of those complaints relating to animal noise.

In the past financial year 7,245 animal noise complaints were received, with the most common complaint relating to barking dogs.

We've done some digging around and come up with a handy guide on what to do if there's a problem dog in your street, or what to do if you've been told your dog is disrupting the local area and you need help.

My neighbour's dog won't shut up — what do I do first?

Try talking to your neighbour first — face-to-face if you can.

Who knows, they may not even be aware of the problem. There may be a couple of reasons for that:

the dog may only bark a lot when the owner is away

the dog may only bark a lot when the owner is away the owner may not hear the barking from areas inside the house

the owner may not hear the barking from areas inside the house the owner may be a very sound sleeper and not be woken up when the dog barks

That angry note you're thinking about writing might be the first they hear of it.

"Barking dogs negatively impact the wellbeing of your neighbours. However, this can often be resolved by having a friendly conversation with the owner as they may be unaware of the issue," a BCC spokesman said.

Dog owners may not even be aware their four-legged friends are barking when they're not around. ( Flickr: Heather Paul )

If you don't want to chat to your neighbour about it, you can send them a (polite) letter.

BCC has a template to help you guide your correspondence with spaces to list the days and times and when it appears to happen.

Not in Brisbane? Check your local government website. They should have information on procedures to follow as well as information and fact sheets on dealing with barking dogs.

Once you've either had that chat with your neighbour or sent them a letter and they've (hopefully) agreed to do something about the barking, wait a few weeks to see if they have been successful in their efforts.

I spoke with the neighbour and nothing's changed - what now?

Now's the time to get the local council involved - you can call them or report it online.

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They'll need some basic information to get started.

A noise nuisance diary is a handy place to start.

You can use a template from the internet or just keep your own records — information your council will want will be the address where the dog resides, the dates and times they're barking and for how long.

Check with your local council to see how long you should keep a record for.

Council have been contacted. Now what?



Hopefully, the owner of the dog will hear from council in a timely manner.

BCC say they will send out information about some possible causes of nuisance barking and provide some potential solutions.

"The dog owner will be asked to take action to eliminate the problem and contact council to discuss the matter," its website says.

"Council and the neighbourhood must allow time for the owner to take action to address the nuisance barking.

"If further complaints are received, council officers will investigate."

If the local council determines the dog is causing an "ongoing noise nuisance", a fine may be issues.

In Brisbane that first fine is $252. Further fines can go all the way up to $630.75.



I've got a barking dog — what can I do about it?

The RSPCA are the experts here.

They say there are a number of reasons your dog may be barking, such as:

boredom

boredom excitement

excitement distress

distress territorial defence

territorial defence fear and anxiety

"In the first instance we recommend that you talk to your veterinarian who can provide advice and may refer you to an animal behaviourist (reward-based) who can help to determine the underlying cause of the barking and then develop a tailor-made humane treatment plan for your dog," the RSPCA website says.

"You can also contact your local RSPCA for advice."

Boredom can be one of the causes for excessive dog barking, the RSPCA says. ( Flickr: Virginia State Parks )

It said treatment can usually involve behavioural modification training.

"In some rare cases the use of veterinary medications in combination with behavioural modification may be required.

"Behaviour specialists tend to ask owners a lot of questions and may offer to come out to the house to observe your dog in its own environment in order to identify barking 'triggers'. Triggers may include seeing or hearing a person walking past or the neighbours dog."



Some simple tips to reduce excessive barking include: