Neighbour from hell: Dog owners feel threatened after receiving a disturbing letter

For pet owners, our cute little friends are more than just animals – they are a huge part of the family. We love them and protect them just like our own children and grandchildren. So, imagine receiving a letter in the mail from an anonymous neighbour filled, to your horror, with threats aimed at your beloved furbabies.

Now that is terrifying, appalling, and downright immoral.

And that’s exactly what happened to this family living in Queensland who, after six years of peaceful co-existence with their neighbours, received a very threatening letter in their mailbox.



Graceville couple Anthony and Jessica Tuite have been living in fear ever since receiving an anonymous letter threatening to poison their dogs if they didn't stop barking. The Tuites have two rescue dogs – a Great Dane named Barney and a Great Dane Ridgeback cross named Donnie – who they say are usually quiet and well-behaved.


doggo2.JPG
Great Danes are known to be the ‘gentle giants’ of dog breeds. Credit: News.com.au

However, the writer of the letter claimed that the dogs had been 'barking excessively', leading them to take matters into their own hands.

The contents of the letter read as follows: ‘If the barking of your dogs does not stop, the chocolate in this envelope will be thrown over your fence in greater amounts … which will kill them.’ Now, we don’t know about you, but we find this incredibly disturbing.



‘You have been warned nicely many times by people ... but you do nothing,’ the letter ends. Of course, this whole ordeal sent the Tuites into a frenzy. And who can blame them? The last line of that anonymous letter seems like it was taken straight out of a horror movie!


letter.JPG
The anonymous letter with bits of chocolate enclosed in it. Credit: 7news

The menacing letter was shoved into their mailbox along with pieces of chocolate inside. Chocolate is known to be poisonous to dogs when ingested – and could even be fatal in large amounts.



Jessica said she was filled with ‘instant panic’ when she received the letter. ‘Please don’t hurt my dog,’ she pleaded on camera. ‘Our dogs are our family.’

Jessica also said her two rescue dogs are usually well-behaved and quiet. ‘They only bark when someone comes into their yard but that’s their job,’ she said.


doggo1.JPG
The dogs are said to be quiet and well-behaved. Credit: News.com.au

Jessica also explained that after six years of living at their current home, they were hurt and saddened to find the letter.

Graceville Park body corporate chair Phill Keleman was just as shocked when he heard about what had happened in the neighbourhood.

‘That's just immoral,’ he said.

'You just don't make those threats.' He went on to say that a more productive approach would have been to sit down with Anthony and Jessica Tuite and have a proper conversation.

Mr Kellerman’s advice was for both parties to sit down together and ask, ‘How do we work together to make it better?’. We couldn't agree more!



According to experts, these are some of the food items considered poisonous to dogs:
  • Xylitol (an ingredient usually found in gum, candy, or toothpaste).
  • Avocado.
  • Alcohol.
  • Onions and garlic (powdered, raw, cooked, or dehydrated).
  • Coffee, tea, and other drinks with caffeine.
  • Grapes and raisins.
  • Milk and other milk-based products not made for dogs.
  • Macadamia nuts.
  • Chocolate.
  • Fat trimmings and bones.
  • Persimmons, peaches, and plums.
  • Raw eggs.
  • Salt.
Key Takeaways

  • Jessica and Anthony have been living in fear after an anonymous neighbour sent a disturbing letter.
  • The letter writer threatened to poison the family's dogs if they did not stop barking.
  • Jessica said she was filled with "instant panic" when she read the threat.
  • The family has reported the threat to the police.
Here at the SDC, we love animals, so any story that involves harm befalling them always gets our backs up. What did you think of this story, dear members? Do you think the neighbour went too far? Let us know in the comments!
 
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Threats to kill someone’s animals should be a criminal matter. An animal can be killed if it is attacking livestock but even that must be done humanely, e.g. head shot. There have been many “neighbours” who solve issues by poisoning dogs, birds, trees etc. This does not mean that they were the “righteous” party! I had a sheep called Mr MacDuff. He thought he was one of the dogs. He died after a neighbour poured hot fat over his back. Mr MacDuff did not even bark!
 
It's a criminal offence to poison or kill animals on purpose.
To threaten to kill one is also wrong...the neighbours could contact the owners themselves to try to sort it out or contact their Council to see if they will investigate the problem, for the Council to approach the owners about the complaint.
The owners then have a chance to see what has been upsetting their dogs or to have cameras and tape recorders set up to prove the dogs are not guilty.
Maybe if they were barking, there may have been an intruder or even a snake.
Neighbours.....what you have threatened is illegal, I hope you come to your senses.
 
For pet owners, our cute little friends are more than just animals – they are a huge part of the family. We love them and protect them just like our own children and grandchildren. So, imagine receiving a letter in the mail from an anonymous neighbour filled, to your horror, with threats aimed at your beloved furbabies.

Now that is terrifying, appalling, and downright immoral.

And that’s exactly what happened to this family living in Queensland who, after six years of peaceful co-existence with their neighbours, received a very threatening letter in their mailbox.



Graceville couple Anthony and Jessica Tuite have been living in fear ever since receiving an anonymous letter threatening to poison their dogs if they didn't stop barking. The Tuites have two rescue dogs – a Great Dane named Barney and a Great Dane Ridgeback cross named Donnie – who they say are usually quiet and well-behaved.


View attachment 7503
Great Danes are known to be the ‘gentle giants’ of dog breeds. Credit: News.com.au

However, the writer of the letter claimed that the dogs had been 'barking excessively', leading them to take matters into their own hands.

The contents of the letter read as follows: ‘If the barking of your dogs does not stop, the chocolate in this envelope will be thrown over your fence in greater amounts … which will kill them.’ Now, we don’t know about you, but we find this incredibly disturbing.



‘You have been warned nicely many times by people ... but you do nothing,’ the letter ends. Of course, this whole ordeal sent the Tuites into a frenzy. And who can blame them? The last line of that anonymous letter seems like it was taken straight out of a horror movie!


View attachment 7504
The anonymous letter with bits of chocolate enclosed in it. Credit: 7news

The menacing letter was shoved into their mailbox along with pieces of chocolate inside. Chocolate is known to be poisonous to dogs when ingested – and could even be fatal in large amounts.



Jessica said she was filled with ‘instant panic’ when she received the letter. ‘Please don’t hurt my dog,’ she pleaded on camera. ‘Our dogs are our family.’

Jessica also said her two rescue dogs are usually well-behaved and quiet. ‘They only bark when someone comes into their yard but that’s their job,’ she said.


View attachment 7502
The dogs are said to be quiet and well-behaved. Credit: News.com.au

Jessica also explained that after six years of living at their current home, they were hurt and saddened to find the letter.

Graceville Park body corporate chair Phill Keleman was just as shocked when he heard about what had happened in the neighbourhood.

‘That's just immoral,’ he said.

'You just don't make those threats.' He went on to say that a more productive approach would have been to sit down with Anthony and Jessica Tuite and have a proper conversation.

Mr Kellerman’s advice was for both parties to sit down together and ask, ‘How do we work together to make it better?’. We couldn't agree more!



According to experts, these are some of the food items considered poisonous to dogs:
  • Xylitol (an ingredient usually found in gum, candy, or toothpaste).
  • Avocado.
  • Alcohol.
  • Onions and garlic (powdered, raw, cooked, or dehydrated).
  • Coffee, tea, and other drinks with caffeine.
  • Grapes and raisins.
  • Milk and other milk-based products not made for dogs.
  • Macadamia nuts.
  • Chocolate.
  • Fat trimmings and bones.
  • Persimmons, peaches, and plums.
  • Raw eggs.
  • Salt.
Key Takeaways

  • Jessica and Anthony have been living in fear after an anonymous neighbour sent a disturbing letter.
  • The letter writer threatened to poison the family's dogs if they did not stop barking.
  • Jessica said she was filled with "instant panic" when she read the threat.
  • The family has reported the threat to the police.
Here at the SDC, we love animals, so any story that involves harm befalling them always gets our backs up. What did you think of this story, dear members? Do you think the neighbour went too far? Let us know in the comments!
Since when has raw eggs been harmful to dogs? Many years ago an Aunt of mine had dogs she gave raw eggs beaten up in milk with some cod-liver oil added and they were the healthiest dogs with the glossiest coats you would ever see.
OH! GIVE US A BREAK!? barking dogs are the bane of suburbia. People who own dogs should train their dogs to NOT BARK at ANY TIME, except on command. Now about the poisonous foods list - when was milk ever POISONOUS FOR DOGS!? AND what about fat trimmings and BONES! WTF!? and Raw Eggs too! WHO WROTE THIS LIST? I reckon it was someone from a processed Dog Food company. FEED your dog EVERYTHING that it would find in the Wilde and what it would find IN THE STOMACH of their dead prey - seeds, grasses, etc...
 
My dogs bark. They bark to let me know the Roos are on the front lawn, the Bandicoots are invading the back garden, the cat from three doors up is taking a shortcut again and recently to warn me of a snake under the bushes. Apart from that they are mostly quiet unless you knock the door. Being little their bark is not overly loud but I still shush them up and bring them indoors as I don't want to upset the neighbours. :)
 
For pet owners, our cute little friends are more than just animals – they are a huge part of the family. We love them and protect them just like our own children and grandchildren. So, imagine receiving a letter in the mail from an anonymous neighbour filled, to your horror, with threats aimed at your beloved furbabies.

Now that is terrifying, appalling, and downright immoral.

And that’s exactly what happened to this family living in Queensland who, after six years of peaceful co-existence with their neighbours, received a very threatening letter in their mailbox.



Graceville couple Anthony and Jessica Tuite have been living in fear ever since receiving an anonymous letter threatening to poison their dogs if they didn't stop barking. The Tuites have two rescue dogs – a Great Dane named Barney and a Great Dane Ridgeback cross named Donnie – who they say are usually quiet and well-behaved.


View attachment 7503
Great Danes are known to be the ‘gentle giants’ of dog breeds. Credit: News.com.au

However, the writer of the letter claimed that the dogs had been 'barking excessively', leading them to take matters into their own hands.

The contents of the letter read as follows: ‘If the barking of your dogs does not stop, the chocolate in this envelope will be thrown over your fence in greater amounts … which will kill them.’ Now, we don’t know about you, but we find this incredibly disturbing.



‘You have been warned nicely many times by people ... but you do nothing,’ the letter ends. Of course, this whole ordeal sent the Tuites into a frenzy. And who can blame them? The last line of that anonymous letter seems like it was taken straight out of a horror movie!


View attachment 7504
The anonymous letter with bits of chocolate enclosed in it. Credit: 7news

The menacing letter was shoved into their mailbox along with pieces of chocolate inside. Chocolate is known to be poisonous to dogs when ingested – and could even be fatal in large amounts.



Jessica said she was filled with ‘instant panic’ when she received the letter. ‘Please don’t hurt my dog,’ she pleaded on camera. ‘Our dogs are our family.’

Jessica also said her two rescue dogs are usually well-behaved and quiet. ‘They only bark when someone comes into their yard but that’s their job,’ she said.


View attachment 7502
The dogs are said to be quiet and well-behaved. Credit: News.com.au

Jessica also explained that after six years of living at their current home, they were hurt and saddened to find the letter.

Graceville Park body corporate chair Phill Keleman was just as shocked when he heard about what had happened in the neighbourhood.

‘That's just immoral,’ he said.

'You just don't make those threats.' He went on to say that a more productive approach would have been to sit down with Anthony and Jessica Tuite and have a proper conversation.

Mr Kellerman’s advice was for both parties to sit down together and ask, ‘How do we work together to make it better?’. We couldn't agree more!



According to experts, these are some of the food items considered poisonous to dogs:
  • Xylitol (an ingredient usually found in gum, candy, or toothpaste).
  • Avocado.
  • Alcohol.
  • Onions and garlic (powdered, raw, cooked, or dehydrated).
  • Coffee, tea, and other drinks with caffeine.
  • Grapes and raisins.
  • Milk and other milk-based products not made for dogs.
  • Macadamia nuts.
  • Chocolate.
  • Fat trimmings and bones.
  • Persimmons, peaches, and plums.
  • Raw eggs.
  • Salt.
Key Takeaways

  • Jessica and Anthony have been living in fear after an anonymous neighbour sent a disturbing letter.
  • The letter writer threatened to poison the family's dogs if they did not stop barking.
  • Jessica said she was filled with "instant panic" when she read the threat.
  • The family has reported the threat to the police.
Here at the SDC, we love animals, so any story that involves harm befalling them always gets our backs up. What did you think of this story, dear members? Do you think the neighbour went too far? Let us know in the comments!
There’s no mention of whether other members of the community HAVE actually spoken with the couple about this problem. If this horrible letter (written in a totally cowardly way with block letters) is the first actual complaint, then after notifying the Body Corporate Committee, the best thing would be to take the nasty thing to the Police. Threats like this, especially if followed up are totally illegal! My late father in law’s beautiful Shepherd was baited by a neighbour and it devastated him!
 
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