Shooting irritates Neighbor

Sounds like your are well within your rights and are being legal and courteous. As a good neighbor of ours said of a similar situation, "If he don't like the sound of freedom, to heck with him." ( The "to heck with him" part was actually phrased a bit differently)

As long as you are shooting into a substantial back stop and no bullets are ricocheting onto his property just keep shooting. Don't be ignorant to him and don't let the horn blowing bother you. Don't respond to anything that he might do, unless it gets crazy, just ignore him. Shoot at reasonable hours. He will get used to it. 1/4 mile is enough distance to take the sting out of any rifle or shotgun noise. He is just being grumpy.

Just got a new neighbor in and worry about him. He said he was in the Marines but when I said bye and Semper Fi he looked at me mighty funny w/o a reply-something is amiss. He said he did not have ANY guns. Said he had six horses but have only seen one and no barn/shed/roof of any kind for the critter yet. About a week after he had moved in I was sighting in an M44(7.62X54R) and it is probably one of the loudest rifles available. My other side neighbor constantly plinks and plays. He commented about what kind of cannon I must have been using and why the other neighbor was firing so much. Something is amiss-wait, I said that. Something must be amiss-lol.

At first I was thinking maybe something was wrong...like,maybe he's working nights,sleeping days. But,since you asked already and his response sounds short and unreasonable...I think you should continue to shoot and just ignore him. You're not doing anything wrong,it sounds like you're very respectful and safe. If he wants to yell and honk his horn,let him. He'll eventually grow tired of it,when he doesn't get a reaction(much like a child).
People shoot so much around here,it's the norm. I don't pay much attention to it.

Sounds like he's just a nut. As long as you're not shooting at weird hours or something what's the problem?

The other weekend it was really nice and it seemed like everyone was out plinking with .22s and stuff. Stopped about supper time and then it seemed like everyone came back out for a little after dinner shooting session.

If I were you I'd stop by the local wal-mart or gun store and buy several bricks of .22 ammo. That will give you several thousand rounds. That should keep him suitably amused over the weekend.

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Respect The Cactus!

I LOVE target shooting..
Our only neighbor in Alabama did too..unfortunately, his idea of target shooting was to get his buddies together, perch on the hoods of the junk cars on his front yard and let loose with AUTOMATIC (converted) weapons directly across the road..he was a real sweetheart. We were about 200 yards away and with 4 of them firing at once, the noise was deafening.

The good part was that ammo is expensive and most of the time he and his friends were broke. They usually managed only about a half hour every few months, and a few hoots and hollers and were done with it.

If I were in your shoes, and it was just as easy to move my target range to another area of my property for a good location, I'd do it..why not? It's hard to be old..and harder still to be old and bitter and crabby. Making a kind gesture which costs me nothing but a little effort never hurt me...even if it ended up changing nothing.

Are fireworks legal in your area?

This is your only neighbor in reasonable earshot, right?

Here's a suggestion for dealing with him:

1. Do your usual target practics.

2. When he starts fussing,

3. Reply with a heck of a lot more noise -- pick your choice of noise. Got some really loud speakers? Crank 'em up to "11" and deliver the most obnoxious punk rock/rap/thrash metal/whatever in response to his car horn. Or get LOUDER car horns, multiple, from a junk yard an rig 'em up to go off for several minutes.

4. And wave and grin the whole time.

Be consistent. Every time he honks his car horn or fusses about your shooting, respond in kind with much more noise for several minutes.

Sort've like conditioning a dog not to chew on the couch by shaking a can of pennies ...

I'd probably try and approach him and find out what his beef was... If it was against any and all shooting at anytime, I'd say ok, and keep on. If he was working shifts, I'd ask when would be good for him. I'd inform him I have an earthberm or hillside between us and there was no danger....

How do you hear him shouting? You ARE wearing hearing protection, Right??? When I'm shooting, I can't hear nuthin, cause I'm wearing plugs or headgear...

I have yahoos on one side that come down and blast off a case or two occasionally.... at one time they thought they were intimidating me... I saw em later and said heck no, keep it up, it's beautiful music... please use more calibers, and larger clips, please, please!!!

I did inform em if they shot rifles after dark, they would be searched when they crossed my road, or either the game warden would be informed... that sorta crimped their poaching fun....

Oh, and when I informed them that anytime after dark they shined a spotlight toward my place, to look out for 'reflections', they wanted to know why? I told em that would be eyeing them thru my .300 Win Mag (scope reflection, you know)... You could see them growing pale......

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Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Seneca
Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

Yes.Its your land,you paid for it,you pay the taxes,do with it as you please as long as you do not harm your neighbors.

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Pro Libertate!

I don't have so much of a problem myself, but my tiny 6 lb. dog sure does. She ran off and we found her 3 1/2 miles away trotting down the side of a busy highway, tail tucked and hell-bent for who-knows-where. My little 8 lb. male is the same way. Something about their hearing I guess. The female was especially afraid of the lawn mower and chain saw.

Once again I am with BostonLesley on this one.

Personally, when our neighbor target practices it is not annoying. When our neighbor has a crowd over and they appear to just trying to see how much noise they can make..that is annoying. And I do have to admit that it's a little worrisome when the the day after the crowd the wind blows empty beer boxes down from the firing range.

And just for the record stress kills -- so stressing out your neighbors is harmful.

Hugs
marlene

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It is the one with persistence and determination that brings great ideas into being.

Granted we've only heard "one-side" of the story, but if we take it at face-value and that you've attempted to find out what is eating at your grumpy neighbor.....I'd have to say you have a perfect right to continue in the sport and enjoy it. On the other hand, I do find a problem with the neighbor as in..."and next we know we see him driving up in his pickup truck thru our fields waving his fist at us then he drives away."
Technically he not only is TRESPASSING onto your property, but could very well be charged with criminal mischief by way of whatever damage might be done to your "crop lands" or fields he was spinning his tires in......something to think about and "remind" GRUMPY should he ever try that stunt again......like you might have to mention it to the local law enforcement agency......

I wanted to reply to this thread as I am here by myself and have neighbors who get ready for hunting season and so do some practice now and again year round. I put getting along with my neighbors at a high priority....and although we have our differences sometimes, we always keep it friendly even though I am surrounded by liberal communists....OK.OK, I will take back the "communist" part..LOL.

I don't think it pays in the long run to be crude and uncaring towards a neighbor..I don't care how goofy they are, or how RIGHT you are, as long as they are not overtly threatening me or mine. That's a different thing and would involve the Fuzz .

I would not just use words here to try and get to the bottom of why he is like he is. I would write a registered letter and keep it friendly and as already suggested by others I'd ask those necessary questions about when the best time is for target practice and all that.. and I'd invite him over for a picnic, for lunch or dinner..whatever it takes to make friends. Take him surprises...cakes, pies, and that always hard to get rid of....Zucchini Bread and put a nice note in it! You or the wife or kids can leave them on the porch if he won't come to the door. It's worth it to reach an accommodation...you just never know. Escalating these kinds of situations sounds fun and cute when you are posting on a forum...but in real life they are rarely if ever the way to go and can and have led to disaster.

Then I'd send a copy of this letter to your local Sheriff dept., with an attachment detailing what is happening with this situation and what you are doing to try and resolve it. You don't know what is going on with this grumpy guy. You don't even know if the guy is "sane" in how we would think of this term and what may be going on in his head. You don't know how vulnerable YOU are and Your animals and YOUR kids are should you have them. We are a strange species and it's good to keep this in mind.

I am seriously concerned about problems like this as there are always police reports about someone's animals getting poisoned or shot, or people having the same happen to them. Come on....how many times to you hear or read that someone just "snapped" and shot a whole family to death? It's a little late then to know that you were legally in the right!

It's not worth it to just keep your testosterone levels satisfied. This is no longer a country when we can just do what we want at anytime...we are too close to one another these days even though you are trying your best to be polite, you are not breaking the law and not "dissing" this grumpy person in any way that the average sane person would consider out of line. However, it doesn't sound like this grump is "Normal" to me!

I think life is too short to live with an enemy for a neighbor....not when you haven't done your level best to try and resolve the situation no matter who is right or who is wrong. Think of your family and your animals here and go do the right thing.

Just my 2 cents.... LQ

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" Live in the Sunshine,
Swim the Sea,
Drink the Wild Air"

Ralph Waldo Emerson

"There is no such thing as bad weather, only inadequate clothing." D. Duck

Like most of us, I have guns, & I like shooting with my Grandson, but personally, if it were me, I'd let old Grumpy have his way, and even be extra kind to him. Not just gunfire, but anything that annoys him. This is how I treat my neighbors. Why? Partly empathy, and also because I plan to spend the rest of my life living next to them. If I fill the neighborhood with grudges, there won't be anyplace left to live in.

NCGirl this has the earmarks of a family feud. At somepoint I would bet your granddad and your "grumpy" neighbor had some kind of run in. Find out what happened and you can most likely fix the problem.

As to shooting on your own property. I'd not let his antics stop me.

Kenneth

Maybe he gets migraines, who knows. Worth chatting him up over it. I think the idea of shooting when he's out at the grocery store would be a big gesture.

Well NCGirl,
Here is my take on the situation.
It sounds like some posters are advocating letting some grumpy old fart dictate someone else's (your) lifestyle. My experience has been that caving in to the demands of these types is a huge mistake. They don't get along with neighbors because they don't WANT to get along, there's no satisfying these folks. They are insatiable, the more a person tries to accommodate them the more specious and inane their demands become. If you stop shooting he will soon find something else that annoys him, there will be no end to his demands. The noise you, your animals, or kids make, you have too many visitors, your security light shines in his window, ad nauseum. We once had one of these kooks demand that all the neighbors drain their ponds....the bullfrogs croaking at night disturbed his sleep. It sounds like you have been more than sensitive to his concerns, enough is enough. Notify the local law enforcement agency, in writing; of the situation. Mention that you feel that he is stalking/threatening you, ie: screaming-fist shaking. Ask, demand if neccesary, they stop his criminal trespass and harrassment. Then resume shooting or legally enjoying your property as you ---- well please, ignore him, but stay alert and be aware of the old grouch. If you accede to his demands he will make your life miserable.