Resident livid after neighbour reports them for leaving item on lawn

A woman was mortified after her neighbour reported her “secretly” over something remarkably trivial.

She explained she and her fiancé own two indoor cats, so to keep them entertained, they constructed a catio enabling them to experience both indoor and outdoor environments simultaneously. According to Cats Protection, catios are an excellent method of providing your cat with the sights, sounds, and smells of the outdoors.

They offer a healthy, secure environment that promotes physical exercise and mental stimulation while keeping your pet safe from cars, predators, and diseases. The catio they constructed was also “movable and not permanent”.

On Reddit‘s Neighbours From Hell forum, she posted: “Today we got an email from the condo board saying we couldn’t have it on our lawn because it looked ‘untidy’. Weird, but whatever, we assumed it was because the lawn needed to be mowed or there were maintenance concerns.

“Then we opened the attached photo in the email. It wasn’t taken by the condo board. It appears to have been taken through our neighbour’s window, who lives in the next building over (not even attached to ours). It seems she has photographed our backyard and sent it in as a complaint.”

She said they were both astonished because they’ve “always been friendly to her”, despite the fact she’s rather “reclusive” and doesn’t really make an effort with anyone. “Instead of knocking on our door or saying something, she took photos of our backyard through her window and reported us,” she posted, genuinely bewildered as to the neighbour’s motivation.

“Having a neighbour secretly taking photos of our backyard feels incredibly invasive. There’s even a privacy fence that she managed to take the photo around. What we do in our own little outdoor space, especially something that lets our cats safely enjoy the outdoors, really doesn’t seem like anyone else’s business?” she vented.

The pair also questioned why she believed she’d escape scrutiny if they filed a formal complaint using the photographs she captured, suggesting she must consider them “dumb”.

She additionally stated she believed the condo board were providing them with a “clue” by “attaching the photo she took in the first place”.

However, she remained utterly perplexed as to why anyone would take issue with her attempting to enhance her cats’ quality of life.

In the comments section, someone posted: “Check with the condo about what you can build for your cats, get permission and build it.”

Another urged her to utilise “all” the available space and suggested: “And if it’s only given in square footage, maybe go vertical for maximum annoyance (and cats love climbing, so it’s a win all around).”

One person described this as a “genius” concept, as the cats would be receiving a “skyscraper” while the neighbour would be getting “a massive middle finger in their line of sight”.

A Reddit user vented their frustration: “If a harmless catio is the biggest issue in her life, she’s got it way too easy. I’d rather have happy cats than please some nosy neighbour to be honest.”