to beat a dog

Yesterday, I heard my dogs barking in an unusually frantic way.  Walking outside, I witnessed my neighbor reaching over the bordering fence and swatting at my dogs with a rolled up magazine. 

When is it okay to beat a stranger's dog?

She claimed it was self-defense.  I highly doubt that.  Why would someone who is afraid of a "vicious" dog reach over a fence to smack at it?  The more plausible solution would be to walk away.  Perhaps, even, to speak to the owner rather than facing the dog.  Or, even, if one truly believes the dog is vicious, to call the police.  The sane person would not reach into the pen of a vicious dog to hit it with a magazine or newspaper. 

I concede that my dogs were barking.  So was her's. 

In fact, even when I had shock collars on my dogs to correct their barking, her dog would charge the wooden fence and yap it's little head off while mine stayed away.  Yet, the woman won't admit that both sets of animals have a barking problem.  Her little "munchkin" who shits in my yard is the perfect specimen, while I have a "stupid hound" and a "big bad dog." 

Can you tell we had a heated discussion?  She completely blessed me out, while I was trying to get my dogs inside so they wouldn't be a nuisance. 

So, last night I went out and bought an ultrasonic bark trainer.  If it works, it will control the barking from both sides of the fence.  I would have liked to have had the time to order it online, given that it is thirty dollars cheaper on Amazon than at Petco, but the lady threatened to call the cops if she heard even one more "peep" out of my animals. 

I'm tempted to place a chicken coop next to that fence soon.