NORTH ATTLEBORO, Mass. -- A North Attleboro man was ordered to find a new home for his German shepherd this week following dozens of complaints about the animal’s noisy barking.

Town selectmen voted unanimously Thursday to give the dog the boot after receiving complaints from neighbors who live near 28 Smith St. for four years. The dog’s owner, Eduardo Perez, was given 10 days to find a new home for the animal outside of North Attleboro or surrender it to an animal shelter.

Perez told the Sun Chronicle of Attleboro that he plans to appeal the decision in court.

Neighbors have filed 27 complaints about the dog since 2005, according to Animal Control Officer Karen Fontneau, who told the paper that she has visited the property 50 times for follow-up calls. Neighbors told Fontneau that Perez, the landlord, has not lived in the building for at least a year, and that residents feed the dog and bring it inside at night through an arrangement with Perez.

"You can't sit on the back deck without hearing the dog,” said Ken Brissette, who said the animal barks for hours into the night. "I've got no problems with the dog, except I don't want to listen to it."

Perez, however, characterized the dog as a “family” pet that only barks once in a while. He said the late-night howling has been prompted by a neighborhood youth who taunts the dog by holding a cat over the fence.

"One of my neighbors is instigating Lucy with a cat," he told the Sun Chronicle. "I don't see Lucy as a pet that's dangerous to the neighborhood. It's just the opposite -- she enjoys playing with children."

Fontneau previously recommended that Perez use a bark collar on the animal, but she said the dog started barking again once the battery in the device died.

"You don't give us a choice, other than to have the dog removed,” said Selectman Michael Thompson. “We've tried everything we can. You're not home; your family isn't home to care for the dog."