Dear Homeowners/Landlords,
I am sure that at some point, once, somewhere along the line, you have rented to someone who wasn’t exactly the awesome tenant that you would have liked.
That said, WHY are landlords so fearful of renting to people with pets? There virtually NO Pet Friendly homes/apartments?
Do you seriously think that doggies and kitties are going to eat the house or cause extensive damages?
Generally, if this were the case, it would be the fault and responsibility of the people who live in the(d) home. More likely than not, if they were willing to let the dog eat the drywall and pee on your hardwood, they were not good tenants overall and it really had nothing to do with the dog.
So why punish my pups who want a yard?? Halifax is not pet friendly. Parameters for renting should include reference checks not whether or not you are a pet owner.
RI-DONK-U-LAS
—Dog Owner Seeking Yard
This article appears in May 14-20, 2009.
The bad apples ruin it for everyone. That’s life.
Compared to other cities Halifax is pretty disproportionate with the “no pets” clause for sure.
I have to say, the no dog thing for most buildings makes sense. It’s not just a damage thing. Think about the dog. Do you think it’s fair to keep a normal dog in a tiny 1 bedroom apartment? You can’t exactly boot them outside and leave them there either. Want a dog? Own a house.
Fever, the OP is looking for a property with a yard.
Ever try to get wet dog smell or dog/cat shit odours out of the carpets, walls the air in general. I can easily understand why no pets.
pets stink. They piss on things. Good owner or not.
Pet Piss requires a little more than just “cleaning the carpet’s” after you move out. That shit goes under the carpet, molding and stinking shit under it. That work probably cost’s a little bit more then what you are paying on a damage deposit.
Pets and carpets don’t mix. We’ve had anumber of otherwise responsible tenants whose pets (cats mainly, the occasional dog) have peed on carpets and the carpet and the underpad is then ruined, forcing us to rip them up (with a lost month’s rent ‘cos tenants don’t want to rent stinky apartments) and put down laminate (at our expense). And, the half-month’s rent as damage deposit disappears real quick when there’s several days work plus materials required to make the apartment rentable again. Hence our (and others) no-pets-unless-we’re-desperate-to-rent-an-apartment-AND-we-really-like-you-etc policy.
I have a dog. I haven’t tried moving in Halifax for 5 years because I had to call over 90 places looking for one place that would let me have my dog. I agree with you ‘DOSY’. It sucks living in Halifax with dog. Also, my dog hasn’t used the bathroom inside since he was 6 months old. Most dogs won’t defecate inside if they’re trained right.
…Also, the older LTWWB (http://www.thecoast.ca/LovetheWayWeBitch/a…) entitled ‘Shame on you’ gives another reason why landlords are – in general – dog-unfriendly.
I’m torn on this one. While a dog is your companion and deserves the right to a home as long as it is owned by you, imagine you were the landlord. Say your tenant’s lease expired and they decided to peace outta there. You open the door to a seemingly put together apartment, but as you look closer, there’s dog hair convienently stuffed under the couch, pee stains on the rug, and gnaw marks on the cabinets. OP, before you got your dog you should have considered you future situation. Would you have a good chance of finding a dog friendly apartment? Did you realise that they are far and few in between? Even if your dog is well-behaved, there’s no guarantee that the landlord is going to believe you.
In my opinion most of the stigma attached to dogs is completely false. I find that there is such a severe over reaction to dogs that I have never fully understood. The fact is, and I know this is going to sound harsh, that most dogs are actually cleaner than most of the humans I see waddling around. Think about the average dog you see frolicking about, then think of the people you have to take the bus with, you know what I am saying? The horror stories of dogs ripping apart drywall and ripping up carpet and pissing and shitting all over the inside of rented house or apartment, well, for the most part are unfounded. Also, I live in a one bedroom apartment, and my dog is fine because I take him out when he needs to go out and not when it is only convenient for me. On the other hand I think that there should be buildings where pets are not allowed…just not the majority. I think it boils down to the people in this city being hyper-sensitive in almost every aspect of their being, which is why I let my dog shit on public property and not clean it up, fuck em’.
We had a hard time finding a place that accepted dogs but eventually found one. If you’re patient enough, you can find a place. Our landlord has been great! We have a dog and 2 cats
Nai blanc, get over yourself. If everyone was as self entitled as you then there would be no walking space and dog shit everywhere. Pick up after your fucking dog. IF you are going to get a dog, then you know this is something you are going to have to do.
I would love to get a dog. However I want a bigger dog. As such i will be waiting until I have my own place, with lots of space (probably outside of a city) and time to train it. Cramming dogs in small places just so that you can have a dog is just plain selfish.
“Nai blanc, get over yourself. If everyone was as self entitled as you then there would be no walking space and dog shit everywhere. Pick up after your fucking dog. IF you are going to get a dog, then you know this is something you are going to have to do.”
I don’t have to do it actually and besides it makes far more sense for me to leave a completely natural biodegradable substance lying in the grass that I pay for mind you with my taxes than to put it in a plastic bag which takes 500 years to break down or paper bag which would entail me taking part in killing more trees than necessary so as to not offend your fucking delicate sensibilities. But your post did prove my point about the hyper-sensitivity of my fellow Haligonians, lame-o.
I have 3 dogs and I agree that Halifax is very hard to rent anything. I have pet insurance on all my dogs and that insurance carrys 500k of 3rd party insurance so that means I have 1.5 mil insurance and most of the houses that are renting are not worth that much money so that means that my dogs would have to turn into wrecking balls and destroy the whole house. None of my dogs have used the bathroom in the house since they where like 3 months. One tip I have is that you can offer to pay more rent for each dog that has worked for me in the past.
I knew a dog that chewed thru the exterior wall of a house… It was a crazy Airedale, but these things do happen. Not all dogs are well trained and happy, or lucky enough to be properly attended to.
*Next time I see someone just letting their dog shit on public property w/o picking it up, maybe I’ll follow them home and call the cops. I don’t ever want to have to scrape your dogs shit off of my shoes, (or my kids shoes).
Dr Fever, people like you who “don’t think it’s fair to keep a normal dog in a tiny 1 bedroom apartment..” make me so angry. Really, where do you get your information?? It doesn’t matter where you live if your dog is well-excercized, well-trained and given plenty of affection. Have you ever heard the expression that ‘a good dog is a tired dog’??? Do you know what a dog usually does when it’s alone? It SLEEPS…no matter if it’s in a 20 bedroom house, a huge garden, or a bachelor apartment. The size of a place doesn’t matter to a dog- as dogs usually favor one place within their home to rest when they’re alone.
I had a dog for 10 years- a BIG dog, and I rented a one bedroom apartment in downtown Halifax. My dog was a very happy, well-cared-for animal…and when he was home, he was usually sleeping on my bed…because he was exhasuted from all of the outdoor excersise he recived every day.
I hate people who think the ‘fairest’ place for a dog to be is out in the garden- as if the dog is throwing himself the ball…in the pouring rain.
Call the cops. Really. Call the cops. I would love to be the person taking that call. In any case why is it that you let your children walk around in dog shit? I was just curious seeing as how you are such a concerned parent and all.
i understand the op’s pain, i have two cats and find it hard to find a good place that allows pets. however, i am really confused that so many people are desperate to find a place that allows dogs, when my pet friendly apartment has been posted on kijiji for weeks. bizarre.
To the OP, you could always offer some extra money on your security deposit; say an extra half month’s rent? Two landlords I rented from who were at first very reluctant to rent to me and my dog came around after I did that- and I got both deposits back no problem when I moved out.
I agree with Nai Blanc about how lots of people are dirtier than dogs- for instance I’d much rather rent to someone with a pet than a gang of freshman guys.