Dog in rental property

[CaptainObviousTwo]

Moved into a new house on Friday. Standard tenancy, no pets allowed which I didn't really pay much attention to when signing the contract aso I had no pets.
Roll on the day after my tenancy starts and my Mum has to go into hospital unexpectedly. In the heat of everything, I agree to take her dog to stay at mine whilst she goes in, not really thinking about it wih everything else that was going on.
At lunchtime I got a call from the Estate Agents saying the landlord had been past the property and seen the dog, and dogs aren't allowed.
Well, fuck. I hadn't even thought of that. For context I work in a pretty stressful job as well as running two online businesses and study an OU degree on the side so I've not really slept in days with the house move and didn't think the situation through.

I've gone back to them and explained. I am pretty positive I won't find alternative arrangements for the dog.
I have offered an additional deposit to cover the temporary change and suggested an additional contract labelling me liable for any additional wear to the house.

Dog is clean, fleaed and beautifully behaved and genuinely won't cause any damage. unlike if I had a toddler

I haven't heard back yet and am panicking. I could just put my head on my desk and cry, I'm so stressed.

GhoulWithADragonTattoo it's probably cause 4 consequetive days without sleep feels like a lifetime. I LOVE the house and feel like ive been here forever, the unpacked boxes and lack of bed are probably giveaways though

Unfortunately just about every dog owner claims their dog is well behaved.

I used to let people bring " well behaved dogs "to my holidays rental home. Owners ALWAYS claimed their dog wouldn't bark, dig up the garden , smell, cast hairs.

They all did and even after just a few days the house stank of dog.

I don't think dog owners appreciate how much their dogs smell . Perhaps they like the smell ? Or are they immune to it ?

EITHER WAY, no more dogs in my rental.

I don't see why asking what would happen to the dog if you didn't exist is irrelevant.

You cannot have him in your home and don't seem to be able to come up with an alternative. However if you didn't exist, or lived abroad, or were allergic to dogs or whatever, an alternative would be found. So do whatever that alternative is.

Hopefully the landlord will come back and say it's ok if written into the contact you're liable for any damage. I when I got my dog it didn't even occur to me to check my rental agreement, so the agent got a surprise when they came to do a visit. My landlord was ok with it.

As a landlord I honestly wouldn't give a toss about this.

As long as you were willing to prove you were telling the truth (by not having the dog in the future)!

Totally agree with perper and SD on this. Some horrible comments on here from other posters. Good luck OP, I have a large breed dog in a rental property. I would rather move out than lose my dog. Cue the non-dog lovers telling me not to be so bloody stupid !!!!!!

Whoever wrote:
" It's a dog- not a child. If it won't cope in kennels then it's been mollycoddled too much and you'll have to find other suitable accommodation for it."

ODFOD. It's a creature with feelings and attachments.

Only the most precious and spurious sort of speciesism makes us think that human beings (the most disgusting of creatures, because capable of rational cruelty, rather than just instincts) are so much better than any other creature.

Very well said FodieJoster

It's this attitude to animals, denying that they have very deep and complex emotional, as well as physical, needs, that has led to the vile cruelties of factory farming and animal experimentation.

Dogs and other animals have very rich emotional lives - and sadly can't understand that their human companion is in hospital etc. To them, they have been abandoned forever. Having a familiar face is a huge help to them - the same as it would be for us, if our world was turned upside-down.

Mum's dog is a bit of a wet blanket incredibly sensitive.

He genuinely is well behaved and whilst he's here I could probably become smell immune but I never noticed a dog smell when visiting them at my mums house. She hoovered daily and cleaned like a demon though.

The Estate agents have been very good and have said to reevaluate the situation in a weeks time. In the meantime to watch he doesn't do damage.

I'm a landlord but my house is freehold and I can't have pets - hence neither can my tenant. If this wasn't the case I'm not sure I would mind as long as they paid extra deposit.

CaptainObviousTwo That's good news! Sounds like it will all pan out

Bath the dog, hoover the floors (I spied laminate, so maybe mop that occasionally too)- there will be no dog smell. Dog smell is not some magical thing that permeates forever. It will all be fine

perper goodness me, what is this foreign concept you speak of?!
It's a widely documented scientific fact that ALL dog owners are complete tramps! We do not engage in unnecessary activities such as hoovering and mopping! We like our rented properties to smell as funky as possible! We feel this will please our beloved and precious LL's in the long run, by not engaging in any cleaning practices we feel that the owners of our properties will replace carpets/flooring/other permeable materials more often and this will increase the value of their properties! Next time they rent it out they can boast about things such as

"Flooring replaced daily as previous tenant had a pet"
"Redecorated daily as previous tenant had a pet"
"Lawn Fully returfed DAILY as previous tenant had a pet and it pee'd on it sometimes"
"New radiators installed weekly as previous tenants pet occasionally walked passed them causing pet to make contact with radiators"

We're doing them a favour really :D

That sounds positive captain.

If I'm ever a landlord (very unlikely!) I'll definitely allow pets, although I'll be wanting a large deposit. TBH I'd rather have animals than children!

Lol pink. My DC have made more work for me in this house than my dog ever has. And he's always more pleased to see me than they ever are !!!! Nice one captain - glad they are showing empathy

Yes far better to turn away a family in need of a home.

Why are dogs preferable over children to a LL? We've lived in our rented property for 3 years since DD was 3. She has caused no damage to it whatsoever. Nothing.

Today 17:32 CaptainObviousTwo
I'm aware that breaching my contract was unreasonable but would stress that it was neither deliberate nor exactly my idea of a walk in the park

I'm sorry your mother is ill. But bringing a dog into your no pets rental house was your decision. A deliberate decision, albeit one made under stress. You could have asked the landlord first. Or boarded the dog at kennels. Or taken leave from work and stayed at your mum's house with dog while you sorted something out.

Those who are saying they'd evict me - why? Presumably as a punishment rather than a logical decision? I'd imagine it would be costly to do and then they'd have an empty property which has a reputation for being difficult to let.
The alternative is to allow their tenant some leniency and have the security of an additional deposit plus a professional house clean, not to mention not making someone homeless for supporting their sick mother

Not a punishment no. Because I wouldn't be able to trust you. IME a tenant who breaks the rules as soon as they move in often disrespects other rules or falls behind with rent or upsets neighbours. I would rather have a property empty than a 'difficult' tenant.
There are many reasons I don't allow dogs. In the past I have allowed pets but the smell is hard to remove, even with professional cleaning. Urine soaks into wood floors, hair sticks to everything, carpets are never quite the same. I've had carved wooden fireplaces chewed, skirting boards damaged. Then there is the issue of flea infestations and the cost of fumigating as the cycle is hard to break. Of course no tenant will admit their pet has a flea problem, or barks at night annoying neighbours, or digs holes in the lawn. The cost of repairing damage can far exceed the deposit. And most landlords don't want the hassle. Unlike children, pets are often unsupervised for much of the day. You'd be amazed at how much damage a lonely dog can do in 3 hours!

I hope your LL is sympathetic and lenient this time, but please try to see it from his POV.

Hope your mum is better soon. I had my sister's dog when I rented and it was fine. Hope LL sees sense x

You signed a contract agreeing to not have a pet in the house. You didn't ask permission when this emergency arose and now you think that your wish to have the dog in the flat is all that matters and the LL's rules don't matter?

There are many types of kennels/ dog care. If your dog is so sensitive that it can't cope with a good kennel, it's quite likely that it will show a stress response being in your new environment, have an accident, chew etc. Have you tried a kennel?

A wee'd on carpet may need replacing, the home will smell of dog and yes, someone allergic will potentially have a reaction if they move in.

Why do your needs trump those of the LL and of future tennants?

I'm very sorry your `mum is ill and I hope she gets better soon.

Sorry you're having to worry about this on top of worrying about your Mum. In your situation I'd probably provide the letting agency with ongoing updates about how long the dog is likely to be with you.

If it terms into a longer term situation, could any other family/friends help? If you have a local Facebook group, you could explain the situation on there and ask if any dog-loving families would be willing to take him temporarily (obviously with you paying for food and care). I realise that's a bit more of a gamble, but I know we have loads of animal lovers on our local one, and I bet someone would want to help.

If that was directed at me Count I get fed up hearing about people with pets struggling to find somewhere to rent and having to give them up.

We have rental properties.

We have rented to people with pets as long as extra deposits are given. We have had some tenants whose pets caused damage and some tenants whose pets didn't cause any damage.

We have rented to people with children. We have had some tenants whose children caused damage and some tenants whose children didn't cause any damage.

We generally try to keep an open mind with new tenants and look at each situation individually. We have had very few bad experiences with tenants.

Op I think you have dealt with it well, I can understand that it didn't cross your mind to talk to the agents about having the dog temporarily, I'm sure if my mum was in hospital i wouldn't be thinking about my landlord either. I hope your mum makes a speedy recovery.

Could you write a really nice email to landlord (via agent if necessary) apologising for breaching the tenancy, explaining in detail your situation, bit about your mum's condition and how long she is expected to be in hospital, a little about the dog, and list all the things you have tried to do in this short time in order to make alternative arrangements. Point LL towards advice on dogstrust website regarding dogs in rental properties and explain that if LL would be happy to allow dog to stay for a short time that you will be happy to adhere to all those guidelines and happy to sign an additional contract for this if LL required.

LL are human too and you may even find LL is a dog person, who is just following the advice of letting agent for an easy life.

I allowed my tenants to have a dog (from the start) she is the loveliest collie I've met. And apart from carpets (which to be fair probably could have done with being replaced before I let house out anyway) being a bit hairy and dog poo in the garden there have been no issues.

I haven't RTFT but can you go and stay at your mum's with dog while she's in hospital?

It's a dog- not a child. If it won't cope in kennels then it's been mollycoddled too much and you'll have to find other suitable accommodation for it.

Oh, do fuck off.