Help me fight my landlord (not literally)

[Doglover157]

I am desperate for a dog. Am a social housing tenant with a secure lifetime tenancy. Strictly no dogs allowed but somewhere in the pet policy it states something along the lines of “no dogs allowed without permission, evidence will need to be provided and will depend on an individuals circumstances” that’s my interpretation of it l, I can’t be bothered to find a direct quote. But nobody across any of their properties has ever been given permission. Obviously guide dogs and ‘registered assistance dogs allowed.

The registered assistance dogs appears to be a grey area as there is no official register for them. It’s more if they come from an accredited organisation.

Anyway, I have one child with SEN and one with emotional/safeguarding needs. I’ve provided letters from 3 different professionals, one about sen, one from a therapist, and one from a social worker all supporting my request for a dog. They are strong supporting letters. My landlord said no after the first letter, but I’ve since provided the other 2.

Does anyone know if I can fight this? And how?

Anybody?

This page has some info about housing and assistance dogs.

Unfortunately, there is nothing that specifically covers getting an assistance dog in existing accommodation.

If you can hang on a bit longer, there is a bill awaiting it’s second reading that should make it easier for responsible owners to keep pets in rental accommodation. here

CAB advice covers assistance dogs.

Is your property suitable?

Can you go through a charity that would help with the training of the assistance dog?

Personally, I would wait a few months and try again with a full statement from yourselve plus the letters.

@TheQueef how would it be unsuitable?

I don’t think we’d ever qualify for an assistance dog. The waiting lists are huge and our need is not as high as others. My housing are quite clear about what they recognise as an assistance dog too, so signing up to online programmes to train our own puppy wouldn’t work.

I’m trying to go down the ‘reasonable adjustment’ route. My youngest is likely to end up with a second diagnosis further down the line which could potentially help, but not much. The supporting letters I have are really good so if that’s not enough I don’t know what will be.

@PermanentlyDizzy will check the links, thanks.

Unsuitable could be a flat above ground floor or a maisonette with communal entrance, shared garden etc.
What are the reasons LL is using to refuse?

*Under the Equality Act 2010, it is against the law for service providers, including landlords, rental agencies and housing associations to treat people with disabilities less favourably because of their disability, or because they rely on an assistance dog or guide dog.

Landlords, rental agencies and other housing providers must make reasonable adjustments for people with disabilities who use assistance dogs.

A landlord may be required to make changes to any policies or practices they have which may disadvantage a tenant because of their disability. This includes making changes to a tenancy agreement. For example, saying pets are not allowed in the property should be changed to allow a person with a disability to have their assistance dog*

So they have to allow assistance dogs, and..

There is no register or certification process for assistance dogs in the UK. Whilst all assistance dogs trained by members of ADUK are issued an ADUK Identification Booklet, not all assistance dog owners have papers or ID, nor do they require ID by law.

So I’m wondering can I get a puppy, sign up to one of the online training programme to train it as an assistance dog, and then it is one? Which they legally can not refuse?

For reference, my son has adhd so doesn’t NEED an assistance dog as such, but he also has sensory processing issues and is awaiting an autism diagnosis. You can get assistance dogs for autism but again, we probably wouldn’t get one through official channels due to the huge demand.

Sorry the quotes above were supposed to be in bold.

why are no dogs allowed? Is it a flat? Is it communal gardens?

A puppy is a huge amount of work and you say its you who needs the dog, but you want to use the childrens SEN as evidence for needing a puppy?

All I can suggest is you keep trying or try and get an exhange to a property without that rule, because i assume the exemption is meant for guide dogs and similar

@TheQueef They refuse as a general rule. They are strictly no dogs. Yes it’s a flat above ground level but I don’t see why that should be an issue. Works for thousand of people. Many of whom I know. More difficult for the owner, but doesn’t effect the dog or anybody else if done responsibly.

I really don’t want to have an argument about dogs in flats. It’s a non issue. I’ve considered it a lot, can make it work. Massive park over the road ect. Toilet training will be more difficult but it’s not impossible.

IANAL
The LL could argue that being in a flat you have communal areas so can't keep a dog contained to areas of sole use.
Reasonable adjustment wouldn't cover it imo.

Yeah I have a feeling reasonable adjustment is unlikely to cover it but seeing as the letters I have really support how having a dog could benefit my ds both emotionally and physically, and his sen is covered by the equality act it may be.
The only communal area is the staircase, none of these areas are enclosed, like in new builds. My front door opens onto open air balcony, then straight down the stairs.

It's worth an ask deffo.
How long have you been a tenant?
Are you in a high demand SH area?

A first floor flat is not suitable for a dog. A puppy shouldn’t go up and down stairs. Dogs should have access to a garden when they want it.
It’s not all about the owners wants it’s about the dogs needs too.

I agree dogs and flats don’t mix. You’re setting yourself up for failure on the toilet training front - when I’ve got a puppy you can be in and out every 30 mins or so. Plus every few hours in the night. How would you manage that?
It’s also not fair on other residents, you can’t guarantee the dog won’t be yappy plus as others have said young ones can’t go up and down stairs

There’s a discussion of the legal definition of an assistance dog at www.assistancedogs.org.uk/assistance-dog-information/

Honestly, I think you’re going to struggle to make it fly for a puppy as it will not have been trained to assist with the disability.

Honestly, I am not getting into a debate about flats. I live in central london. It’s full of flats. It’s also full of perfectly happy dogs. The dog would be fine. I know lots of dog owners, I know it’ll be hard initially but it’ll work. A garden is only useful for the owner with toilet training. I’m sure a dog would much rather have plenty of exciting walks than potter about a garden.

Also, I can carry a puppy up a few stairs. There are plenty of toilet training options. I have a private balcony, there’s puppy pads, until the pup can go over the road to the park.
But anyway, this thread isn’t about that.

if your children have these disabilities, are you going to be able to manage puppy without leaving them by themselves?
Surely an older calmer dog that was already toilet trained would be more realistic.
I love dogs and I have kids with SEN and am autistic myself, but to me, it seems like its you that wants the dog, not your kids and youre underestimating the disruption and work involved. Most people in flats dont have dogs because they know its unfair on the dog. Obviously its not "impossible" but youre not convincing me this is a great idea, even if there wasnt a no dogs rule, so good luck with convincing your landlord

@Motorina I think that’s the issue, getting a puppy and training it as an assistance dog will mean there’s a period of maybe 18 months where it would just be classed as a pet. I also don’t know if my LL would recognise a dog trained in this way as opposed to one from a recognised charity or organisation. Even though legally, it doesn’t work that way.

I think the following extract is most relevant

“It is not possible to register an assistance dog in the UK, regardless of how, or by whom the dog is trained.

Disabled people who use assistance dogs are protected under the Equality Act 2010, regardless of who trained their assistance dog.”

So technically I could get a puppy and train it for an organisation ive found online, and they can’t argue with that. But I really don’t want to get into some kind of legal battle with them.

I’d add there’s a real difference between a dog being hugely beneficial emotionally (which I totally get - I’ve done plenty of 2am crying into fur) and necessary for assistance with a disability. It sounds like your need is the former, not the latter and, again, I think you’re going to struggle with that.

My kids desperately want a dog too and the professionals would not have written such strong supporting letters if they didn’t agree with the benefits. It would help our family a lot, and I truly do believe our dog would be a happy dog, id make sure of it.

It might be more productive to think about another pet for your family.
Very few blocks of rental flats allow dogs in the UK.
And flats aren't great living conditions for dogs, particularly young ones.

Why in particular do you want a dog?