[nothemama8]

Have a tenant in my building (that I manage) they have 2 large dogs, letter from Doctor stating the're support dogs, ok problem is they only take dogs out once at 11 pm, wife has (C) she has no control of these dogs, they almost pull her to ground and drag her, apt is smelly husband asks to use carpet shampoo cuz of there accidents, what should I do ?
Angie

[bebop]

first I would insist they take the dogs out more than once a day! that is not sanitary!

[Elysium]

Well...it sounds like there are two issues here.

First, the safety of the other tenants and the tenant taking the dogs out. If she is not able to control the dogs herself when she takes them out, who's to say that they will not get loose and cause damage to property or person. You, as the manager could be held liable by another tenant, if something were to happen.

Second, sanitation. There's not much you can do if the animals are soiling the carpet at this point, I don't think. The tenants will have to be responsible for any new carpeting/cleaning upon move out. However, if there is a smell inside the place that is noticeable outside of the home, this could be considered a violation of the lease/rent as it is disturbing to other tenants and can lead to health problems. I would think too that if they weren't taking the animals out and the animals were allowed to soil the carpet, this could be a health hazard.

My suggestion would be to speak with the tenants. Post a 24 hour notice to enter the property for inspection, so you can view any damage. At this point I would let them know that, due to safety issues, it might be safer if the husband can take the animals out, since he can handle them. And then request that they take them out at least twice a day to help decrease in home accidents.

If, when you view the place, it is worse than you thought, or you have serious health concerns regarding the environment, you could always call the local family/children's service and ask for a welfare check.

Just make sure you know what the laws are for landlord/tenants in your state. It may even be beneficial to contact an attorney that specializes in Landlord/Tenant Law.

Good luck.

[amandalouise]

Originally Posted by nothemama8

Have a tenant in my building (that I manage) they have 2 large dogs, letter from Doctor stating the're support dogs, ok problem is they only take dogs out once at 11 pm, wife has (C) she has no control of these dogs, they almost pull her to ground and drag her, apt is smelly husband asks to use carpet shampoo cuz of there accidents, what should I do ?
Angie

I once lived in a place that allowed dogs and one of my neighbors had a chiwawa and a german shepard. she was in a wheel chair and worked so she could not always walk the dogs three times a day so besides training them for outside she also litter box trained them and pad trained them . until recently she used her blue and white pads that go under her incase of accidents with her bag. Her pet Pads are now bought in the pet isles of most stores. they are like the pads they have for putting underneath incontinent people in wheel chairs, beds. (blue and white in color) they absorb urine and she would put the used ones in a plastic bag with some pet fresh sprinkled in there to control the odor until she could take the garbage out at night.

[NuckingFutz]

How long have they been living there? Maybe you could change out their flooring to hard flooring. My new place is laminate hardwood and faux tile. No carpet, any accidents will not reach the concrete floor foundation! Also I would actually maybe help her find a dog walker 2x daily at least in exchange for goods and services. This is just off the top of my head. Let me know what you think.

[nothemama8]

to avoid going to jail for non-payment of child support her husbad says he must be with her 24/7, all though this is not the case she has an aid that takes her around, he is at home full time, the one dog is going to have pups, they've been here for 9 months female just got pregnant, we can't have puppies helppppppp

[Elysium]

Yeah...this sounds like a difficult situation. I would seriously study up on the landlord/tenant laws in your state. Is there a pet policy in place that limits the number of animals they can have in the home?

It sounds like these folks are turning their problems into yours. If they are not willing to work things out according to their lease/rental agreement, then legal counsel would be the way to go.

Good luck.

[KathyM]

Are these support dogs or service dogs? Either way, they don't sound like very professional animals. They sound like unruly/needy pets who require a lot of physical attention she can no longer give. If a person is too sick (or busy) to care for her pets, it may be time to consider either giving them away or hiring a professional to help care for the dogs.

If a person loved frogs, would we call them support or service frogs? How about spiders and snakes - or roaches? I'm sure it would be hard to find other tenants if they found out someone was legally allowed to keep these pets off their leash to roam free. Where do you draw the line?

Why would someone who owns a service (or support) dog take on the responsibility of PUPPIES? That's a LOT of work for the owner. Who will be responsible for the offspring of these support dogs?

And what's with the husband? He can't work or leave the house because he's afraid of non-payment of child support? The wife and dogs are not his children, and it doesn't sound like he has much time (or money) left to support his kid.

Strange situation. Good luck.

[Stranger2]

I would get yoour local board of health to come in and do a visual of the apartment.. It can't be very sanitary..

[lonegael]

Well, all I know is my oldest son had the worst diaper rash on the planet, and the pediatrician told us to leave his butt completely uncovered for a week or two so it would heal completely. I can tell you, there wasn't a lick of varnish left on the floors by the time we got the green light on the daiddies. This was one crawling kid and me mopping after him as soon as he wheedled. Imagine several small, fuzzy, cute and incontinent puppies....
You need to call the board of health or get legal advice here. This is not going to work, I think. Huggs