any advice for this poor girl. facing eviction or losing dog

Pits in the news and info on Breed Specific Legislation.

Postby jlewin » October 4th, 2006, 7:49 am

I got in contact with this poor girl through craigslist. She is in Manchester, CT not too far from me. I talked with her for a good half hour about her situation so I'll fill in the blanks after you read what she wrote:

"I am being evicted from my apartment because I own a Pit Bull, even though they never told me Pits weren't allowed. I need someone to adopt her!

I just moved from Los Angeles, where people don't discriminate against dogs, but now I have no place to live with this awesome dog.

She is up to date on all vaccinations (including lyme disease). She is crate-trained and house broken. She has an appointment to be spayed on October 12th, but I can cancel it if necessary. She knows basic commands and is extremely lovable.

I am so sad to leave her, but I just don't know what to do. I have looked everywhere for an apartment that will take her. "


So that was her post. I was worried that maybe she was just trying to get rid of a dog but didn't want to sound like a jerk. But when I spoke with her I found out the whole story. She moved here without a dog but when signing her lease said she wanted to get a dog and asked their restrictions. They told her it had to be under 75lbs. It also said "vicious dogs are not allowed" She picked up a pit bull and a few days later had a message that she or the dog had to go. In this same complex she told me she is aware of at least one rotty and one akita. Their is no BSL in Manchester. Any advice on what she can do. I imagine she cannot afford a lawyer but I will ask her. She was considering to try to get her dog vaccinated as a ambull and register it with the town that way, I advised against that b/c if they don't buy it then they can paint her as dishonest in court if it goes that far. It is a young rescue dog I told her I would offer free obedience training and get her set up with a CGC test if she thought it might sway their opinion.

any advice?
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Postby Marinepits » October 4th, 2006, 7:55 am

On Wed, Oct 04 2006, 7:49 AM, jlewin wrote:She moved here without a dog but when signing her lease said she wanted to get a dog and asked their restrictions. They told her it had to be under 75lbs. It also said "vicious dogs are not allowed" She picked up a pit bull and a few days later had a message that she or the dog had to go. In this same complex she told me she is aware of at least one rotty and one akita.


Was this actually written in the lease she signed or was she just told that as she signed the lease?

Did she ask or was she told the landlord's definition of "vicious dog"?

Is this a privately owned apartment or a corporate owned complex?

Where did she get the dog? If it was from a rescue, can/will they take it back if necessary?
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Postby SisMorphine » October 4th, 2006, 7:56 am

My advice is to have her review her lease, specifically the pet clause. If it does not state pit bulls specifically then they hold no water. If it says "no vicious dogs" then she should have it evaled by someone and then give the eval report to the complex showing the pup has no aggressive tendencies.

I would also have her print out lists of dog bites off of that pit bull website . . . why can't I remember the name? . . . as it shows the wide ranges of breeds that have bitten so severely that they've been on the news, and the stories that are originally reported as pit bull attacks, but weeks later, after the hysteria dies down, it comes out that it was a different breed.

She can also threaten lawsuits if there is no pit bull specific clause in the contract, because they may back down just with a threat and her pointing out they have nothing specific against pits.


Good luck to her and anyone else dealing with crap like this. It is just so unecessary.
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Postby jlewin » October 5th, 2006, 8:57 am

sorry guys i was having trouble logging in to respond yesterday. It is a corporate owned very large complex. She is afraid to threaten going to court b/c she cannot afford a lawyer. I have met her dog and she is very very sound but she is not convinced a t-test would appease them. The lease states "breeds of dogs known to be vicious" not at all specific but it does allow the umbrella of "breed" not just each dog judged on its own. She is leaning toward having the dog stay with a friend for a few weeks and then taking it back and saying she got an ambull. The dog is a pretty standard apdt, but the management has never seen the dog, just her neighbors. She could probably get petco (when she get's her rabies shot) to sign the papers saying it is an ambull. I'm really not sure how I feel about that solution and I told her so. Poor girl is terrified I can tell she really loves this dog, and it is a great dog I wish I had found her.
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Postby pitbullmamaliz » October 5th, 2006, 9:17 am

Saying it's an AmBull probably won't help. I just moved, and every apartment comlex I called said no APBT's, no AmStaffs, no Staffy Bulls, no Am Bulls, etc etc. They know all the breeds we would commonly try to use to "lie" about our dogs, and they have them banned. I finally found an apartment that didn't specify, and they threatened to make me get rid of Inara. I said we'd talk about it further in court, and it's been over a week and they haven't said anything else.
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Postby Marinepits » October 5th, 2006, 9:21 am

We lived in a very large corporate owned complex prior to buying our house five years ago and the reason we were told we had to leave the complex was because the corporation re-wrote the pet clause of the lease to encompass "dangerous dogs". They also did not specifically name pit bulls.

We argued and fought to have our dogs "grandfathered" into the lease because we had rented for the three years previous to their re-writing the lease -- we may have won, but I'll never know because 9/11 happened and we chose to move closer to the city because of my husband's job.

Anyway, rather than relying on PetCo for her vax, she needs to establish herself at a good vet that can then give her a recommendation. And she needs to be honest about the breed -- lying can get her into a world of trouble if an incident were to ever happen. She could lose her insurance and be personally liable for any damages her dog might cause. If she doesn't have insurance, she needs to get it NOW. That's part of responsible ownership.

I don't think she stands a chance of keeping her apartment -- she signed the lease knowing that
"breeds of dogs known to be vicious" not at all specific but it does allow the umbrella of "breed" not just each dog judged on its own
were not allowed. To go out and get a pit bull or mix thereof was asking for trouble.

Her best bet is to find a privately owned apartment that allows dogs and has an understanding landlord. What town does she live in?
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Postby jlewin » October 5th, 2006, 9:41 am

Manchester, CT
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Postby Marinepits » October 5th, 2006, 10:20 am

Here are some websites that may help:

http://www.mynewplace.com (I searched for Manchester and came up with 48 results in the area)

http://www.peoplewithpets.com/

http://www.petswelcome.com/milkbone/petrentals.html

http://dogs.about.com/cs/generalcare/a/ ... ly_re.htm#

http://www.cthumane.org/site/PageServer (Call and see if they have a list of pet-friendly apartments in the Hartford area)

Connecticut Humane Society
(860) 666-3337
701 Russell Rd
Newington, CT 06111
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Postby jlewin » October 5th, 2006, 11:07 am

thanks. i will again tell her that I don't reccomend the american bulldog route and forward these links
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Postby Marinepits » October 5th, 2006, 11:24 am

Also, tell her to stay away from any properties owned by Avalon or by Equity -- they have very strict dog policies.
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Postby jlewin » October 5th, 2006, 11:48 am

good to know. you have experience with these companies?
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Postby Marinepits » October 5th, 2006, 11:52 am

More than I care to say, LOL. :wink:
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Postby jlewin » October 5th, 2006, 10:21 pm

Marine.....it's not the same company.
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Postby Marinepits » October 6th, 2006, 7:22 am

Thanks!
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