Renting and pets - landlord changed his mind

TheRover · 19-08-2016 4:17pm #1

Hi,

I've been renting a house for 10 years. With the landlord's permission, I've had a dog (has since died) and now cats.

This month, the landlord apparently changed his mind and basically told us that either the cats go, or we all go.

There isn't any damage done to the house by the cats (if it had, I'd have paid the fix myself of course), but still he insists the cats are making "house lose value" and the only example he gave was "the smell".

I'm assuming he's within his rights to do so, as it's his house, but is there anything I can do to protect myself?

Thanks in advance.

Sad Professor · 19-08-2016 4:26pm

The issue of cats and landlords came up recently. All I can say is brace yourself.

There isn't really anything you can do except offer the landlord an extra deposit to cover any potential damage and promise that the cats will spend most of their time outdoors. You said cats plural. If we're talking about many cats and there's a noticeable smell, then there may be no changing the landlord's mind.

Paulw · 19-08-2016 6:00pm

It's a tough situation. The landlord may not have had an issue with a dog, but may dislike cats. And, sometimes, cats do leave a bit of a smell in the home.

So, you need to try to reason with the landlord and see if you can find some common ground or compromise. It is there premises.

Sleeper12 · 19-08-2016 6:31pm

I'm not trying to offend but any house I've been in that have cats tend to have "that smell". Obviously if you are living in the house you don't notice the smell.

As suggested above you could offer a bigger deposit or money upfront now that would cover the cost of shampooing carpets, curtains etc at your time of leaving.

R.D. aka MR.D · 19-08-2016 6:59pm

Sleeper12 wrote: »

I'm not trying to offend but any house I've been in that have cats tend to have "that smell". Obviously if you are living in the house you don't notice the smell.

As suggested above you could offer a bigger deposit or money upfront now that would cover the cost of shampooing carpets, curtains etc at your time of leaving.

When my sibling bought a property that had had cats living in it for over 10 years, he had to replace all of the flooring to get rid of the cat the smell.

However, my ex-boyfriends parents had a cat and a dog and there was never a smell.

So, I think it depends on how you keep your cat.

My sibling would allow tenants to have dogs in his property but never cats. I don't know how wrong or right that is but it's from his own personal experience. That might be the reason that your landlord was okay with a dog but not with cats.

TheRover · 19-08-2016 8:04pm

I've had cats for 6 years (I started helping a cat charity then) and informed the landlord then. No issue has been raised in these 6 years.

That's why I'm a bit surprised with his change of stance. Paying more rent/more deposit was not an option for him.

Sad Professor · 19-08-2016 8:21pm

Maybe he's planning to sell soon?

the_syco · 19-08-2016 9:05pm

Use wood chips instead of cat litter. Mate who owns cats says it soaks up the piss and poop better. I walk into his apartment, and there's a noticeable smell. If I walk into other houses that have cats and use cat litter, the smell is obvious straight away. It's also meant to be cheaper.

10L for €5.59 http://www.tesco.ie/groceries/Product/Details/?id=252867475

20-08-2016 1:17am

At the end of the day it's the LLs house and he makes the rules. LLs don't want animals in their houses for good reason. In 2 years you can be asked to move out for no reason at all so you are best to either get rid of the cats or start looking for alternative accommodation as it will be very very difficult to get a LL willing to allow animals in the current climate.

El_Duderino 09 · 20-08-2016 9:00am

Paulw wrote:

It's a tough situation. The landlord may not have had an issue with a dog, but may dislike cats. And, sometimes, cats do leave a bit of a smell in the home.

Cats leave zero smell. Cats barely have A smell if you press your face to their fur and sniff. Cat urine on the other hand, stinks to high heaven.

If you can smell 'cat' it's cat p1ss. If cats are urinating in the house it's either because their litter tray isn't being cleaned regularly enough, there aren't enough litter trays so one cat has taken over the tray and the other gas to go elsewhere. Maybe the litter tray was dirty once and the cats started urinating somewhere else and cats being creatures of habit they tend to go back to the same area for wees.

The worst possible case is that the cats are in a turf war and are constantly pissing in the house to mark their territory.

Either way if I were a LL and I smelled cat urine I would inspect the whole house on hands and knees to check for urine patches. If I found it I'd make sure the tenant pays to replace any flooring which has been affected and obviously the cats would have to go.

Has anyone else ever remarked on the smell in the house?

The_Conductor · 20-08-2016 9:03am

R.D. aka MR.D wrote: »

When my sibling bought a property that had had cats living in it for over 10 years, he had to replace all of the flooring to get rid of the cat the smell.

However, my ex-boyfriends parents had a cat and a dog and there was never a smell.

So, I think it depends on how you keep your cat.

My sibling would allow tenants to have dogs in his property but never cats. I don't know how wrong or right that is but it's from his own personal experience. That might be the reason that your landlord was okay with a dog but not with cats.

Similar here- 3k to pull up and clean an antique wood block floor (which was all downstairs), block by block (over 8,000 of the bloody things)- and industrially clean the house down to deoderise it after cats. No damage to the furniture mind- just the cat stench.

El_Duderino 09 · 20-08-2016 9:14am

R.D. aka MR.D wrote:

When my sibling bought a property that had had cats living in it for over 10 years, he had to replace all of the flooring to get rid of the cat the smell.

The_Conductor wrote:

Similar here- 3k to pull up and clean an antique wood block floor (which was all downstairs), block by block (over 8,000 of the bloody things)- and industrially clean the house down to deoderise it after cats. No damage to the furniture mind- just the cat stench.

I moved I to a house which had cats previously. We didn't notice that particular smell when we viewed the place. All the carpets had to go and the deposit only covered about a third of the cost.

We mopped the floorboards with bleach after taking up the carpets and each patch of urine fizzed when the bleach hit it. The cats had urinated everywhere and it was disgusting.

Elliott S · 20-08-2016 9:24am

The "smell" from cats tends to be from the kitty litter. And, yeah, it's not great. The whole house vaguely smells of urine. Any houses with cats that are indoors but that answer the call of nature outside tend not to smell, I find. Any chance you can put the kitty litter outside and train them to look to go out when they need to go? Before anyone says this isn't possible, it is!

Ms Doubtfire1 · 22-08-2016 4:32pm

TheRover wrote: »

I've had cats for 6 years (I started helping a cat charity then) and informed the landlord then. No issue has been raised in these 6 years.

That's why I'm a bit surprised with his change of stance. Paying more rent/more deposit was not an option for him.

what does your contract say? Pets or dogs?
If contract says pets, LL hasn't got a leg to stand on. If contract says Dog, you have a problem.

Taco Chips · 22-08-2016 6:06pm

I think it's more than a little unreasonable for a LL who was ok with having pets before to suddenly turn around and say that he doesn't want it any more after several years of tenancy and then threaten to kick them out.

El_Duderino 09 · 22-08-2016 6:26pm

Taco Chips wrote:

I think it's more than a little unreasonable for a LL who was ok with having pets before to suddenly turn around and say that he doesn't want it any more after several years of tenancy and then threaten to kick them out.

Well there was no lease so legally the LL is in the clear.

Morally, you could argue the point. The LL was ok with the OP having cats but you can assume the subtext was 'its OK to have cats as long as they don't cause any damage'. Ie. scratch or soil the fixtures and fittings.

If you can smell cats then they are urinating in the house so they are causing damage. I can't fault the LL for wanting rid of the cats. Can you?

The_Conductor · 22-08-2016 6:44pm

In general- the deposit is not sufficient to cover the cleaning a property requires after cats- believe you me- I've been there......... Regardless of how clean you think they are- inevitably, they are not.......... In my case the next tenant was allergic to cats- and while we thought the property was cleaned properly- we ended up having to lift the entire floor downstairs (it was an antique wooden block floor) and cleaning the blocks one by one professionally. The floor alone- cost 3,200 to clean- and then there was industrial cleaning done in the rest of the property............

There is a very good reason most landlords don't allow pets- or are very discerning about those that they do allow- the cost down the road is substantial...........

Mink · 22-08-2016 9:22pm

Doesn't really answer the op's question but may answer related questions from others.

The only thing that has ever worked for me to get the smell of cat urine out of something is a product called "simple solutions - pet odour and stain remover". I've gotten it from maxi zoo. It contains enzymes which eliminate the smell. It absolutely does work, nothing else does - I've tried it all.

The gravelly/clay or wood pellet cat litters that you get everywhere are terrible and, mixed with the urine, smell awful. I've only ever used the silicone crystal ones, in a hooded litter box. It absorbs the urine and once it's changed every couple weeks, there is no issue with smell. You'll only get it in the big pet shops - again maxi zoo (I have no affiliation with them).

El_Duderino 09 · 22-08-2016 11:02pm

Mink wrote:

The gravelly/clay or wood pellet cat litters that you get everywhere are terrible and, mixed with the urine, smell awful. I've only ever used the silicone crystal ones, in a hooded litter box. It absorbs the urine and once it's changed every couple weeks, there is no issue with smell. You'll only get it in the big pet shops - again maxi zoo (I have no affiliation with them).

2 weeks!?! I use CatSan and change the litter twice a week and disinfect it with antibacterial spray. It smells fine but if I let it go any more than a week she starts weeing in the bath. Right down near the plughole which is very considerate but it gets the point across.

In the OP's defence, the cat could have taken a poopy-doop in the litter tray just as the landlord was in the house. I'm sure the op would remove poos as soon as they land in the litter tray but it would still still stink to high heaven for a minute.

SB_Part2 · 23-08-2016 9:36am

I don't think cat owners can ever really smell the cat stench. It's pretty nasty so I can see why the landlord would have an issue.

Cuddlesworth · 23-08-2016 9:40am

Just curious, how many cats do you have exactly?

Ms Doubtfire1 · 23-08-2016 10:43am

SB_Part2 wrote: »

I don't think cat owners can ever really smell the cat stench. It's pretty nasty so I can see why the landlord would have an issue.

trust me we can. I have 17.Most of them go outside. But my litters are cleaned twice a day every day!

Mink · 23-08-2016 1:40pm

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

2 weeks!?! I use CatSan and change the litter twice a week and disinfect it with antibacterial spray. It smells fine but if I let it go any more than a week she starts weeing in the bath. Right down near the plughole which is very considerate but it gets the point across.

In the OP's defence, the cat could have taken a poopy-doop in the litter tray just as the landlord was in the house. I'm sure the op would remove poos as soon as they land in the litter tray but it would still still stink to high heaven for a minute.

Yep 2 weeks, I think the actual product packaging says up to 4 weeks but you need to have a good lot of litter in the tray. It completely absorbs the wee. I have one extremely fussy cat and if there was an issue she'd go on the floor.

Yes the number 2's are like some sort of evil, scoop and get rid off immediately where possible.

Ms Doubtfire1 · 23-08-2016 1:42pm

Mink wrote: »

Yep 2 weeks, I think the actual product packaging says up to 4 weeks but you need to have a good lot of litter in the tray. It completely absorbs the wee. I have one extremely fussy cat and if there was an issue she'd go on the floor.

Yes the number 2's are like some sort of evil, scoop and get rid off immediately where possible.

agreed. But do NOT ever flush them through the toilet.It will clog >pukes<

athtrasna · 23-08-2016 1:55pm

This is not a pet care forum, please stay on topic.

Mod

Lux23 · 23-08-2016 1:57pm

He wants you out. Call his bluff and say the cats are going and he will find another excuse.

The_Conductor · 23-08-2016 2:23pm

Lux23 wrote: »

He wants you out. Call his bluff and say the cats are going and he will find another excuse.

Or- offer to cover the costs of professional / industrial cleaning when you're leaving (note- your deposit very likely won't be sufficient to cover it).

odyssey06 · 23-08-2016 6:09pm

Combining the suggestions of both previous posters (Lux23 and The_Conductor)...
At this stage, the cats have been there for how long? Let's assume there is a smell there and not something to be dislodged by leaving a window open for a month...
A costly professional / industrial cleaning would be required whether the OP leaves now, or in 5 years time? If it's purely an issue of smell, call his bluff with that suggestion.

Elliott S · 23-08-2016 7:54pm

The_Conductor wrote: »

In my case the next tenant was allergic to cats- and while we thought the property was cleaned properly- we ended up having to lift the entire floor downstairs (it was an antique wooden block floor) and cleaning the blocks one by one professionally.

I don't believe this. In a tightly packed wooden block floor, how would a cat cause enough of an issue that you would need to lift the blocks and clean them? I believe you carried out the cleaning - I don't believe cleaning the blocks one by one would have made much a difference to an allergy. I reckon this tenant was kicking up too much of a fuss.

In any case, this would be a rare exception if in the unlikely event it actually did cause allergies in the tenant.

The_Conductor · 23-08-2016 8:02pm

odyssey06 wrote: »

Combining the suggestions of both previous posters (Lux23 and The_Conductor)...
At this stage, the cats have been there for how long? Let's assume there is a smell there and not something to be dislodged by leaving a window open for a month...
A costly professional / industrial cleaning would be required whether the OP leaves now, or in 5 years time? If it's purely an issue of smell, call his bluff with that suggestion.

The only way to call that bluff- is to actually lodge a deposit sufficient to pay for the industrial cleaning with the landlord?

Its quite normal to pay a pet deposit in any event- how much- depends on what the landlord and the tenant compromise on.

The_Conductor · 23-08-2016 8:04pm

Elliott S wrote: »

I don't believe this. In a tightly packed wooden block floor, how would a cat cause enough of an issue that you would need to lift the blocks and clean them? I believe you carried out the cleaning - I don't believe cleaning the blocks one by one would have made much a difference to an allergy. I reckon this tenant was kicking up too much of a fuss.

In any case, this would be a rare exception if in the unlikely event it actually did cause allergies in the tenant.

I do think you've a valid point there- however, there is no manner to definitively say so one way or the other. The property in question is not in Dublin/Cork/Galway- so we had a limited number of prospective tenants interested in the property (which the tenant was only too aware of!) so the tenant was in a position to leverage the situation.

Renting and pets - landlord changed his mind

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