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› Forum › HOUSE RABBIT Q & A › We might have to find a new place for Bugsy
So, we found out from our Landlord that we aren’t allowed to have Bugsy, because ” Rabbits, and rodents are dirty animals”. So, we brough him to a friend’s house to stay, and we came by today ( he’s been here for about 3 days).. and, his pellets are empty, his vegetable dish is empty, and his water was taken away from him because he was ‘ being a bad boy’, he bit the man of the house 3 times. I told him, leave him alone when he’s hiding out, it means he wants to be left alone- and he grabbed him anyways, so since Bugsy bit him a few times he took the water away…
I’m not happy, frankly I’m extremely enraged about it. We changed his cage 2x since he’s been here ( he’s potty trained).. we change his litter box every day we come here.. feed him, water him, give him exercise time, but if we’re not here, he doesn’t get to run around. He’s getting very stressed here, and I don’t know what to do. We might have to give him away…. but what I want to do first, is look to see if there is any fostering organizations. Does anyone know? Somewhere I can keep him for now, with a registered pet care person, that can look after him for a few months before we move to NY in September? Another thing we might do is talk to my Fiance’s parents… see if we can ship him out there to them until we move. But.. I’m just really bummed out right now. Poor Bugsy.
Do you have your lease still? It legally needs to specifically state which animals are allowed or which are not. If there is no pet clause or anything that says “at the landlord’s discretion”, you could sue…
Also, I kept a rabbit, 3 dogs, and 2 hamsters in my no pets apartment… just sayin’.
It said Cats and Dogs but I figured that it wouldnt be that big of a deal because dogs and cats are messier that bunnies… he personally doesnt like ‘rodents’
Rabbits are not rodents, they are lagomorphs. Very clean animals in my opinion.
Does it say anything about exotics animals?
Rabbits, as LizzyBunny states, are not rodents. They have their own classification.
Oh no, I know.. I was just quoting what he said… My Fiance said that maybe we can keep in the garage but I told him, it’s way too cold out there #1, #2, the dogs howl out there, he’d be too scared… the garage is carpeted and clean, but it has a storage unit in the back room, and if he got out of his cage, we wouldn’t be able to find him.
I would call this to his attention. Everything the property expects from his tenants must be detailed in the lease- it’s for both parties’ safety. Not sure where you live, but some cities/towns have a free legal counselling center. Leasing is always a point of contention, so they will probably be able to sort out the lease for you.
I’ve seen quite a few leases- mine said absolutely no animals in the building… 100% clear. My boyfriend’s lease says all dogs, cats, rabbits, and ferrets must have a pet deposit put down. This (in my mind) says that every other type of (legal) pet is ok under the lease and does not require any pet deposit.
Remember that the landlord has a contract with you and may only break the lease under certain and generally extreme circumstances. I would actually not talk to him yet. See if you have a legal counselling center thats free and go from there.
Okay, Thank you
I hope everything goes ok! sending good bunny friendly housing vibes
Goodluck! How stressful for you both.
I agree, make an argument to the landlord. Specify they are classed as exotics and they’re caged animals. Even offer to pay a pet deposit if you think it would help smooth things over.
Can you just bring Bugsy home anyway? I would think it reasonable you have him while sorting things out. But yeah….landlords aren’t always reasonable.
Maybe contact the house rabbit society chapter for your state to see if they know of any pet sitters/foster carers. There is a group that offer temporary care for rabbits in transit also. Might be worth seeing if they can help out.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rabbitrelay/
You are in WA? Another WA member here (I think!) had a rabbit temporarily fostered while she organised to bring her home. This was CarlieL in case you want to PM her to ask advice.
OH you’re in WA? Feel free to PM me, I know of a few rabbit rescue groups all over the state that might be able to put you in touch with fosters! I would totally do it, but I’m only going to be in Bellingham for the next month and then I’m going back to Pullman. Bleh!
Actually you have a contract with the landlord, not the other way around.
Hopefully you can work this out, but in the landlord’s defense, it’s always good to talk to the landlord about these situations and try not to assume otherwise you end up in these situations. I always tell people, don’t hide your pets, you’ll get caught and your pets and you will suffer the consequences. After all, the property belongs to the landlord, not you.
It makes me angry thinking about how your bunny was denied food and water. What a bad situation. Poor Bugsy. I strongly agree with Tate that you should consult an attorney at a legal aid group or somewhere first. Your landlord is likely to just dig in his heels if you try to reason with him on your own. It’s not too easy for a landlord to get rid of a tenant. They can threaten to have you evicted for violating the terms of the lease, but it’s a hassle for them to go through with it and the law generally favors the tenant, who will be without a place to live if evicted. Could you check with the Humane Society or another agency to help with Bugsy temporarily? I sure do hope everything works out for Bugsy!
I’m confused, so I might have missed something. What does your lease say? The lease is the final authority. It sounds like you got a rabbit without checking to see what your lease said first? If your lease says “no pets,” then you’re breaking the lease, and the landlord has the right to tell you to get rid of any pets.
You can always ask the landlord to change the lease, but it has to be documented on the lease. I managed to keep rabbits in non-pet apartments by adding a very specific paragraph to the lease about what the expectations and responsibilities were for me regarding the buns, but I did this before even moving in.
If your lease allows pets, then your landlord is in the wrong. If this is the case, then I would remind the landlord about the lease you signed, and I’d have a specific paragraph added about rabbits so this doesn’t come up again.
Good luck!
She says the lease says “cats and dogs”.
Posted By Sarita on 05/16/2011 08:22 AM
She says the lease says “cats and dogs”.
Thanks, I missed that (I’ll blame it on my migraine!). Yep, that doesn’t look good. Technically it’s breaking the lease, but the landlord can always change the lease.
Well it still depends on the wording of the lease. If it says “cats and dogs ok with deposit”, then it’s not made clear if a.) no other kinds of animals are allowed or b.) cats and dogs are the only pets that need a deposit.
Ah, the joys of being raised by lawyers.
My uncle is a lawyer..
I would indeed go into detail about the lease.
If you’re leaving in September, then I assume your lease is only until that time. If you are intending to break the lease, don’t say anything more to the landlord.
I think your idea of foster care until then is a good one. First, get him away from those ‘friends’. You cannot punish a rabbit, only harm it by denying water. That needs to stop immediately.
A local rescue or shelter may even be available to foster your bunny temporarily for a few months if you explain the situation. Also, your vet may know of someone who can help you out. Sometimes even a vet’s assistant is willing to foster, so give your vet a call.
My landlords have always written in the words “1 pet rabbit” in the allowed section. I think you are heading for a great deal of trouble for a very short time if you get contentious with the landlord. Make sure wherever you are going in Sept. has it much more clear that you are allowed to have him. Otherwise, it just might not be the right time for you and you would be best to rehome him. I think you have some better options now before it comes to that, though.
Does the landlord come inside your apartment, or house? Would he know if you brought Bugsy back? I am a paralegal and and cannot give legal advice, and am not offering to do so, also I am in Florida, but I could ask my attorney to take a peak at the lease for you, maybe point you in the right direction. He is an animal lover too.
My husband and I are landlords, and I can’t imagine risking loosing a good tenant over a bunny. The way the real estate market is right now, in many places tenants are very hard to find. Evicting tenants is really hard and expensive. Vacant properties are very vulnerable to vandalism.
I would just take your Bugsy home and tell the landlord that there is nothing in your lease that says you can’t have a bunny.
I agree with Eepster. I read your other topic, and the health of your rabbit is in your hands. I don’t like how the people your bunny is with now is treating him.
Agreed with LoveChaCha. Your bunny is IN DANGER, you need to do something NOW. Bunnies are not known for being the most resilient of creatures, even with the best of care things can happen. You’re really really putting your bunny at RISK leaving him there.
In my opinion, you need to do absolutely whatever is neccessary to get him out of there, even if it means signing him over to the local humane society. At least there he will not be treated cruelly like he is now, and he’ll be safe and cared for. If that doesn’t work for you, find a TRUSTED, animal-loving relative that will consider taking him in until you can make arrangements for him. Because these “friends” he’s with now are anything but friendly to him.
Someone told me once, “We are our animals only advocate, we are their voice”. Truer words were never spoken. You need to speak up for your bunny, he’s suffering and it’s your responsibility to help him. If it were my bun, I’d be picking him up TONIGHT.
Our lease says we’re only allowed cats and dogs, ours knew we had the dog and Lucy, and they considered her a “caged” animal. Hah. They wish.
We now have a cat as well, and we only signed for the dog. So…I know in PA the landlord can’t “just stop by” without 24 hour notice, which for us is more than enough time to vacate the kitty for a hot second to Grandma’s. I’m not typically one for lying, but your landlord sounds like a real piece of work. I can’t handle people like him. Best of luck!
The incident about your friend family member taking away your bunny’s water as punishment is disturbing. What kind of person does that?Something is mentally wrong with that person in my opinion. ( I hope they don’t have animals). That does make me extremely worried for the safety of your bunny. I know you are stressed out about it as well. In that case, I would do whatever it took to get your bunny out of harms way.
Regarding the landlord situation: When we found the perfect place to rent, the future landlord told us NO PETS. He was also sort of old school in he way he viewed rabbits. But mostly he had problems with damage caused by previous tenants animals. I really loved the place and wanted to live there, so I created a rental agreement geared towards House Rabbits. I talked to landlord about it and honestly, I don’t know how I did it, but I convinced him to change his mind. And we were able to move in!
The truth is pets do have the potential to cause damage – urine stains and burns, smells are some of the biggest concerns for landlords.(and I know, people can do way more damage too!) But I think it helps to address the specific concerns; have a plan of prevention, and show them you value their property because it is your home too. (at least that is how I felt about it) That is the approach I took.
I hope you are able to talk to your landlord and if you have been good responsible tenants, then argue that point. Have him come check out the place as it is now so he can see that nothing horrible has happened. Then offer to put down an additional pet deposit if need be for the remaining time you have. I would try that approach first and try to resolve it peacefully before resorting to legal action.
Here is a copy of the rental agreement. Notice I gave Rabbit.org as the rabbit resource for him to check out. It is not a good idea to tell a landlord to check out BinkyBunny to get more information on House Rabbits because the forum could sound alarming in some circumstances (with littertraining etc) , and the Bunny ProofingPage definitely shows what a rabbit could do (even though we discuss prevention), and that could scare a landlord away. To see the agreement in full size, click on the link below the Pet agreement image
› Forum › HOUSE RABBIT Q & A › We might have to find a new place for Bugsy