I have a question. We are trying to adopt a dog, and the pet adoption center really frowns on people who live in apartments and also calls, talks to the landlord, etc.
Pets are allowed in my apartment and we are in the process of buying a home, but for the time being, we have lied on the paperwork about our address.
Just wondering if this is considered a "crime." There is the crime of obtaining property under false pretenses, and I wasn't sure if this qualified.
It's a long story, but after getting out of the church, we just really need a "furry friend." We would take the animal with us no matter where we moved and be good to it- just trying to meet the strict requirements of the shelter because we really want this little guy
Of course you need a furry friend! In or out of the church.
Here's the deal. I have volunteered at these types of shelters before--highly restrictive because (rightly so) they don't want returns and they want to make certain the animals are in a stable home.
You can lie if you like but likely you will sign a document stating that if you lied (and key, they find out,) they can come take the animal. This would be perfectly legal if you sign the form. But if you don't sign, no doggie.
I say go to your local SPCA or Animal Control and don't get an animal from a non-kill shelter. Those animals lives are already saved--eventually they will get a home.
ALSO--MOST IMPORTANT!!!: Please don't take an animal unless you are ready to make a LIFETIME COMMITTMENT! Think long and hard if apartment life is conducive for lifetime commitment to the animal you choose.
Finally, lie if you've already fallen in love with a particular animal. They probably won't find out.
Thank you! I'm glad you understand. I don't want to go to jail over this or anything crazy.
I know the laws are there to protect pets from getting rehomed/abandonded/bounced around, but we would NEVER do that. We understand that animals are a forever commitment and would move out of our apartment before letting go of a pet.
AnonforRightNow Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Thank you! I'm glad you understand. I don't want > to go to jail over this or anything crazy. > > I know the laws are there to protect pets from > getting rehomed/abandonded/bounced around, but we > would NEVER do that. We understand that animals > are a forever commitment and would move out of our > apartment before letting go of a pet.
I hope you took the dog, any lies notwithstanding, and all went well.
i was in the SLC animal shelter paying $25 for bringing in a beautiful little red kitten (the employee adopted him on the spot for herself) when a man came in and turned a puppy back in because it had peed on his floor. Man, that employee let him have it with both barrels before charging him a fee. there was a lot of cussing back and forth. fun times. what was really nice is that she put the little dog on the floor behind the desk and he and the kitten immediately began playing together.
I can see why, though I don't think I could ever do it. My sister and her husband have re-carpeted their downstairs twice and upstairs once since getting their dog seven years ago. Theu finally went to tile downstairs (rugs are cheaper to replace) and the dog going upstairs only with one of the two adults in the home. She sleeps in a kennel in the master bedroom. They've spent over ten-thousand dollars trying to keep their house from smelling like dog pee but will not give up the dog. I'm sure they'll still have to replace a few throw rugs, but THAT they can manage. They and the dog have been through every sort of training imaginable.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/15/2016 06:44PM by scmd.
For those who think they could never return an animal: People I know adopted a cat who had lost his previous home of six years, because former owners had a baby and he repeatedly urinated on the baby's clothes. Former owners tried to make him an part-time outdoor cat, but the urinating on the baby clothes didn't cease. Since adoption he has had repeated problems defecating outside the litter box, but they clean up after him and love him anyway. Now owners have decided to get a dog in a few months, and are planning a baby in two years. Would you put up with the above feline behavior if you had a baby or toddler? Fingers crossed for all involved....
ThinkAgain Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > For those who think they could never return an > animal: > People I know adopted a cat who had lost his > previous home of six years, because former owners > had a baby and he repeatedly urinated on the > baby's clothes. > Former owners tried to make him an part-time > outdoor cat, but the urinating on the baby clothes > didn't cease. > Since adoption he has had repeated problems > defecating outside the litter box, but they clean > up after him and love him anyway. > Now owners have decided to get a dog in a few > months, and are planning a baby in two years. > Would you put up with the above feline behavior if > you had a baby or toddler? > Fingers crossed for all involved....
That would be one step short of having a pet who was a danger to my child. I would have to return the pet in either case.
Worst case scenario, you're on their "do not adopt to this person" list---FOREVER!!!
Can you live with that?
PS--I'm glad you understand the lifetime commitment thing. I am an ANIMAL LOVER and it is so heartbreaking to see those ads on Craigslist of schmucks who are moving out of town and so their dumping their sweet-faced, 3-year-old pit bull mix because it's inconvenient. Disgraceful and despicable!
I went to a similar place as yours for my now deceased kitty. We lived in an apartment and I brought our lease that specifically stated that I can have a pet, the apartment manager was a lawyer and she knew the place we were going to and how difficult they were to new pet owners so she made a seperate statement that she notorized that said both DH and I wanted a pet and that our lease allowed us to have one. Even when I presented these documents and had a note from our vet who said that we were excellent pet owners with our previous pet, an iguana we had rescued that had died from her previous injuries. They still called our landlord, and the vet to verify we were worthy of a pet. I learned never to go back to a place like this. It was demeaning. Within driving distance there are several animal shelters that will not give me the third degree and make me sign declarations saying I agree with thier animal philosophy. Even better at the city shelters I am truely rescuing an animal because if it does not find a home they will "put it to sleep."
Do not attempt the process of adopting a human, then. You think the vetting process was demeaning to get a dog, wait til you try to get a kid.
I am actually glad that the rescue groups called my vet and visited my house before they let me have my dog. That way they could make sure she was going to a good home where she'd be carefully trained and well cared-for. I have a pitbull and so many people try to "adopt" them as bait dogs, the rescue groups have to be super extra cautious with the type of dogs that are used for fighting. In my case, the foster "parents" brought her over, inspected the crate I had ready for her, watched her play in the backyard a while and then watched me try to handle her on a leash. (After some professional training, we got on the same page and now she heels beautifully.) THEN they let me keep her. I'm glad they did. I wouldn't have wanted my sweet angel to have gone to some assholes who'd have chained her to a tree in the backyard and ignored her except to toss some kibble outside once in a while. THAT's why they do that. To prevent stressed dogs from going into an even worse situation than they were in before.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/17/2016 02:32PM by dogzilla.
the worst that happens is the group puts you on a "no adoption" list, should they find out. Do they do home visits? That would be problematical for you.
While I truly understand rescue groups need to find a suitable home for pets, some of them are over-the-bloody-top with requirements and standards. There is a nationally known rescue group in my area and they:
* insist on a home visit * require a real fence, no invisible fences are suitable * cant live in a condo or apt * don't want the animal to be alone all day. So, you can't have a full-time job if you want to adopt from them?
It makes one wonder if they want a good home for the pet or the perfect home . . . .
I say go to the SPCA or Humane Society. It's usually less costly to adopt and they're far less restrictive with who they'll adopt to.
I had a dog in an apartment. I really didn't like it as much as in a house. When we adopted we were just honest. The dog is still with us. Don't get an animal until you are ready. You shouldn't get rid of it. It's not like buying a TV.
I learned the hard way at church to lie to bureaucrats and use my own judgement instead of their endless rules. In my experience, my own experience and judgement are far better than their rules.
If you know the animal will be happy with you, a few white lies won't hurt.
It's not against the law. Unless you do something illegal with the dog (like eat it or neglect it), it'll never come up in a legal context.
Some breed-specific rescues have placement guidelines. I work with northern breeds, which are generally a bad fit for an apartment. However, the breed rescues will make accommodations -- usually older, better-trained dogs that don't need much exercise -- for folks in an apartment. Generally speaking, as long as you take care of the dog, you're fine.
I'd recommend against lying here, however. They're probably going to chip the dog, which means that in the event it does get out, they will not know where to return it.
Of course they would. New owner can re-chip the dog or (I presume) correct their address in the database. People with microchipped dogs do move from time to time.
Or, they can go old school and put a tag on its collar.
some dogs do well in apartments. what about adopting a dog directly from a person, who can't keep it, who lives in an apartment now? It would make everybody's day!
My apartment complex is full of dogs! I have one neighbor with another cat (I love dogs but now is not the time in my life and I also love cats) but I think everybody else with animals has dogs. Some have two. I see them out with their dogs ALL THE TIME. Apartment living does depend on the dog, but all the ones here seem HAPPY! every time I see them - of course they are mostly labs, so that's par for the course. :)
Were I the shelter I'd be more worried about people with a yard leaving the dog out there by itself all the time way more than somebody in an apartment, as far as the dog getting attention and exercise. A coworker has a neighbor who just got a dog who is outside alone nearly 24/7 and we can't figure out WHY they got the dog to begin with!
But then I am nuts about animals but I try not to be NUTS about animals, ya know? Your shelter is for having a no-apartment policy though. The local shelter here requires the landlord (if a renter) to approve the animal but won't say no only because you live in a friggin' apartment. Do they know you are in the process of getting a house? If so...well, I don't want to say lie to them, but I would make that VERY clear to them.
If they don't like that, I'd go elsewhere. There's caution and then there's insanity. And I'm sure this pup is delightful, but, well, there are probably many other wonderful dogs out there who would have a lovely life with you.
I have a question, I fell in love with a dog at the SPCA but they want my landlords number which he is a slumlord and really doesn't care but he just wants to be left out of it and not be bothered so I was wondering if I could give them a friend's number and say it's my landlords and have them talk to them instead, I don't want to lie but I want this dog very badly, I miss having a dog with me for all my outdoor activities and he would have the best life with me! But I want to make sure they don't ask too specific questions and have my friend not know the answers. Please help
Justme8888 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I have a question, I fell in love with a dog at > the SPCA but they want my landlords number which > he is a slumlord and really doesn't care but he > just wants to be left out of it and not be > bothered so I was wondering if I could give them a > friend's number and say it's my landlords and have > them talk to them instead, I don't want to lie but > I want this dog very badly, I miss having a dog > with me for all my outdoor activities and he would > have the best life with me! But I want to make > sure they don't ask too specific questions and > have my friend not know the answers. Please help
You could most likely get away with it. Your friend's cell number would be better than a land line, as it's more difficult to track a cell phone to an address. You're not going to jail over it. If you know that you're truly committed to the animal, you're doing what is best for the animal.
Someone else here mentioned that he or she learned from the church that sometimes lying to get around silly bureaucratic rules isn't a terrible thing to do. My wife and I don't lie in the presence of our children other than saying someone's soup was good when we hated it or something to spare someone's feelings, )and we don't have to tell our kids we hated the soup, anyway) because it would confuse them. Children will learn to lie eventually, though. The only child who would never, ever lie to his or her parent is the child who knows his parent isn't going to do a damned thing about it and will even try to shield the kid from outside consequences when the kid tells some terrible thing he or she did. The people who say their children would NEVER lie to them are deluding themselves. Judge Judy (her show usually plays for an hour on the TV in the office in which I work) overstates it when she says her canned bit about how you can tell when a teenager is lying (their lips are moving) but she's probably right that a parent would be wise to listen with a slightly discerning ear. I wasn't a horrible kid, but there were times I lied to stay out of trouble with my parents.
If the stakes are high enough and a person knows he or she will get away with the lie without harming another person (or animal), most people would lie.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/15/2016 07:12PM by scmd.
Funny thing . . . apartment living does not disqualify one from adopting here in NYC since everybody lives in apartments!! No pet would get adopted here under the requirements the OP describes.
I think there are workers at some shelters that enjoy making the process difficult. Friends with a large home and fenced yard in New Jersey ran into this trying to adopt a dog. They have an outdoor cat who was a stray and basically adopted them. They admitted that they have a cat to the shelter person. Response: "Oh no. We could not possibly place a dog in a home where there is also an outdoor cat."
My friend and her husband were very annoyed so they left and went to another shelter. They adopted a beautiful Great Pyrenees. And the dog and cat get along just fine. Everybody is happy and contented.
If you really love the dog and will give it a good home, tell them whatever they want to hear, then go home and enjoy your new friend. There are so many desperate and homeless pets it is hard to understand these silly rules like no adoption if you live in an apartment. Good grief.
I have never had a problem adopting my cats. I've traveled 3-4 hours to go to places that had a cat I was looking for. My latest adoption is from a smaller division of a pretty large city organization that is trying to be 100% no kill. The group I got her from focuses on middle-aged and older cats. There are a lot of rules but they let the fosters calls the shots. The foster mom told me I didn't have to do a lot of things and didn't even charge me an adoption fee. I told her I would donate money from a charitible fund that I have where I get a company match. They are so happy to have those cats adopted that they don't worry too much about the stricter rules.
I think sometimes they think I'm nuts when I call up and ask about a cat when I live several hours away. I've done that twice now and it worked out fine but took a bit of convincing that I could NOT just come over there and meet the cat and wait a week for them to look at my paperwork.
I have had a few that called my vet to ask about me but most of them don't.There are plenty of groups out there so if one is too stringent, try another.
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 07/04/2014 02:14AM by formermollymormon.
Agree.I live in a condo with no fenced yard.I have had two Humane Society dogs and it was not an issue. Just be sure the dog meets the apartment rules and isn't too active or a barker.
Animals in a "no kill" shelter may not eventually find a home. Some might live in the shelter their whole lives.
Case-in-point: I just adopted a seven-year-old cat. The rescue had him since he was a kitten. I was the only one who had shown interest in years. Sure, Kasey eventually found a home, but he lived in a big coop for seven years. It was a nice place, but for seven years, he never got his own territory, had friends go in and out, had very limited human contact. A cat friend he curled up with every night got adopted and he didn't...
An animal should not spend its whole life in a shelter. I say look into the no-kills as well.
I get that "well, he DID eventually find a home." Sure, but...
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/04/2014 02:34AM by WickedTwin.
I would think you would meet the standard for False Pretenses
False representations of material past or present facts, known by the wrongdoer to be false, and made with the intent to defraud a victim into passing title in property to the wrongdoer.
That said, I doubt they would devote much to legal remedies.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/04/2014 09:33AM by MJ.
I had someone front getting animal. I left work one night and found a dwarf rabbit. Totally clueless, I got a paper box and put him in it and took him to a shelter. I decided I wanted him but I lived in an apartment with no pets. A friend with a house adopted him. I got busted with him in my apartment after three months and my sister took him. He was a good companion to her and he lived 8 years, long time for a dwarf bunny. Cutest rabbit you ever saw, brown with dark brown accents like a siamese cat. Whenever he went to the vets he got lots of attention. His name was Chance, since I found him by chance.
All my pets have been strays. I attribute this to the Pet Goddess, when you are ready the Pet Goddess will provide. All praise the Pet Goddess!!
I have volunteered at our local shelter for almost four years now.
You need to be honest with your adoption counselor at the shelter ... or wait until you're in your home. Some animals (particularly dogs) need more room than an apartment. Even if pets are allowed, the counselor is going to ask you how you plan to exercise the dog.
I own and run and an Equine rescue, we also have dogs. We always do a home check, that's a personal visit to the home the animal will be going too. We also check tax records to see if the "owner" is in fact the owner. We check vet records and references. We have also been known to check with neighbors and do back ground checks. All this is done as to protect the animal. Most of the animals we care for have been to hell we make sure they are not going back to such a place. People have lied on our applications, by signing one of these you are signing a legal contract. We have the right to immediately remove said animal from your presence if found out. We have also hauled two people to court. There are many reasons a rescue does what it does. Hope this helps you in some way?
I recently adopted a beautiful blue point Siamese cat from our local shelter.
They told me she'd take some time to get settled in her new surroundings and that she was skittish. I've had her now going on two months, and she hasn't gotten any better. She's practically feral.
My vet who checked her out with the certificate of adoption from the shelter told me if it was his cat he would (seriously) take her back to the shelter. He said she will not get any better than she is. They lied to me to make the adoption.
It's a "no kill" shelter. So worst case scenario, they'll keep adopting her to other homes until one clicks for her.
My son's cat just passed away this month from feline leukemia - and son (and I,) are in mourning for his beloved pet. Son has a heart of gold, and thinks I should still keep her because she has a stable home here, and it's as good a home as she could have wherever she might be placed.
There is no bonding going on that I'm aware of. She doesn't allow herself to be petted or stroked. She loves her feeding time and plays well. But doesn't allow any physical contact. I'm trying to keep her for now if she doesn't become destructive in my home.
If anyone has suggestions for interacting, feel free to share. :)
As for lying on application, it doesn't sound like you were telling one that would endanger the animal's welfare - and have something in place for housing that will accommodate the pet. So I don't see what's the big deal. It could become a problem where you live though, because pets often times do with apartment rentals. So long as your landlord allows it, then it shouldn't matter.
When my boy had just come to us he was skittish, hid in closets, etc. I just sat at my computer in the room with him and let him get used to coming to me.
For your cat, I might try just sitting on the floor reading or whatever, and see if she ever comes any closer on her own. I have read that some cats need to think the attention they get is their own idea. :)
Please let me know if it gets any better.
And OP, idk if they would check up or not, you might be able to look online for any reviews of the shelter, see if anyone made any comments? Good luck, it sounds like the dog would have a very happy home with you.
I didn't notice this was a revived thread either until someone pointed it out below.
My "new" adopted kitty now will run to her feed dish while I'm filling it. Before she hid behind the stove.
She doesn't tolerate being petted or picked up. She's the only cat I've ever owned who doesn't purr - or maybe she does when I'm not around to hear her. She came from a hoarding house according to the animal shelter. She definitely was not socialized whatsoever.
When I took her to the vet's last month I had to trick her into the car carrier by putting her food dish inside it to lull her in. Otherwise there was no way I was going to get her to the vet's. When I'm ready to sell my house to move after I retire, that's going to be another problem. But that's several years out, so I'll cross that bridge when I get there. She's only three.
Amyjo Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Thanks for the feedback, KiNeverMo. > > I didn't notice this was a revived thread either > until someone pointed it out below. > > My "new" adopted kitty now will run to her feed > dish while I'm filling it. Before she hid behind > the stove. > > She doesn't tolerate being petted or picked up. > She's the only cat I've ever owned who doesn't > purr - or maybe she does when I'm not around to > hear her. She came from a hoarding house according > to the animal shelter. She definitely was not > socialized whatsoever. > > When I took her to the vet's last month I had to > trick her into the car carrier by putting her food > dish inside it to lull her in. Otherwise there was > no way I was going to get her to the vet's. When > I'm ready to sell my house to move after I retire, > that's going to be another problem. But that's > several years out, so I'll cross that bridge when > I get there. She's only three.
Good luck with the kitty, Amyjo. You're a saint. I mean a genuine saint as opposed to a Latter-day Saint.
And see if and how he can help you. He's a cat behaviourist and on social media. His show is called My Cat From Hell on Animal Planet and he's helped many, many cat guardians with problems so much worse than yours.
Siamese cats are some of the friendliest breeds and it definitely sounds like a socialization issue compounded with neglect in the formative period.
The first thing to make sure of, does your cat feel safe and secure? Have his or her own items to claim as their own? A cat tree and a cat bed? Places to hide?
Don't give up, see what can be done first. Abused and neglected cats don't always warm up to humans and sometimes just exist in the same space.
My dad owned a farm and he brought me 2 kittens from the farm. People dumped their cats all the time. He fed them all. After I had them fixed when they were at least a year old, the male cat ran off, but the female cat, who we named Nala, stuck around for I don't know how many years. She never let us pick her up or pet her. She didn't like being in the house, but we had a nice bed for her in a kennel in the garage and made sure she was comfortable.
She LOVED our dogs. She thought the first one was her mother and was quite shocked when that dog died. We got a puppy and they became best buddies. I knew something was wrong with her when she quit eating. This was at the time a bunch of pets died from food from China. For 2 nights, my dog stayed out on the patio with her and they laid right next to each other. Then she disappeared during a spring snowstorm. I found her when the snow melted lying under a bush.
She would wait for me to sit on a patio chair and then lick my toes, but if I tried to hold her, she'd run off.
I think that some cats are just like that. She was the best cat I've ever had, so I wouldn't get rid of the cat because she doesn't like to cuddle.
My dogs have all been different, too. My current dogs like to cuddle for a short time. My last tiny little dog didn't like to cuddle. And my one before that thought cuddling was ridiculous.
I just think you've got a cat that is different from other cats. Oh, my sister's cat doesn't cuddle at all. She likes to sleep on her bed, but then she attacks her in the middle of the night. She is a CRAZY cat. I don't know how my sister will handle it when she dies.
You're welcome. I saw all the love to OP, and saw the date when I went to look at OP's name to respond. *New rule for me: "scan all dates on thread page before reading/posting.
I still might read old threads, but won't answer them, unless OP revives. Other posters can link or lose my *brilliant* ;) insights.
Amyjo, your cat sounds just like mine. A friend who works for Child Protective Services talked the owner into giving her this cat, and friend gave it to me. It had spent the first yr.of its life shut in a dark little apartment bathroom with its litter box and some crappy food. The first year I had her, she wanted nothing to do with me. By the way, she was so emaciated when I got her, it was so pitiful. anyway, she gradually fattened up, and now she is shiny and beautiful. She does not purr ever. I don't know why. she cant meow. She makes a little squeaky sound instead.Fast forward a little over 3 years. She lets me pet her but is still skittish. I play with her, which she really enjoys. She follows me around like a puppy, and when I come in from work, she greets me at the door. It's taken a long time for her to get this tame, but it has been worth it. There must be a special place in hell for people who neglect and abuse animals. How someone treats innocent animals and children and anyone else who is at our mercy is very telling. Hand in there, Amyjo. You sound like a wonderful furry baby momma!
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/16/2016 05:21AM by aquarius123.
Hubby and I had our first dog in an apartment for two years and it was fine. Landlord walked through apartment as we were moving out and he said he was surprised what good shape it was in. Apartment life and a dog is doable.
A dog really needs access to a yard that has a grass lawn, even if that lawn is small. But it's not really fair to the animal not to give them the best yard you can for them. After we lost our home in the mortgage debacle, we started renting. When I looked at homes to rent on-line, I always checked out the yard first. If no pets were allowed or if the yard wasn't suitable for our dogs, we didn't care what the inside looked like, or what a good deal it might be. Eventually, we found a home that works well for us and for the dogs. To keep a dog confined to live in an apartment with no yard seems cruel and self-serving. When we were looking to rent, we joked that we'll live in a cardboard box if necessary, as long as it had a yard for the dogs.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/16/2016 04:29PM by azsteve.
For many dogs, a nice yard is a great thing. But, actually, a grass lawn is not necessary. Dogs love woods, too, and I know of a lot of dogs who are happy as all get-out to be able to run around in the woods.
And some dogs don't really like to hang out in a yard at all. Unless the dog's human is out there with the dog. And many dogs love going out for walks anywhere whatsoever, as long as its human is walking along with it.
Some dogs need huge amounts of exercise. Some dogs don't. Some dogs, older and sick ones, in particular, have very low tolerances for exercise. But the best exercise involves having their humans exercising along with them.
It's best to figure out what you have to offer a dog, and then figure out if there is a dog that matches what you have to offer. Some dogs will thrive in an apartment, as long as they get the exercise and attention that they need. Many dogs will suffer terribly if they are stuck out in a lovely yard, all by themselves.
There is no one right way. Different dogs have different needs. The only thing that is pretty sure is that most dogs need to get a whole lot of interaction with the their packs. And for most dogs, their people are their packs.