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QUESTION: My Landlord Won’t Let Me Bring Our Dog Inside and I’m Not Sure What to Do?
“So we can’t have inside pets, and it was extremely hard just to find someone who would allow pets at all to rent from, but now that its winter time I am having a hard time getting my dog to sleep in her dog house; instead she sleeps on the ground away from it and will just shiver.
It upsets me, and I just want to sneak her inside, but we got caught by the landlord sneaking her in at night and told we would get evicted if she’s caught inside again. I have no idea what to do or how to keep her warm. We’ve tried blankets, straw, a heating pad, etc., and she still won’t sleep in her dog house. She takes the blankets out and lays them on the ground, but they end up soaked from dew, frost, and rain, and she chewed up the expensive “chew-proof” heating pad. Idk what to do.
I don’t want to get rid of her cause we will be buying a house by next winter cause the virus kinda put off our plans of getting a house. I have honestly just thought about taking our chances and bringing her in on cold nights despite our landlord, but I’m nine months pregnant and have a five-year-old and don’t wanna risk eviction cause nothing available right now, and we can’t afford to move.“
RELATED: Our Dog Has Become Aggressive Towards My Daughter and Me, and It’s Tearing Our Family Apart: Advice?
Community Answers
The following top answers have been selected by a moderator from hundreds of responses to the original question.
“Sounds like you should try to find a foster home for her until you buy a house. Getting evicted while pregnant or with a newborn and another small child would not be worth it at all to sneak the dog in the house. Especially when you’ve already been caught previously. If you can’t find a foster home, then ask your landlord if you can build/setup a storage type shed in the yard for her to sleep in. If not, then you may have no choice, but to rehome the dog.”
“Try buying a storage shed and converting it into a huge dog house. You can insulate it etc.”
“Your dog wants to be inside with its family. Find a new place to live or find a new place for your dog to live where it will be treated like part of the family. No dog should have to live outside.”
“Think of the poor dog. Find a temporary or permanent home for her. This is animal abuse!!”
“I’d ask a friend or family member to foster her for a year until you can move.”
“I just wanna say shame on y’all for giving this PREGNANT woman a hard time. She states they had no choice and most places she looked at didn’t allow pets. She is asking for help not because she’s selfish but because she cares for her animal and wants to keep it. Shame on y’all for attacking her instead of trying to come up with a solution.”
“Check with your vet to see if the dog has an undercoat like a husky or similar cold weather breed. If so unless you are getting severe sub zero temps the dog is most likely to hot with straw and heating pads. The dog may be just fine where he is and he has shelter he can use if he chooses to. It is more important to make sure he has fresh water. The vet will know if being out in the cold is a problem. Do not let the haters get you down. You are doing the best you can given the situation. The vet is the best place to start and then go from there.”
“Definitely try registering the dog as an emotional support animal. We had to do that with our chow chow as most places have a ban on “aggressive” breeds. We didn’t have any trouble once he was registered and didn’t have to pay a pet deposit or pet rent.”
“If your landlord approved you to have a dog does he not realize that if you keep the dog outside in extreme cold/hot weather that you can be fined for cruelty to animals. Get a letter from your doctor that your dog is for special needs he can’t make you give the dog up. Or, find someone willing to take the dog in until you get into your house. That’s my opinion.”
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