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EDIT: *hugs* Thanks to everyone here and their advice my 3 rattie boys found a new home! It was insane though I drive 4 hours to Syracuse, NY in the pouring rain to get them there! 😆
But that’s what we crazy animal lovers do to ensure the well-being of our pets, even when we have to give them up!
Heh the room seems a little empty now without them (and too quiet) but I know I’ll adjust. I still have my bunny bun-bun Pixie and my very sweet cat Bellina (who I’m overly attached to) so I’m still happy. Pets bring joy to our lives and I’ve been trying to nicely explain that to my landlord so I’m sure she’ll let me keep the bunny. (She has no issue with cats.)
Again thank you all!!
——————————————————Ok here’s the deal I have 3 male pet rats and my landlord hates them, she wants them gone. When I moved in I didn’t know she had issues with rodents and on the day I moved in I was told they had to go! I still have them because it’s been hard to find a home for them. Even worse they seem to have scabs on their back from fighting (I’ve witnessed them fight) and I can’t see who would take them like that. I don’t want something cruel to happen to them like end up as snake food but I have to get rid of them because the landlord is just getting really upset about it.
I tried a rat rescue here in NJ but they said they had too many and weren’t accepting any new ones. There are not a whole lot of rescues around here.
Can someone tell me what to do, maybe they know of a place that WOULD take them? I’d rather they end up in a shelter or someone else’s home and not killed or used as snake food because it breaks my heart to think about that. They don’t deserve it just because some bitchy landlord freaks out over me having them when not a SINGLE bad thing has happened (like them escaping, because they’re in a rat-proof cage) she just knows they are there and keeps complaining about it! :nea:Any advice is greatly appreciated.
The MSPCA here takes rats; does the NJSPCA (or whatever is the equivalent to the MSPCA in NJ) take in (non abused) rats? Take a look at rescues who aren’t just rat specific.
Also, go to Goosemoose and post in the adoption center section for a needed rehome.
If I can think of anything else useful I’ll add to the post.
*Edited out Kim’s Ark because they are no longer taking surrenders >.<
Thank you! I’ll definitely look into that and especially this “Goosemoose” website.
I appreciate your input.Does she specificaly have a clause in her rent contract that you can’t have “pets” or more specificaly “rodents”? If she doesn’t have either, then she legaly can’t do a damn thing about you having them. You might want to suggest to her that forcing you to get rid of your pets is breach of contract (if it’s not in there that you can’t have them) and see where that goes as a last resort….It’s definitely something to look into. Also look into NJ landlord and rent contract laws. Hope this helps from a legalistic standpoint. I for one am not in the market to give up my rights unless I agree to do so, it’s called the First Ammendment.
You might want to look at your rent contract and see if your landlord has a specific clause about having “pets” or more specificaly “rodents”. If there isn’t one then she can’t do a damn thing about you having them, especialy if they’re not doing any damage (i.e. stink causing other neighbors to complain, getting out and chewing holes in the walls/electrical cords…from what you said, the only person that has a problem is the landlord). You might also want to look into NJ landlord and rent contract laws. If it’s not in the contract that you can’t have them and she is harassing you or doing things to affect your living conditions because of it, I’m pretty sure she can’t legaly do that. It’s a little thing called the First Ammendment….While talking legal action is the more confrontational approach, I personaly am not willing to give up my rights unless I knowingly sign them away (military), and no one has the right to take them away simply for the fact that “they don’t like it”.
Ooops…didn’t mean to post twice, my internet went offline and I didn’t know if the first one posted. >.< Oh well, happy reading!
Oh, I hope that’s the case. I mean, I’m sure you wouldn’t have considered the place or moved in with your ratties, if the landlord had said “no pets” right from the beginning, right? 😕 I’ve rented and most places are very careful to go over that area of the lease contract with their future tenants.
I suppose too, you can keep in mind that most landlords only deal/are exposed to rats in BAD ways. As in when “vermin” rats are on their property, causing damage, and must be exterminated. Maybe she had to deal with a nasty rat problem in the past and just plain doesn’t like them. Maybe you can arrange to show her your pets and the cage they’re kept in, and have her see they’re different (and cuter imo) from the wild rats she’s probably thinking about.
That’s more of an intellectual approach though, trying to understand her closemindedness and work with her. I also highly approve of scouring that rent contract for a pets clause!
Very sound advice. If there is nothing in the contract to the contrary then she has no right to ask her renters to dispose of their animals just because she herself is prejudiced against said animal :negative: I mean, I don’t like spiders, but I wouldn’t make my renters (if I had any) get rid of their pet tarantulas.
Im not sure thats entirely correct guys… rodents are not considered pets so the land lord would not have to put it in the contract saying you cant have them. Check your rental agreement. It will usually specify what you CAN have (>20lb dog, 1 cat, etc) as opposed to what you CANT. (The list would be too long otherwise.) So if the rental contract says you can have a dog or a cat (or fish) and you have rats, then you are breaking the contract. 🙁 I Hope you find a nice place for them. You can also place them on petfinder.com or CL. Thats all I can think of. Good luck. 🙂
skigod377 wrote:Im not sure thats entirely correct guys… rodents are not considered pets
Really? 🙁 That’s too bad. How strange that something bred for and sold from a pet store wouldn’t be considered a pet!
Actually there is no lease. It’s a 4 apartment building that used to be a house and the landlord just rents them out with no lease. Been that way for years.
I’m not sure what the laws would be in that case.
I am going to do my best to find a good home for them.
Thanks guys for the advice!! I’ll come and post here again in a few weeks if I still have not been able to re-home them.Megani-chan wrote:skigod377 wrote:Im not sure thats entirely correct guys… rodents are not considered pets
Really? 🙁 That’s too bad. How strange that something bred for and sold from a pet store wouldn’t be considered a pet!
I don’t think that statement is correct (as I couldn’t find anything on the internet that supported it). Just because something is a rodent doesn’t mean it can’t be a “pet”. Wikipedia listed these rodents: guinea pigs, fancy mice, gerbils, fancy rats & hamsters, in their list of “pets” along with cats, dogs, etc. And fancy rats are domesticated, so I don’t see the comparison between them and a flea or monkey.Anyways, good luck, Dragons4Life. I feel for you, I <3 my girls and can’t imagine being parted from them. I wish I was in a position to take them in for you. Definitely try goosemoose. Use CL with care. If you post on CL, considering asking for an adoption fee above the going rate for feeder rates in your area so you don’t attract those individuals looking for a cheap meal for their snakes.
Dragons4Life wrote:Actually there is no lease. It’s a 4 apartment building that used to be a house and the landlord just rents them out with no lease. Been that way for years.
I’m not sure what the laws would be in that case.
I am going to do my best to find a good home for them.
Thanks guys for the advice!! I’ll come and post here again in a few weeks if I still have not been able to re-home them.Oh….hmmmm…now that could pose an issue…..man I don’t really know. Is it like the house from Coraline? Where it’s a big house that has been sectioned off and retrofitted with seperate kitchens and stuff like that? Or is it one building that was actualy built to be 4 separate “appartments”? If it’s the former I think it would fall under private property that is rented out (we have a friend down in Escondido that has converted part of her garage into an appartment and put in a mini kitchen with a fridge, microwave, hot plate etc. and since she owns the property as a private residence it falls under different rules than an appartment building.). If it was actualy built and intended to be rented as seperate appartments then I think by law there has to be a rental contract.
I’m posting some interesting sites that may be of some use:
http://www.ilrg.com/forms/lease-res/us/nj (The shaded paragraph regarding the NJ Truth in Renting is the interesting part)
And here is the NJ Truth in Renting pamphlet: http://www.state.nj.us/dca/codes/lt/pdf/t_i_r.pdfThis is a good one, see especialy the last sentance I will look this up on a legal website for verification: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Will_verbal_agreements_hold_up_in_court_if_there_is_no_written_contract
This one is interesting for general lease agreements. Note that it talks about written agreements, but not really about oral agreements.. http://www.lsnjlaw.org/english/placeilive/irentmyhome/tenantsrights/chapterfour/
Anyway, hope this helps some!
True the lady might just have a phobia or just plain high dislike for rodents, but it kind of sucks to know this can happen. I got lucky when I rented in a 4plex. I had 3 cats. No one went outside the box, and I proved it by monthly inspections for the first 6 months. I kept the boxes clean, and the hair vacuumed. The apartment looked no worse for wear 4 years later when I left it. I even put on a shiny new coat of paint for the new landlord as I said I would. I loved it there for the first few years, and then the meth heads and whatnot moved in… 🙁 I moved out. 😕 But, when I left I had 5 cats.
The nicest part about the apartment was it came with understanding landlords, a free personal bodyguard, and a beautiful small town area with a large yard…Wish I could have afforded to buy it when it went up for sale…Would have made a real nice 3plex! 😉
I always loved rats at the pet stores! Mom wouldn’t ever let me have them. 😛 I’m not so sure Scott would go for them as pets either…And 5 cats? What type of dizzying exercise would that poor rat put himself through in a wheel with a cat staring at him constantly?
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