apartments and dogs

[sereia 0]

Today my husband and I went to check out puppies and desperately want one now! But I'm concerned because we're going to be moving into an apartment soon and I don't want to seriously limit our search because of a dog. I've never had my own dog before so I never paid attention to how much it limits the availability of apartments. The dog we are considering is a small one...but a dog is a dog is a dog. Have any of you had experiences with that? Will we seriously limit our chances of apartments or should we just go for the puppy?!

He looks like this: awwwwww! a cute little scottie!

Edited January 15, 2008 by sereia

[Alex+R 0]

If youre coming back here, make sure it doesn't weigh more than 25 lbs. as an adult because that's the usual cut-off. But barely anybody allows dogs. I wouldn't do it. I'm desperate for a dog, too, but I think it would be way too limiting. Wait til you're more settled and you can make sure you can give a dog the space and time it needs.

eta: get a rescue dog. Puppies are not worth it and they grow up anyway. Trust.

Edited January 15, 2008 by Alex+R

[one...two...tree 2,762]

We're in the process of moving and I noticed many ads for apts. that said, NO PETS. Perhaps it's different elsewhere, but I've noticed for the OC (Laguna Niguel, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo), that many of them forbid any pets.

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

you might want to look at craiglist in your area - I've noticed a lot more pet-friendly listings on their site than anywhere else

or try this site

http://www.mynewplace.com/ep/apartment-finder-pet-ok

I'm lucky - our landlady lets us have dogs, not that I have one (travel too much)

[sarah and hicham 3]

I really want a dog too, but everywhere we look for a place to live the ads say "No Pets". Sometimes you can have pets but they charge you much more per month and security deposit for having a dog. My friend has a Scottie and it barks a lot. I think you should wait until you settle down more and maybe have a house or a yard. I also don't like the idea of having a dog with no yard. Poor dogs.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

I really want a dog too, but everywhere we look for a place to live the ads say "No Pets". Sometimes you can have pets but they charge you much more per month and security deposit for having a dog. My friend has a Scottie and it barks a lot. I think you should wait until you settle down more and maybe have a house or a yard. I also don't like the idea of having a dog with no yard. Poor dogs.

I agree. Without even a small yard for the dog to poop on, apartments just aren't very dog friendly...unless you train one to use a litter box.

[sparkofcreation 0]

Depends where. In New Jersey no reputable landlord allows dogs at all although if you're willing to live with a landlord that will treat you like **** and never do any repairs, you can find a place that allows them. Here in New Mexico all apartment complexes and most private landlords do. My last apartment allowed any dog at all except certain breeds for a flat $20/month fee. I had neighbors who had a mastiff (which apparently are great dogs to have in an apartment, assuming you walk them enough--they're really laid-back even though they are HUGE).

To Sarah_and_Hicham, dogs really want to be with their people, so they don't much care if they have a yard or not if their people aren't in it with them. They'd much rather be out walking with their owners than left to their own devices in the backyard. We waited until we had a house with a big yard before we got a dog, and she never even goes out there. She hangs out in the house with us unless we're out walking or hiking together--she doesn't like to "go" in our yard since it's part of her territory. She'd much rather "go" in someone else's territory while out on walks. (We don't allow her to go on other people's grass, only in the park or in yards that have stones instead of grass.) Anyway, it's much, much, MUCH more important to make sure your dog gets enough walking than to have a yard.

To Alex+R, you've obviously never had a rescue dog that had issues. Ours has food allergies (we have to buy extremely expensive prescription-only food), serious dog aggression (attacks any dog that's either showing any aggression towards her or is black or both), barrier anxiety (chews holes in the walls and bites the hand that holds the leash), and bites if anyone but us gets their hand near her tail (which was broken before she was found). We've had her for 8 months and we're only just getting to the point that we enjoy having her more than we regret it. I'll never get another rescue unless it's a puppy whose mother was rescued that's been raised by a foster family.

Edited January 15, 2008 by sparkofcreation

[Kazan' Tiger 1]

Most, I know, don't want them. Some reasons: noise, bladder control, and hypersensitivities with other residents.

[Alex+R 0]

To Alex+R, you've obviously never had a rescue dog that had issues. Ours has food allergies (we have to buy extremely expensive prescription-only food), serious dog aggression (attacks any dog that's either showing any aggression towards her or is black or both), barrier anxiety (chews holes in the walls and bites the hand that holds the leash), and bites if anyone but us gets their hand near her tail (which was broken before she was found). We've had her for 8 months and we're only just getting to the point that we enjoy having her more than we regret it. I'll never get another rescue unless it's a puppy whose mother was rescued that's been raised by a foster family.

To the contrary, I've almost only had rescue dogs with serious, serious issues! I mean I grew up with them, which is why I don't have one now. The thing is, an adult dog is who it is. A puppy is a question mark. That's really unfair to say about all rescue dogs, though. So many of them are just fine. The dog we got when I was 13 was a neglected rescue, and he's a wonderful sweetie. He's pretty much the ideal dog, now nearing the end of his life.

Whatever anyone does, they should NEVER buy a puppy in a pet store. It's the cruelest most ignorant thing you can do.

eta: Re: what you said to Sarah, it really depends on the dog. Many dogs can live happily in an apartment (i.e. a dachshund) but not all. For some, not having a yard is truly unfair to the dog.

Edited January 15, 2008 by Alex+R

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Whatever anyone does, they should NEVER buy a puppy in a pet store. It's the cruelest most ignorant thing you can do.

That is one thing I don't understand...why pet stores can still sell puppies after all the information that's out there, you'd think most people are aware of puppy mills and wouldn't dare to spend $1,000 on a puppy without knowing where it came from, etc. Who buys these puppies?

[Alex+R 0]

Whatever anyone does, they should NEVER buy a puppy in a pet store. It's the cruelest most ignorant thing you can do.

That is one thing I don't understand...why pet stores can still sell puppies after all the information that's out there, you'd think most people are aware of puppy mills and wouldn't dare to spend $1,000 on a puppy without knowing where it came from, etc. Who buys these puppies?

I know. It INFURIATES me that anyone would think of buying a pet store puppy. Something is wrong with you if you consider that, honestly. You obviously don't care about animals, so you shouldn't get one for a pet.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Whatever anyone does, they should NEVER buy a puppy in a pet store. It's the cruelest most ignorant thing you can do.

That is one thing I don't understand...why pet stores can still sell puppies after all the information that's out there, you'd think most people are aware of puppy mills and wouldn't dare to spend $1,000 on a puppy without knowing where it came from, etc. Who buys these puppies?

I know. It INFURIATES me that anyone would think of buying a pet store puppy. Something is wrong with you if you consider that, honestly. You obviously don't care about animals, so you shouldn't get one for a pet.

I know the pet stores continue to defend their practice, assuring casual passersby that all their puppies are carefully selected and checked for any problems. Those pet shops in the mall must be surviving on a lot of impulse shoppers. It certainly lowers my faith in people's critical thinking.

[Alex+R 0]

Yeah, they don't really have those in Minnesota anymore. I was pretty shocked when I saw them here...

[Kazan' Tiger 1]

So what should be done with the pet shop puppies, bullet to the head? I'm not defending the pet shops, but wondering why take it out on the poor pups?

Whatever anyone does, they should NEVER buy a puppy in a pet store. It's the cruelest most ignorant thing you can do.

That is one thing I don't understand...why pet stores can still sell puppies after all the information that's out there, you'd think most people are aware of puppy mills and wouldn't dare to spend $1,000 on a puppy without knowing where it came from, etc. Who buys these puppies?

I know. It INFURIATES me that anyone would think of buying a pet store puppy. Something is wrong with you if you consider that, honestly. You obviously don't care about animals, so you shouldn't get one for a pet.

[Alex+R 0]

So what should be done with the pet shop puppies, bullet to the head? I'm not defending the pet shops, but wondering why take it out on the poor pups?

Whatever anyone does, they should NEVER buy a puppy in a pet store. It's the cruelest most ignorant thing you can do.

That is one thing I don't understand...why pet stores can still sell puppies after all the information that's out there, you'd think most people are aware of puppy mills and wouldn't dare to spend $1,000 on a puppy without knowing where it came from, etc. Who buys these puppies?

I know. It INFURIATES me that anyone would think of buying a pet store puppy. Something is wrong with you if you consider that, honestly. You obviously don't care about animals, so you shouldn't get one for a pet.

It's a sad fact, but buying those puppies perpetuates a cruel and horrible industry. If you think that way, it will never end. What should happen is the government should shut down those operations and the last puppies should be adopted out. Puppy mills must be shut down. It makes me sick.