Keeping pets is a complex issue

Commenting on the article, The horrid ‘truth’ about animal shelters, week ending 14 November, a reader who wanted to remain anonymous recounted his story of having to surrender his four-year-old pitbull to the SPCA because the body corporate of his complex did not allow vicious breeds.

“I was going to make this a legal matter but my wife pointed out that our lease did state that our individual unit, for some odd reason, is not allowed pets even though everyone here has pets,” he said.

Numerous other residents have come forth with stories of having to give their pets away or surrender them to animal shelters because their complexes would not allow pets.

Sacha Fraser of FourPaws animal shelter near Diepsloot said complexes could not change their rules suddenly and were either pet-friendly or did not allow pets. She said there were many cases where people who did not have pets, moved into pet-friendly complexes and then started complaining about their neighbours’ dogs or cats.

“Why then did they move into a pet-friendly complex?” Fraser questioned. She said house pets did not survive in shelters. “They pine, stop eating and slowly give up,” Fraser said. “Since FourPaws started three house cats have died, its just heart-breaking.”

According to Sunninghill branch manager for Whitfields property management, Mark Friebus, complexes could not suddenly change their rules to disallow pets. “Special dispensation is always given to those owners with dogs or cats that they may keep until their pets pass on,” he said. “I can’t imagine a body corporate wasting it’s money arbitrating on something like this. We certainly would not advise them to in any event.

“In my opinion it is a cop out for pet owners to move into complexes with ‘no pets’ rules. They simply don’t care enough about their pets to look for a complex that is pet-friendly,” he added.