What to do with the Dog!!!

[twinsmom]

Hey everyone - I have a dilema...
DH is doing one year in Connecticut and then the rest of residency in Minnesota, which means we are selling our house, and living in a 2 br apartment for a year (talk about a space adjustment!!!), then moving once again... (hopefully buying a house in Minnesota).
Things are going great - we are very excited about the prospect of living on the east coast for a year and getting to experience New England life for a while.
But here is our Problem... we have a dog. We just got him past the hyper/chewing teenage phase (he'll be 3 in August), and he is wonderful with the kids. We would love to take him with us, but with renting, it's not really an option. Since all of our family lives in the west, getting him out there for them to keep pretty much isn't going to happen, so we are going crazy trying to decide what to do. I know we could just take him to the humane society for a re-adoption (which, at times, I must admit, I have threatened to do!!), but is makes me so sad to think of him being alone and locked up in a little cage. Have any of you ever had similar dilemas? What did you end up doing? Are there any ideas out there? Is there anyone who wants to "have a dog for a year" ?? (Just kidding on that last one!!).
Thank you so much for all of your help!

Jen B.

[DCJenn]

We found that it wasn't a huge deal with renting- the landlords wanted an additional pet deposit, that's all.

Don't give up the pup yet!!

Jenn

My sister-in-law lives at a really nice brand new apartment building (temporary as well) and they accept pets too. She said its $30 extra per month and after you move out they check the carpets and if there is pee all over you lose your deposit. I was surprised, but she said a lot of places do that now. I'd check it out if I were you!

Every apartment I've lived in has accepted dogs. No matter what size. I would do some research online for apartments if you can. It should always say if they accept dogs. And yes its a lil extra a month but then you can bring your dog with you and its all worth it.

[Sheherezade]

We've rented often with a dog. Our move to Boston was difficult because it was a tight rental market and places didn't want to accept a dog (or honestly our kids-but that is illegal!). We did find a place after 3 realtors told us we'd have to get rid of the dog. She is a pet we've had for 16 years so getting rid of her was NOT an option. The landlord we ended up with insisted on a "dog interview"-we had to drive back to Baltimore, pick up the dog and return the next morning with her. Very wierd, but turned out ok. She must have aced it!! Don't give up on the dog--I'm sure you'll find something. Some realtors here specialize in pet friendly places; maybe you should ask the housing people at the university if they can recommend a realtor (or for pet friendly listings).

Angie

[Rapunzel]

Our move to Boston was difficult because it was a tight rental market and places didn't want to accept a dog (or honestly our kids-but that is illegal!).

Angie

That was our experience as well. Landlords seemed quite willing to have our two cats on their property (with a pet deposit of course) but we got a lot of landlords who told us flat out "No Children." I know it's illegal but there's not a lot of recourse that I've seen. I hope New Haven landlords are kinder to children than those in Boston (and, hopefully, just as kind to pets as those in Boston).

Jennifer

[Sheherezade]

Not to hijack the thread, but I was told the "no kids" thing in MA was because of lead paint regulations. If you have kids, you can make your landlord delead the housing legally. That can cost thousands of dollars. Most of the housing in Boston is old and has lead paint. Luckily, our landlord was on the rental commision for the city and decided to delead his unit in case families tried to rent it. It really does put owners in a double bind. They can't legally deny families, but they can't rent a "leaded" unit to anyone with a child under 6. I don't think that's the case in CT.

Angie

I can understand that fear that moving and finding a rental that accepts dogs could be daunting, but it definately can be done. Not to be a bummer but dogs that are taken to the Humane Society who aren't cute little puppies have a hard time getting adopted, and even then who knows what kind of people will be its new owners. If you feel you must give up your dog, I urge you to find either a breed or all-breed rescue group who will provide good screening of potential adopters and a safe environment until then. Good Luck.

[Flynn]

I feel your pain. Our dogs are a joy but they often throw a wrench into situations that otherwise would be easy.

You can ship dogs to your family out west (for a nominal fee) by airplane pretty easy these days with some minimal research. I have had several friends adopt dogs and they had them shipped to Washington state from the likes of Florida and Virginia.

On a side note to others reading this, one issue I was unaware of when we were looking into fellowships was the "required living accomodations" many CT and other fellowships have. In hindsight we should have anticipated something like it and it was a major sore spot with my DH and I.

I refused to go anywhere our dogs could not go -- period. As most TYPE A's do, he got pissy and we fought. Had we even an incling that this might be a problem, we might have been better prepared to ask different questions during the interview and avoided fighting with each other. It all worked out well, we stayed where we currently are so I have a happy ending but it was an argument I would like to save someone else from having.

Just another heads up for pet owners early on in their training.
Yet another plus to being a medical partner!!!

[SueC]

Someone else already mentioned a rescue group, but I wonder if you couldn't find a rescue group that would foster her for a year?? I don't know, just a thought. That's a tough situation. Hopefully you can find an apartment that will accept the dog.