sundevil98
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas
In November, my wife and I (and our dog) moved into an apartment. When we signed the lease agreement, we were asked to provide a picture of our dog so that they could determine the breed of our dog. We complied and provided two pictures of our dog. We were told that our dog was acceptable to live with us in the apartment. We have been living peacefully in the apartment since then.
A few days ago, I got a call from the apartment manager. She left a message and when I called her back, she said that someone complained about our dog and said that we had a "pit-bull". She asked me to bring the dog down to the office so she could meet the dog.
This afternoon, I brought the rent check down along with our dog. She met the dog and said that she could see why she complaint was made. She said that our dog has a "big head" just like a pit bull. She asked me what breed the dog was and I told her that when we got the dog, we were told it was a lab/Jack Russell terrier mix.
She said that I needed to take the dog to veterinarian, and get a letter stating that the dog is indeed not a "pit-bull". She also told me that if the vet determines that there is even a portion of "pit-bull" in the dog, that the dog cannot stay in the apartment.
We have only been in Texas a few months, and haven't even met with a vet yet. The dog doesn't have any papers, because we bought him from a family seven years ago. We saw the mother (but never the father) and it was clearly a Jack Russel terrier for the mother. However, we have no proof of the mother (pictures or otherwise). There's no paperwork for the dog, because it came from a "backyard breeder" and it's not a pedigreed dog.
I'm sorry, but if my dog has to leave, we are leaving. It's that simple. I'm not giving my dog away, and I'm not going to be able to find another place for him to live for the next 9 months.
Also, (in one section of) our lease states that they management can enter our apartment at any time and remove our dog if they feel it violates the lease agreement. All they have to do is leave a notice inside the aparment that they came in for that reason. However, in another section, it states that 24 hours notice needs to be given to remove the animal.
My questions are these: 1) Can a vet even really determine what sort of breed a dog is just by looking at it? 2) What if all the vets I find feel that my dog is a "pit-bull" (I have searched, and "pit-bull" isn't even a breed of dog)? 5) What if I do get a letter stating that the dog does not have "pit-bull" in him? Are we off the hook (so to speak?) What if they take the pictures of the dog to a vet and their vet decides it's a "pit-bull". 4) Also, isn't some sort of notice required to enter the apartment for any reason?
I'm afraid this will come down to a battle of we said/they said over the breed of the dog. If it does, do we have a right to terminate the lease without penalty? What rights do I have since they already accepted our dog (when we gave them the pictures, I would assume this was an implied acceptance)? We would have never signed the lease if the dog wasn't accepted. We would have found someplace else to live.
In November, my wife and I (and our dog) moved into an apartment. When we signed the lease agreement, we were asked to provide a picture of our dog so that they could determine the breed of our dog. We complied and provided two pictures of our dog. We were told that our dog was acceptable to live with us in the apartment. We have been living peacefully in the apartment since then.
A few days ago, I got a call from the apartment manager. She left a message and when I called her back, she said that someone complained about our dog and said that we had a "pit-bull". She asked me to bring the dog down to the office so she could meet the dog.
This afternoon, I brought the rent check down along with our dog. She met the dog and said that she could see why she complaint was made. She said that our dog has a "big head" just like a pit bull. She asked me what breed the dog was and I told her that when we got the dog, we were told it was a lab/Jack Russell terrier mix.
She said that I needed to take the dog to veterinarian, and get a letter stating that the dog is indeed not a "pit-bull". She also told me that if the vet determines that there is even a portion of "pit-bull" in the dog, that the dog cannot stay in the apartment.
We have only been in Texas a few months, and haven't even met with a vet yet. The dog doesn't have any papers, because we bought him from a family seven years ago. We saw the mother (but never the father) and it was clearly a Jack Russel terrier for the mother. However, we have no proof of the mother (pictures or otherwise). There's no paperwork for the dog, because it came from a "backyard breeder" and it's not a pedigreed dog.
I'm sorry, but if my dog has to leave, we are leaving. It's that simple. I'm not giving my dog away, and I'm not going to be able to find another place for him to live for the next 9 months.
Also, (in one section of) our lease states that they management can enter our apartment at any time and remove our dog if they feel it violates the lease agreement. All they have to do is leave a notice inside the aparment that they came in for that reason. However, in another section, it states that 24 hours notice needs to be given to remove the animal.
My questions are these: 1) Can a vet even really determine what sort of breed a dog is just by looking at it? 2) What if all the vets I find feel that my dog is a "pit-bull" (I have searched, and "pit-bull" isn't even a breed of dog)? 5) What if I do get a letter stating that the dog does not have "pit-bull" in him? Are we off the hook (so to speak?) What if they take the pictures of the dog to a vet and their vet decides it's a "pit-bull". 4) Also, isn't some sort of notice required to enter the apartment for any reason?
I'm afraid this will come down to a battle of we said/they said over the breed of the dog. If it does, do we have a right to terminate the lease without penalty? What rights do I have since they already accepted our dog (when we gave them the pictures, I would assume this was an implied acceptance)? We would have never signed the lease if the dog wasn't accepted. We would have found someplace else to live.
Last edited:
