How can they do this? - Rotten fuckers

[Spitfire]

Fucking evil, cheap bastards! The cocksucking rental company just sent me a fucking letter stating that when they came into my apartment to fix a leak (that had been there for 9 months - lazy fuckers) they "found" my 2 cats. That was difficult, they sit in the window out in the open every day.... Now they're gonna charge me $25 more a month and want proof that they are both neutered and declawed. They're both fixed, but there was no way in hell we would have gotten them declawed, that's beyond cruel! I don't know what we're going to do...


The 2 previous apartment managers knew about the cats, there was no problem in they year and 3 months we've been here. When I signed my lease there was a "no pets" clause, and I asked the manager about my cat, and he said that it was no big deal, they are well-behaved. He had cats, half this fucking complex has cats.


My cats have caused no damage to this apartment, less than those mongrel kids downstairs who seem to be jumping OFF the walls, making my apartment shake...this is so fucking ridiculous, I'm not getting rid of my cats. I'm just going to try to sign the paper, not including the proof...

If that doesn't work, I get to live somewhere else...this blows

[Hybrid]

you can have sir toby unleash hell if you want.

[Galt]

don't pay them extra. Fight it. The only thing they can do is try and evict you. And that will take 6 months to do (at least in Massachusetts). Especially if you're paying your rent on time.

If it ever went to court, you'd have the upper hand since you'd been living there under previous owners without problem.

Finally, there's a new laser declawing that's out there, that's suppose to be painless as opposed to cutting off the claw at the knuckle

[Keyser Soze]

I told my last apartment manager I was contacting the BBB when they tried to take more of our security deposit than they should have. I wound up getting most of it back.

[Spitfire]

I should have gotten something in writing from the apartment manager, I don't think I have any sort of case...I've been looking up stuff online and that seems to be the only thing I could find about the laws in New Jersey...

Did you ever see a poor kitty all declawed, they still try to use their claws, it's so pathetic and sad :disappointed:

[Danked]

Everybody loves dogs!

Three cheers for dog people!!!

:bouncer: :bouncer: :bouncer: HIP HIP HOORAY!!! :bouncer: :bouncer: :bouncer:
:bouncer: :bouncer: :bouncer: HIP HIP HOORAY!!! :bouncer: :bouncer: :bouncer:
:bouncer: :bouncer: :bouncer: HIP HIP HOORAY!!! :bouncer: :bouncer: :bouncer:

[Arpikarhu]

as a cat owner with a no pet clause, i can tell you that you are ok. if the apartment managers knew about the cats or if you have lived there with the cats for more than 6 months without a complaint then according to NY state law you cannot be penalized or forced to move. your lease must remain unchanged. went through this myself and once presented with the law my lanlord backed off.

[Keyser Soze]

nice arpi, very nice

[Arpikarhu]

The first, and most widely known types of laws are municipal or local "Pet Laws" which deem that any such "no pet" provision is waived for the duration of the tenancy if the landlord fails to enforce the provision by commencing an action or proceeding within three months of the tenant's open and notorious harboring of the pet

Appellate Division case law has confirmed that the proceeding is commenced by the service of the Petition and Notice of Petition. (RPAPL Section 731; CPLR Section 401) The case is not commenced by letters, or service of the predicate Notice to Cure or Notice of Termination. Thus, if the landlord fails to serve the Petition and Notice of Petition within three months of has actual or constructive knowledge of the pet, any "no pet" clause is deemed void pursuant to the Pet Law.

There is no requirement under the Pet Law that the permission of the landlord be sought prior to introducing a pet into the home. As long as the Board's employees and agents are aware of the dog by your "open and notorious" behavior, constructive knowledge of the pet will be attributed to the Board, or landlord, in a court of law, for purposes of determining when the three month period commences.

It's important to prove when the tenant got the pet, and when the landlord, by way of its agents and employees, became aware of the pet, and that the keeping of the pet was "open and notorious".

The following suggestions may help to prove in court when a pet first entered the building and when the landlord became aware of it.

The best proof is any communication from the landlord which shows that he knew of the dog or dogs for more than three months. Sometimes the landlord will even let three months pass between the time of service of the Notice to Cure and the service of the Petition and Notice of Petition commencing the holdover proceeding.

Another form of proof is the testimony of any neighbors who are willing to come into court to testify. the neighbors should be able to testify how long you had the dog, and if the pet were seen by the landlord's employees. (Sorry, letters and petitions from neighbors generally are not admissible in a trial.)

Create a paper trail of dated government documents and medical bills to indicate duration of pet ownership. Save the adoption certificate, license, bill of sale, or American Kennel Club papers you receive.

Bring the dog to the veterinarian immediately. Save all bills and records of inoculations, rabies tags, spaying or neutering certificates.

Take pictures of the pet in the apartment and in the building, and date them when you get them from developing. Every picture is worth a thousand words, so be creative. A photo of you, the dog, and the doorman next to the building Christmas display would show that the building's agents were aware of the dog at a certain point in time, for example. Every cat sits in the window: how about a photo, from the outside of the building, of your cat sitting in the window of your apartment, to prove "open and notorious" harboring of the cat? At least one case has been proven by the tenant's keeping careful photographic records of her dog's growth, from tiny puppy to full grown dog, in the apartment and around the neighborhood.

Save any letters or complaints from the Board or management pertaining to the pet.

Keep a log in a notebook, used exclusively for this purpose, in which you record any date that workers were in your apartment and saw the dog, or if the super or doorman saw the dog. Make sure that all entries are made on or near the time of the occurrence

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://tenant.net/Rights/pets.html">http://tenant.net/Rights/pets.html</a><!-- m -->

[Arpikarhu]

also here is a .pdf file of all NJ tenant rights. according to it , you are completley safe under the 3month rule presented above. it was the previous apartment managers responsibility to tell the new ones you had cats. once the old ones knew and consented you were off the hook. fight them all the way, the law is on your side.

<!-- w --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.lsnj.org/PDFs/TenantsRights2000WebEdition.pdf">http://www.lsnj.org/PDFs/TenantsRights2 ... dition.pdf</a><!-- w -->

de-clawing adult cats is a painful traumatic procedure.



Edited By Arpikarhu on May 14 2002 at 9:04

[Maynard]

Yeah, but Spit lives in NJ, not NY.

[Jack]

I know what you are going through. I went through the same thing with my cat. Fuckers found out about him so they raised a fuss about it. I took it to court because I had been there six months (under Michigan Law basically if your pet has been there for 4 or more months they cannot take action). I won my case but soon after the management found ways of making it look like I was a bad tenant. Saying I didn't pay, when I had the cancelled checks to prove that I did, documenting "complaints from other tenants" about my loud behavior, (which of course one of which said complaints was documented during a week I wasn't even in town) and just generally made me not want to live there anymore.

I ended up moving out rather than fight them anymore. You may find the same to be true if you fight your landlord.

[Arpikarhu]

Yeah, but Spit lives in NJ, not NY.

the links and info are jersey stuff

[Maynard]

Oh, I didnt really read it. I was just trying to make you look stupid. :-(

[Arpikarhu]

Oh, I didnt really read it. I was just trying to make you look stupid.

you failed, moron

[Galt]

Ha HA Maynard-san. You all a-wet behind the ear!!!!!!!

[PollyannaFlower46]

I don't have cats, but a friend of mine who didn't want to declaw, got the little like mitten like things put on their claws so they can do no structural damage to things, but it doesn't hurt the cat.

Good luck.

[crack hitler]

i don't know about anyone else's cats, but the only things mine claw (very occasionally) is our own furniture. so, unless they're climbing the walls or you have 20 of them making a stink, there's really no reason to disallow them. personally i only mentioned one cat when i moved in but since my lease ran out in november 2000 i'm pretty sure i can hang out and claim squatting rights even if i don't pay the rent...

landlords are scumbags.

[Spitfire]

THANKS GUYS!!!! :-)

And thanks so much Apri for looking that stuff up. I found it last night too, but since it was NY law, I didn't read it as carefully as I should have. You give me some hope...

my one cat only claws old furniture, the other only her scratching post...they were both immediately litter trained, going straight to the litter box since day one no accidents. they're good kitties

I just have to figure out what my first step should be...should I write a letter to the management company instead of signing the paper? It says if I refuse to comply, I must remove the cats from the premises. I don't mind paying the $25, or should I try to get out of that as well? But they have no right to make me declaw my cats. I wish my lease didn't go til February

[Luna]

if the apartment managers knew about the cats or if you have lived there with the cats for more than 6 months without a complaint then according to NY state law you cannot be penalized or forced to move. your lease must remain unchanged. went through this myself and once presented with the law my lanlord backed off.

Arpi beat me to it. Good work, Arpi! :thumbs-up:

I went through something simular when I got Rupert (my dog) almost two years ago.