Dogs Trust helps pet owners find a pet friendly property
Dogs Trust has started a campaign called Lets With Pets to aid people with pets to find suitable properties for rent.
Many re-homing organisations have found that there is a sad trend occurring, resulting in a 56 percent increase in pet owners giving up their pets or making the terribly hard decision to have them put down, simply so they can find a place to live.
The research conducted by the Dogs Trust showed that people who owned pets found it much more difficult to rent a property than non-pet owners did. According to the research, the average renter took around 50 days to find their new home, whereas pet owners were reportedly searching for a place to live with their pets for two months to a year in some cases.
When you realise that almost half the UK population has a pet, the real extent of the problem becomes clear to see and with many people claiming agencies were unhelpful when finding properties, it’s no wonder that people are starting to rent places that are of poor quality and without the necessary safety checks being carried out.
Since Lets With Pets launched, the Dogs Trust has seen an escalation in the number of people looking for advice. Over 100 letting agencies have joined the campaign but the trust still feels that most pet owners do not have a fair chance when they come to rent. The Dogs Trust would like landlords and agents to take a “Pets Considered” stance on the issue, rather than simply saying no.
If landlords become more willing to consider pets and pet owners start to take the time to socialise and train their pet, then we will hopefully see an increase in suitable rented accommodation for pets.
