Renters! Do you mention your piggies?

[lost_lover]

I need to move and am on the hunt for a nice, affordable, and pet friendly rental. In addition to Taco and Nacho I have a dog and two cats so if I also say two guinea pigs is sounds like a ton of pets, especially since a surprising number of people do not know what a guinea pig is and I assume they're more the size of an actual pig.

I did not mention them to the owner of the property I am looking to rent. My mindset was, if I had them in a cage the size a pet store would recommend they would take up store little room they would legitimately be not necessary to mention, plus I am being honest about the dog and two cats so they know I have pets.

Did you mention yours before signing the lease? If you did how did you explain them?

I remember when potential buyers were viewing my current rental, one of them song both of my boys up in their loft, she assumed their loft was their entire cage and asked me what lived in the rest of it.

 

[Lord Pigwidgeon]

I would still be honest. I've been renting for about three years, and the worst thing that you can do is be caught in a lie. I would tell them that you do have two guinea pigs, but explain them to your landlord. Tell them that they live in a cage, that they're contained and won't be out and about in the house, to ease their minds on cleanliness. If they want to meet your guinea pigs, definitely let them. But if you don't have them listed on the lease when you sign, they could actually evict you if they find out about them. Sometimes, they list each pet you have on the lease, sometimes they just say that you have pets. It depends on the sort of lease you sign, honestly. But be upfront, otherwise it can get nasty later.

 

[lost_lover]

True, I have rented many places while having pets and some leases are very specific while others are very vague. I am trying to stay away from large corporate managed complexes since I am tired of their BS. Despite getting kind of screwed over with this private lease I have now I still would not want to go back to corporate.

When I view the property this weekend, if I am interested in it, I will mention I have two 'small pets' as well. Telling a private renter you have five pets just sounds awful from the get-go. In reality though in my small one bedroom place I have now, my medium-size dog, two cats and two guinea pigs are not too much for this place. It is just that number five that freaks people out.

 

[Lord Pigwidgeon]

Oh yeah, sometimes they get pretty picky. You could just say that you have two small, caged pets. Mentioning cages seems to put people at ease, too.

 

[kanojochan]

I would go the route of full disclosure. Being caught in a lie can be bad for not only your current situation, but future rental situations as well since most landlords ask for references before approving your application. If the landlord seems worried about them, you could explain that the piggies stay in their own enclosure so there won't be any damage to the property. You could also mention that they are quiet animals.

I'm currently renting a house and there's a no pet policy here. Before we agreed on renting the place, I asked the agent if it's a ZERO pet policy, or if having a tank or terrarium or something like that would be ok. He said that the owners were more concerned about property damage and that it should be ok if it was a full enclosure being used. Things have been peaceful here with the guinea pigs :]

 

[lost_lover]

You could also mention that they are quiet animals.
/QUOTE]

I just had to giggle at this since my little guys by far are the loudest of any of my pets. The cats only get noisy when their bowl is empty, which unless I have had a crazy schedule does not happen, and because he is 'special' (neurological issues from the fever he had while infected with parvo as a puppy) my dog is afraid of his own bark.

 

[kadege]

I had just moved in to a new house before I got my guineas, and the lease specifically stated "no rodents" in their pet section. However, when I called to double check, they said that it was totally fine since they're small and caged and that I didn't even have to pay the pet deposit!

I was just looking for a new apartment to rent, and most of the "pet friendly" apartments said the same thing. However, there were a few that still were going to charge pet fee/rent, so definitely let them know ahead of time so you don't get in trouble. You don't have to worry about them saying no (that was what I was afraid of) because like I said, even the ones who were going to charge the regular pet charges were still okay with them. just make sure it's a generally pet friendly place and you should be good to go!

 

[Artista]

Places I lived never considered my birds as pets in the sense that I told them they are always in a cage and never come out. The no pet thing is cats and dogs basically and they can do damage to the place. Saying caged and never comes out should do it.

 

[Icarus_Hermes]

My building is supposed to be "no pets" but they make a lot of exceptions. I pitched the "small, friendly, and caged" angle, and my pigs were approved.

 

[lost_lover]

Well they already know I have a medium (26lbs) sized dog and two indoor cats. Trying to not mention my other three boys would have just ended poorly.

 

[Lizzieball12]

Our house is no pets, but when we met the landlord we asked if it was restricted to dogs and cats. We explained the pigs, cage, and assured him that they wouldn't ruin the carpet. All was well then!

 

[spudsthepiget]

My apartment is also no pets, so I asked the landlord if it would be okay to keep "small, caged rodents" and they said it was fine as long as it was nothing big. She never specifically asked if they were guinea pigs or how many, though. But I've never had a problem keeping them here; I always try to get up and feed them when they start squeaking in the morning.

I looked at this one place that said "No small pets that would be considered vermin". They also said I could only have 2 pigs, so that place was definetly a no.

 

[Rywen]

I've found that many people picture hamsters when you say guinea pigs, lol. So disclosing you have 2 small caged pets is pretty non-threatening to most landlords.