Landlords Should Welcome Responsible Pet Owners (Argument Essay)

Landlords Should Welcome Responsible Pet Owners

Sixty-seven percent of adults in the United States are pet owners, but only thirty-two percent of rental properties are pet-friendly. "No-Pet" rental policies are outdated, shortsighted, and they are genuinely detrimental to pets, pet owners, and property owners alike. The lack of pet-friendly rental housing causes over a million animals a year to be relinquished to shelters, and then frequently, euthanised. All of these relinquished animals could be providing their owners with widely documented medical and interpersonal benefits rather than awaiting their deaths in shelters. The popular assumption of many landlords that pet-friendly policies lead to dirty, damaged rental units and to money lost in repair costs is untrue. Responsible pet owners are willing to pay high rental and deposit fees, and they have access to documentation that enables them to supply landlords with a strong indication that they possess qualities that will make them good tenants. Landlords and rental housing property managers should welcome responsible pet owners rather than ban them.

"No-pet" rental policies lead to the surrender and eventually to the death of well over one million pets every year. According to the National Pet Population Study, "landlord restriction" is the most common reason given when pets are turned over to shelters. A 2005 study estimates that 4.2 million animals are euthanized in American shelters annually and that approximately one-third of those animals were relinquished because their owners were unable to find suitable pet-friendly housing. If these statistics are accurate, landlords with "no-pet" policies are not simply adding to America's homeless pet overpopulation pandemic. They are killing nearly 1.5 million pets a year.

The advantages of pet ownership are well known and it is unfair and unkind for rental property owners to deny their tenants these benefits. Obviously, pets help safeguard people against depression and loneliness, but they also contribute to the physical wellness of their owners in many ways. For example, animal lovers who are also pet owners have lower blood pressure and lower cholesterol levels than people without pets, and in general, this puts them at a reduced risk for heart disease. Pet owners also report fewer headaches, fewer bouts of indigestion, and they have less difficulty sleeping than animal lovers who do not live with pets. Senior citizens who own pets have fewer non-routine doctor visits per year than senior citizens who don't. These benefits have been well-documented by the American Heart Association, the Red Cross, the American Medical Association, and the Center for Disease Control. Landlords made aware of this information are remiss if they continue to prohibit pet ownership on their properties.

By failing to add to the pool of available pet-friendly rental housing, landlords who do not welcome responsible pet owners are overlooking opportunities to increase profitability. The national lack of rental housing with pro-pet policies is truly puzzling, considering the number of people in our country with pets. According to recent statistics, more than half of the adults in the United States are pet owners and thirty-five percent of people without pets say that they would keep companion animals if their landlords allowed it. Additional poll results indicate that pet owners are almost unanimously willing to pay higher monthly rental fees and to provide landlords with sizable pet deposits to defray potential costs for pet-related