Do you want to hear my story about my secret little pet and my small apartment? Pets and apartments are two subjects that highly relate to me and my family. I live in an apartment and my family and I have a secret pet rat. Four years ago, our apartment was newly built which led to many unreasonable rules. One of the rules stated that we could not have any pets in our apartment unless we paid a $300 pet fee for each pet.
Of course we signed the lease. At that time we had no pets and didn't really plan on purchasing or adopting a pet. A couple of years went past and my young daughter kept asking sadly to be an owner of a pet. I don't think she cared what type of pet it was, she just constantly asked to have a pet of her own. My friend, who had a couple of dogs that just had puppies, asked me if I wanted a puppy for my daughter. I said "no" without hesitation and then when I went to visit my friend and help her out with the newly born puppies, I couldn't resist!
Yes, I ended up taking a very loveable puppy home for my daughter. With the thought in my head, "I can just hide the puppy from the managers" I explained to my six year old daughter, the main key elements of caring for a pet. She was very excited and played with the puppy for hours. Unfortunately, when it came to cleaning up the puppies messes the next day, my daughter no longer wanted anything to do with the puppy. After adoring the puppy for awhile and after many thoughts of having the puppy hidden in my apartment, I came to my senses and returned the puppy to my friend.
A couple weeks had passed and both my daughter and I were very disappointed about the whole puppy incident. Then out of the blue, my boyfriend came running up our apartment steps, with his bloody hands clasped together, he shouted "hurry get me a box." To my surprise, my boyfriend had caught a domesticated rat that was hiding in a bush outside our apartment. I assume, somebody no longer wanted their pet anymore and let it loose outside. Without thinking, I asked my boyfriend "are we going to keep it"?
My boyfriend was very surprised by my question because he knew I wasn't fond of rodents. We kept the frightened little rat in a large box while we debated on if we were going to keep her. After only a couple hours of bonding with and nurturing the cute black and white animal, we decided to name her Oreo! She is our secret little pet that we place in her cage and hide when we have mandatory housing inspections. If it came down to us having to pay the pet fee, she would be well worth the cost. Rats are intelligent and adorable pets to have. They are the perfect choice of pet to have if you live in a small apartment.
With that story being told this should give most people a good idea on some of the rules to pets and apartments. Here is a few tips to guide you in deciding if a pet is appropriate for your apartment:
Did you pay the pet fee? Most apartment complexes make it mandatory to pay a pet fee. Paying your pet fee will give you freedom in having a pet at your apartment. Having permission from your apartment manager, allows you to take care of your animal in an appropriate manner. (Instead of hiding your animal from the managers, like some people do).
Will there be enough room for your pet? This is one important factor to consider before you get a pet for you and your family. A apartment may be too small for most apartments. Depending on the type of pet, the animal will need room to run and play. If you get a small pet such as a pet rat, gerbil, guinea pig or turtle, they would have plenty of room in your apartment. On the other hand, a large dog, horse or cow would not have enough room to roam in your apartment. Many apartments don't have a yard, large pets need an area outside to roam around.
Small pets are the only appropriate pets for people who live in apartments. There are several small pets that will be a great fit for the animal lovers who can't resist. Make sure you check with your apartment managers on the rules about pet ownership.