Properties and pets

Being a kitty, I generally do not pay much attention to silly, ignorant politicians, demographers and reporters. However, not being well this weekend and therefore confined indoors, I happened to glance at the newspaper that SS had been reading. This article caught my eyes and had me fuming:

Properties and pets

Dogs and cats - also known as Fur Kids - are changing what we look for in a property and even a suburb. While it might seem over the top for Paris Hilton to hire an interior designer to craft a luxury doghouse for her Fur Kids, more Australians are preferring to pamper their pets. [Now, what’s wrong with that, I ask you! It is as it should be.]

"I've had clients who moved house so their cat would have a bigger backyard," says prestige agent Jennine Leonarder-Collins, saying most pet owners no longer banish their beloved animals to the backyard but allow them to sleep in bed with them. [This woman is obviously behind time. Where else would we sleep? Of course we need bigger (and safer) backyards to stretch our legs and sun our bellies!]

Politicians like Clover Moore say pet-friendliness is the hallmark of quality suburbs, in much the same way that good schools, playgrounds and parks with councils supporting pet ownership, dedicating more off-leash areas and even free obedience classes and supported vet services. [This is more like it. I do think this lady, who happens to be the mayor of Sydney, is the only politician around with her head screwed on right.]

"Humans have a whole lot of love to give, and if they don't have kids, they give it to their pets," says demographer Bernard Salt, who says the importance of pets is only going to grow in the next decade. "For now, people might laugh and just think it's the gays or the very rich that treat their animals like children, but by the 2020s it will hit the middle market in a big way," he says. [Another stupid human who is grossly out of touch. He needs to visit the CB to get educated and be brought up to date. Methinks he lives in the 19th century. Wake up, man, 2020 is here and now! Laugh, indeed!]

So what makes a property pet-friendly? Urban planning specialist Virginia Jackson, a director of Harlock Jackson, says there are easy ways to improve your home to make it more enjoyable for pets, including:
* making sure cats have window sills wide enough to sit on or areas high off the ground for cats to climb. [Hear, hear! Now you are talking.]
* people like Cat Walk City founder Steve Tarrant build secured outdoor cat runs for pet owners that want to confine their cats yet give them outdoor space to exercise. [Some humans do use their brains sometimes; that’s what they are there for.]
* adding pull-down screens that can be secured to the ground around al fresco dining areas can also create a low-cost confined cat run, which prevents cats escaping into neighbours' homes or attacking wildlife. [Should be a compulsory feature in all homes]

The biggest problem with being pet-friendly is that it causes problems in apartments -- not all buildings are happy to allow barking dogs or screechy cats into their hallowed halls. [screechy??? hallowed?? What’d ya mean???? Irreverent biped!!]

But real estate agent says pet-friendly apartment buildings are worth more than those that prohibit pets. "Any small apartment block that doesn't allow pets is crazy," Leonarder Collins says. "Owners are just doing themselves out of money." [That’s more like it!! Of course they are!]

Australia's strata rules governing apartments vary from state to state, but most apartments create their own regulations about pets with some allowing cats or dogs. [:sigh:]

It can take a lot of work to fight a strata and have rules changed to allow pets but some of the best tips to beg apartment buildings to allow pets include: [more sighs]
- writing a letter to the board or executive committee in charge of the strata body corporate to ask what the current rules are governing pet ownership.
- propose changes that allow the keeping of pets with the board or committee's approval.
Pet-loving apartment dwellers are then advised to compile a 'pet resume' in their letter of permission outlining:
- a description of the pet, including size, age and appearance
- the pet's disposition and whether it has had obedience or other behavioural training
- attaching details of registration, microchipping and vet records to prove responsible ownership
- references from previous landlords, neighbours or other strata schemes vouching for the behaviour of the pet.

If this is not overt discrimination, I don’t know what is! At this point, I was too incensed to read further and the only reason I didn’t yak furballs or pooh on it was that the paper happened to be on SS’s bed.

Australia really needs to get itself up to par with the rest of the world in this aspect. Discrimination against furries is NOT to be tolerated. We furries are entitled to have some basic rights and we demand them!

Sorry, no pic of me in this post. I refuse to pose as I have been sick and don't look my best.