Does a no-pets policy apply to pets that never leave the dwelling?
I’d say so and if anything even more so – a pet that remains in its dwelling constantly will also be defacating in its dwelling and animals by nature have a distinct smell (or odour) and therefore when a person with a in-house pet moves out it costs the owner of the property alot in deoderising (in addition to the other expenses incurred when tenants change over). Mind you, that said, I don’t think that’s ever stopped anyone from having a pet in a no-pet dwelling if they really want one. But alot of places these days realise it’s an untapped market and are now offering pet-friendly places but at a higher price.
You need to tell us whether you’re talking about an aquarium/cage pet, like a hamster or fish or small lizard, or a cat / dog / ferret. Check your lease to see if there are exceptions for cage pets. Whether there’s a “no pet” policy or not, if you have a physician’s prescription for a companion animal to deal with a disability, like blindness or anxiety, the building MUST accomodate your disability and permit you to have the pet under the federal Fair Housing Act. See this info sheet from the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law: http://www.bazelon.org/issues/housing/infosheets/fhinfosheet6.html “The Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act protect the right of people with disabilities to keep emotional support animals, even when a landlord’s policy explicitly prohibits pets.” Example from Oregon discussing service animals http://www.fhco.org/serviceanimals.htm (doesn’t mention the companion
