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........an apartment complex and the dogs are welcome. I'm also a dog owner. The problem is that tenants don't clean after their dogs .........
Maybe management would let you out of your lease if it is a health issue for you. The problem with that is that you also own a dog and you might have problems finding another building that accepts dogs.
There seem to be a lot of irresponsible pet owners and it is getting worse. If you are anywhere that dogs are allowed, there is going to be dog poop because guaranteed if there are more than 3 dogs, there is going to be at least one owner who doesn't scoop.
If there is an animal control officer in your area, you might try filing a complaint with that agency. In some areas, an animal control officer will talk to a pet owner about cleaning up. It's worth looking into.
Send your photo to the health department and maybe they will have a word with the building manager.
I don't think you will get much of a response, but it is worth a try. Unfortunately, moving is probably your best solution. If you can find another place that will take your dog and that also makes dog owners clean up... and good luck with that.
First of all, take a look at your lease. We live in a pet-friendly community and there is an entire section that addresses the responsibility of pet owners with regard to pet waste.
Secondly, are you prepared to move? If so, request it in writing, along with your documentation including previous communication about this issue, photos and any other relevant information to management. If the local management will not address the problem, then go to the parent company, if one exists.
Thirdly, post a review on Yelp. Include pictures, dates, correspondence with management and your overall impression of the property.
If you are NOT prepared to move, you could ask management to provide some solutions. Ask about additional signage to be posted. Ask about fines for residents. Make some suggestions of your own. Let them know you will continue to follow up as it relates to your health. You could also ask about the ability to be relocated to another unit, away from the pet waste station.
Sorry you are going through this. We live in a pet community too and there are people here who do not clean up after their dogs, or outdoor cats. It's annoying. We pay it forward and clean up additional messes as we come across them, but honestly, it's overall a great community so I'm not allowing it to continue raising my blood pressure. We plan to stay here, so it isn't worth making a fuss. Friendliness and suggestions to management will probably benefit you more if you plan on staying there.
Call the health department. Many areas it's against health code. The inspector will come out and if they see feces on the ground they will give the apartment complex X days to pick it up. And the health department will come back out by the deadline to check if it's cleaned up. If it's not they starting sending notices to the complex and eventually fine them and the fines ad up per day.
If the complex cleans it up and then it starts occurring weeks later, call the health dept again.
I can't really add anything to this, but funny story about a complex that I lived in... they began requiring people moving in to get DNA tests for their dogs (at the owner's expense). I assumed it was because they were tired of cleaning up the poop and wanted to know whose dogs were doing it so they could fine those particular owners.
The community was very pet friendly, but instead of people walking their dogs at a fenced area at the back of the complex, they would walk them anywhere and let them poop everywhere. Gotta love how a few lazy people ruin it for everyone.
I have shown the pictures and they said they will clean it up. It was even worse a couple of weeks ago. I'm so frustrated, I'm 6 months pregnant and refuse to live right next to a waste area, but I don't know how to handle the situation.
I'd take your pictures, and whatever copies you have documenting that you've talked/complained to your LL about this. I'd contact the local health dept. I'm sure there are rules about how long that kind of mess can accumulate...They might get cited. Good luck to you.
Take it to the corporate office. Get the email addresses of any officers, receptionists, etc., etc. and send them an email that is a copy of an email you send to your manager, that lists the history of requests to get the dog poop cleaned up. In it, say that you don't care how many emails or letters they are sending to the problem tenants. All you care about is that management cleans it up. How they deal with whoever is causing the mess is their problem. But, it is management's responsibility to have the yard clean. Attach a ton of photos.
Then copy that email with your photos to everyone with an email address you can find at the corporate office. At the end of your email to the manager, put cc: corporate office.
I'd put in the email that you will begin paying a poop cleaning service as of x date, and you intend to deduct that cost from your rent, and if they protest this, you will then take the issue to the health department and small claims court. Or, they can pay movers to move you into another apartment before your pregnancy is any further along.
Then print it out and send it to the top dog via snail mail with delivery confirmation. Snail mail isn't ignored. It needs to get filed somewhere. It gets passed around and discussed. So, if the emails don't work and people ignore them, they won't ignore the snail mail received via priority mail with delivery confirmation.
Become a very noisy pain-in-the-rear squeaky wheel at the corporate or owner level. And I bet they will start cleaning up the poop.
This has worked for me in the recent past at my last apt complex (I'm a retired apt manager myself). I was getting nowhere with the management, and I took it to their corporate office and bingo - the manager all of a sudden had another apt I could move into. My issue was a noise issue that was insane, and the manager was doing nothing about it, and when I asked if I could move into another unit then, she had alll kinds of rules about how I had to stay where I was for another 6 months before I could "apply" to move into another apt. The corporate office told her to move me NOW. I was sending them links to videos I'd posted on Vimeo of the noisy restaurant beneath my apt (that wasn't supposed to be having loud rock bands)
Good luck.
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