Editor – In July 2014, having sold our house with the intention to build a new one, we decided to rent in a complex in Assagay. The rental ad specified no pets for tenants. A month after moving in, a stray Siamese cross-breed cat adopted us. She was thin and very hungry, and we found out later she had been in the complex since March.
Having repeatedly requested, but not having received the complex rules (no excuse), we were not aware of having to ask permission to own a pet. Happily oblivious, months went by, and in November we were told by our landlady that the Body Corporate decreed that we have to get rid of the cat.
By now, little Amy was very much a part of our lives. She was coming out of her shell, learning to play and trust. She would follow my husband around the complex, keeping him company while he photographed birds.
We were devastated and wrote a letter, belatedly requesting permission to keep a pet. The prompt reply from trustees denied permission, as she was perceived to have decimated the entire bird population (complaint filed by a trustee), and to be harassing the only other cat in the complex. We were given till mid January to remove her.
While making every effort to re-home our cat, we visited owners of units (owners are allowed to own pets), to discuss their reservations. We came to an understanding with the owners of the legitimate cat. They phoned the trustees and confirmed they no longer had a problem with the cat. One extremely kind neighbour even suggested adopting her, but the response from trustees was that the cat would definitely not move homes, so why bother.
The rule book which we received in early January did not specify that tenants cannot own pets. But we were told that a resolution was passed in June to this effect (yet not included in the rules dated October).
We wrote another letter, setting out our reasons why the cat should stay, and providing feedback of our meetings with neighbours, most of whom had no issues with the cat being in the complex. Still, permission was denied.
A family was found to adopt Amy, and she was re-homed, but sadly, within a few days she escaped from the room in which she was being kept while adjusting to her new surroundings, and has not been seen since.
Any pet lover can imagine the emotional pain and suffering we have been through, and the fear and anguish the poor cat has experienced, losing her home for the third time in her short life.
It is inconceivable that trustees in a position that calls for practical decision making can be so unwilling to make a plan. Our SPCAs are overflowing with stray cats (especially cats, as they are difficult to re-home). We gave a stray a home, care and love, but for the sake of one trustee who would not budge from his rules, this little cat is back on the street, hungry or maybe even dead.
Instead of getting rid of our pet, we could have been asked to pay a security deposit, ensuring our pet does not damage the complex! But instead, a rule was coldly applied and now we have lost our beloved pet and Amy has lost her home. Yet nothing has been accomplished, as now there are three more stray cats in the complex, hunting and harassing the other cat.
Simona Damerell
Burnside, Assagay
