A dearth of pet-friendly housing in Manitoba is causing ‘heartbreaking’ situations, animal advocates say — especially as many local shelters are full beyond capacity.
Kaitlyn Mitchell, director of legal advocacy with Animal Justice — an organization that advocates for stronger animal protections in Canada — told Global Winnipeg the situation in this province is a dire one, for pets and families alike.
“The thing to keep in mind is that a lack of pet-friendly housing is a serious problem not only for animals, but also for families who are put in this heartbreaking situation of having to choose between finding a suitable place to live or keeping their beloved companion animal,” Mitchell said.
“It also has impacts for shelters, and we know that shelters in Manitoba are bursting at the seams… many shelters are having to turn away animals, they simple cannot take any more in.
“I really worry that if we do not see some changes to the law in Manitoba, unfortunately we may see even more animals abandoned, because there aren’t even shelters to take them in. Changes to the Residential Tenancies Act in Manitoba are long overdue.”
A provincial spokesperson said the rules about pets are up to individual landlords to determine in Manitoba.
“A landlord can refuse to allow tenants to have pets, or they can set general guidelines for the kind of pets tenants can have.
“Landlords who choose to allow pets in their buildings can ask tenants who have pets to pay a damage deposit.”
According to the legislation, landlords are free to changes their rules around pets — but if they bring in a new “no pets allowed” rule, tenants who were previously allowed pets can keep them, but can’t replace them.
That’s not the same across Canada, however.
Mitchell said ‘Fluffy’s Law’ in Ontario has had a positive result on removing barriers for would-be tenants who don’t want to leave their pets behind.
“Fluffy’s Law really was game-changing when it was passed in Ontario,” she said.
“It’s been around for a long time, and basically what it means is that a landlord cannot evict a tenant just because they have pets. Any no-pet clauses in leases are actually void and unenforceable.”
Following Ontario’s move, Fluffy’s Law was considered in Manitoba in 2010 but Avrom Charach, the spokesperson for the Professional Property Managers Association says there was major pushback.
“We do not want a Fluffy’s Law here, there are so many reasons,” Charach said. “Allergens, disturbance, we do find in our properties dogs tend to be more disturbing than cats from the noise perspective but cats tend to be annoying from a smell perspective.”
However, Charach estimates half of rental units now accept pets but landlords want to be the ones making that rule.
Fluffy’s Law doesn’t leave Ontario landlords without options, however. Mitchell said if an animal is causing damage, excessive noise, or severe allergic reactions to other tenants, there are still ways the person can be forced to move under those circumstances.
“What it’s really meant to do is reduce barriers to housing for folks who have companion animals… and that really is the vast majority of Canadians.”