Do fish count as pets in rental agreement?

fishfins

Hi everyone,

I was just wondering if anyone can clear up for me whether fish count as pets under a rental agreement?

We are looking to rent an appartment which is listed as no pets. I have a 39 inch aquarium (self contained, no external filters/ sumps etc) on a smart cabinet plus a smaller 60l tank which goes on a kitchen worktop. Does anyone have any idea if these will be a problem? I can't see that they would be, but I'm a little bit worried about asking the estate agents in case they give me a straight "no" when I might be fine just putting them in.

I can't see that if I just installed them they would look a problem to a landlord but I'd really rather not move them twice if they did ask me to get rid of them!

Thanks for any help!

marliepanda

I lived in a no pets property and had 2 fishtanks, smaller than yours but still two. I didn't even think about it tbh, and when they came to do inspections they commented on my nice fishtanks! lol

I imagine it would depend on the landlord but if you are a nice tenant, paying rent and looking after the property, they would be mad to chuck you out for having a fishtank. Obviously you would pay if anything happened as a result of leaks etc.

I am now in a no pets property with 1 house bunny (did have 2) 2 guinea pigs and 3 cats. I am a lovely clean person and the landlord had no problem with me having these pets, so it just depends really.

G_M

marliepanda wrote: »

I am now in a no pets property with 1 house bunny (did have 2) 2 guinea pigs and 3 cats........and the landlord had no problem with me having these pets, so it just depends really.

Then clearly it is NOT a 'no pets property'!

I am a lovely clean person

Ah - but how about the pets...?

OK - that's tongue in cheek - but there is a serious point. Just because you (AND your pets) are clean, does not mean they cannot pick up fleas.

And when you move out, and the next tenants move in, what will the tenants expect to happen when they ring the landlord to say there are fleas in the house?

And yes, before you say it, of course you de-flea the bunnies/cats etc, but how can the LL be sure of that?


As a LL I would not want to risk exposing my (new) tenants to fleas (or smells - pet owners rarely notice their pets' smell the way others do), so I would treat the property before re-letting. Which costs.

However back to the OP. There has actually been a precedent set in court (I forget which but it was a 'higher' court, so setting precedent) that unjustifiably banning all pets is unfair. There must be a reason. The points I outlined above would count as justification. But I suspect strongly that a fishtank counld NOT be prohibited unless there is a reason for not allowing fish that I cannot think of.

kittycatty

When we rented we asked the LL via the EA if fish were ok, they added a clause to the agrement stating that if anything were to happen and the carpets etc were damaged we would have to replace/make good. I would personaly ask, but that's just me x

marliepanda

G_M wrote: »

Then clearly it is NOT a 'no pets property'!

Ah - but how about the pets...?

OK - that's tongue in cheek - but there is a serious point. Just because you (AND your pets) are clean, does not mean they cannot pick up fleas.

And when you move out, and the next tenants move in, what will the tenants expect to happen when they ring the landlord to say there are fleas in the house?

And yes, before you say it, of course you de-flea the bunnies/cats etc, but how can the LL be sure of that?


As a LL I would not want to risk exposing my (new) tenants to fleas (or smells - pet owners rarely notice their pets' smell the way others do), so I would treat the property before re-letting. Which costs.

However back to the OP. There has actually been a precedent set in court (I forget which but it was a 'higher' court, so setting precedent) that unjustifiably banning all pets is unfair. There must be a reason. The points I outlined above would count as justification. But I suspect strongly that a fishtank counld NOT be prohibited unless there is a reason for not allowing fish that I cannot think of.

An indoor cat will not get fleas (unless I guess you roll around in a cat with fleas then come home, but anyone could do that, if so inclined....). Mine have never had fleas. When told about my cats I had to prove they were neutered from a young age, so would not spray, were litter trained, and were indoor.

What I meant was that they were initially 'no pets' properties.

catieeb06

I once rented a flat and was told it was an extra £100 on the security deposit if I had any pets. I mentioned that I had 2 goldfish in a tank and the EA laughed at me and told me not to worry about them.

hcb42

the Op has fish. fish do not get fleas;)

G_M

hcb42 wrote: »

the Op has fish. fish do not get fleas;)

Actually fish can get water fleas.......

:rotfl:

marliepanda

hcb42 wrote: »

the Op has fish. fish do not get fleas;)

Whitespot all up the walls!

kleapatra

marliepanda wrote: »

An indoor cat will not get fleas (unless I guess you roll around in a cat with fleas then come home, but anyone could do that, if so inclined....). Mine have never had fleas. When told about my cats I had to prove they were neutered from a young age, so would not spray, were litter trained, and were indoor.

What I meant was that they were initially 'no pets' properties.

Won't help the OP but I have got an indoor cat and he's managed to get fleas several times! We have no idea how as no other animals come anywhere near or in the house. We spoke to the vet and she said they can live for years behind wallpaper, in carpets etc and even hop in from the outside- who knew!

Person_one

How are fish not pets?

Pet = animal you keep in your home.