Housemates cat smells and breached contract

Peaches05x

“
Hi all,

So I have recently signed an AST agreement about 10 days ago. I found the room on Spareroom and The advert says that the current tenant of this 2 bed flat has a cat and a hedgehog. She’s been renting since November. After I signed the contract i found out that the Letting Agency does not know about the pets.
1) who placed this advert? MY HOUSEMATE PLACED THE ADVERT
2) who do you pay rent to? - I PAY RENT DIRECTLY TO THE AGENT

3) if 1) & 2) above = the cat-owner/other occupant then you are a lodger, not a tenant
4) if 1) & 2) above =the property owner or letting agent, how come the advert mentions a cat if they don't know of the pets?
5) is the cat owner a joint tenant on your contract? If she arrived 2 months before you, how is this possible? - IT IS A JOINT CONTRACT - THEY DID AN EXCEPTION FOR HER I BELIEVE



I am of course worried because if anything happens and if she gets caught i will also be liable,
Why would you be liable for a breach of an AST by someone else? - BECAUSE WE HAVE A JOINT AST?

specially if i dont report her?
Reporting her will not help your relationship with the cat owner. --YES I REALISED THAT

I don’t really want her to get into trouble because she seems like a nice person.

Then either move out or learn to live with the cat......


After also staying for 2 nights in the flat i realised that the cat has a foul smell and the whole flat smells...apart from my room. The litter box is also in the lounge/kitchen (its an open plan) which I think is very unhygienic.... don’t really want to make my food and even eat in there.

Talk to the cat owner and find a compromise.
I'm still unclear if she is your landlord, your joint tenant, or has a separate tenancy (HMO?) - SHE IS NOT THE LANDLORD - I HAVE SPOKEN TO HER ABOUT THE SMELL AND SHE AGREED TO CLEAN


Now i’m really upset because I don’t want to stay in the house because of the smell and we are breaching the contract.

Again- do you both have a single joint contract with both your names on it? YES BOTH OUR NAMES ARE ON THE CONTRACT

* If yes, then yes you (both) are breaching the contract - APART FROM THE SMELL I AM WORIED BECAUSE OF THIS
* if separate contracts with the owner/agency, then she is breaching hers, you are not breaching yours.
* if she is your (live-in) landlord, then you have no contact with the owner/agency so cannot be breaching it.



I signed a fixed term contract until November and as per the agency I cannot leave then or even get a replacement if i want to leave.

contract with who? WITH THE LETTING AGENCY

Originally posted by Peaches05x

G_M wrote: »

Please clarify

Peaches05x

-taff wrote: »

what does she do with the cat when there's an inspection?

- she pretends that she is only looking after it for her friend

KittenChops

Silvertabby wrote: »

Another thumbs up for Cat's Best.

And another ^..^

I clean both litter trays 3 times a day (first thing in the morning, when I get home from work & before I go to bed), plus as & when I notice one of the trays has been used (I normally get 'told' by the older cat as soon as she's used it).

At this time of year, any smells will be worse because typically windows will be opened less.

Peaches05x

KittenChops wrote: »

And another ^..^

I clean both litter trays 3 times a day (first thing in the morning, when I get home from work & before I go to bed), plus as & when I notice one of the trays has been used (I normally get 'told' by the older cat as soon as she's used it).

At this time of year, any smells will be worse because typically windows will be opened less.

My housemate said she's never ever bathe her cat - how often should she do this?

mark55man

we don't wash our cats, but we do try and get the mess out of the litter trays as soon as we can. with Cat's best what is left after you scoop the poop doesn't smell at all. and if it does smell a bit "wee-ey" then ther be a little bit on the floor/under the tray. which can be sorted with kitchen wipe and a bit of kitchen spray - I do a full litter change about once a month and will wash the tray then, but I'm never really sure if I need to do that as it is still fresh - I do replenish every week or so

ibizafan_2

You don’t need to wash cats. They rarely smell, so it’s the cat litter as you have already been advised. I once stayed with a friend who had several rescue cats and various litter trays. The smell was eye watering, but I don’t think she noticed it.

Soundgirlrocks

Peaches05x wrote: »

IT IS A JOINT CONTRACT - THEY DID AN EXCEPTION FOR HER I BELIEVE

Why would you be liable for a breach of an AST by someone else? - BECAUSE WE HAVE A JOINT AST?

Again- do you both have a single joint contract with both your names on it? YES BOTH OUR NAMES ARE ON THE CONTRACT

If yes, then yes you (both) are breaching the contract *- APART FROM THE SMELL I AM WORIED BECAUSE OF THIS

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

I'd be more worried about signing a legally binding contract with a complete stranger that could leave you liable for any damage/unpaid rent.....

Comms69

This is why you don't sign joint contracts with strangers...

Comms69

Peaches05x wrote: »

My housemate said she's never ever bathe her cat - how often should she do this?

You don't wash cats.


How old are you? You seem very naive

TBagpuss

You would not normally bathe a cat unless there were special circumstances - for instance the cat has been ill has has suffered diarrhoea, in which case they need some help, of if the cat is long haired and has not been groomed, or is elderly and unable to clean itself properly.

The key is that your flatmate need to be cleaning out her cats tray regularly - which means scooping any solids a minimum of once a day, and cleaning out the whole tray regularly. How often depends on circumstances, and the type of litter.

I would agree that the bathroom is a better option than the kitchen, alternatively, you could ask that your housemate keep the tray in her room, that way she would have a strong incentive to clean it frequently as she would be the one living with the consequences!

Hooded litter trays with filters can reduce mess and smell, but the key is to use sufficient litter (most reduce smells by dehydrating the mess, it's more effective if the litter is deep enough to allow the cat to completely cover the mess, which most cats will do if they can) and to change it frequently enough (it's no use scooping the solids if there is a thick layer of wet litter underneath because the tray hasn't been cleaned enough.

DON'T flush the waste unless using litter which is designed to be flush-able, and even then, be cautious as it could cause blockages.