3) Frantic AND bored dog clawed door and carpet at door after being left alone for too long. This was a big fix: new flooring, new door, etc. Charged to tenant. --50.82.xxx.xx

Pee, poop and vomit all over the living room carpet. Took out carpet, pad, and sealed the floor underneath with Kilz. --173.20.xxx.xxx

Have also had completely ruined wood doors and frames and chewed baseboards. Destroyed blinds, drywall damage. One of the hardest because it's not easily repairable was chewed kitchen cabinets. --216.186.xxx.xx

I just want to point out that all three posters so far have cited examples of PROPERTY damage. The cost of these repairs is orders of magnitude less than the liability of a dog biting someone. --199.247.xx.xx

Never had a bad dog like that. I'm personally afraid of dogs. My DH is the Dog Whisperer, though, so if he can't enter the house alone without the owner, we can't accept that dog. We tell everyone that up front: "If your dog won't lead us to the jewelry for a cookie, we can't take them." --50.82.xxx.xx

Imagine 2 dogs being left alone for 10 days inside a house (with new carpet) while the tenant was in the hospital for 10 days. Next door neighbor brought the dogs food and water each day but never let the dogs out. The stench was horrible. This is where I learned my lesson about installing carpet in a rental house. --68.63.xxx.xxx

The worst was a tenant who chained the dog on a long chain (against the terms of their rental agreement) and the dog trotted back and forth all day and scalped the lawn right out of existence. Replacing a lawn is expensive and inconvenient, especially in the desert where a new lawn has to be watered three times a day. --98.146.xxx.xxx

Tenants were 4-5 young roommates, college age, but I doubt they were going to college. They had to be out at close of escrow. --98.146.xxx.xxx

--184.53.x.xxx

--76.188.xxx.x

--96.241.xx.xx

Only damage is to my own home done by my own dogs. I’m a good owner and my dogs were all good and well trained. Even with acres to run and proper training, big dumb dogs will do big dumb things. Wood floors are no match for paws that have to chase the squirrels that run by the windows to torture them. And if you have glass anywhere in your home..... do not buy the big rubber ball toys with the rope attached. --71.10.xxx.xxx

Dog woman the doctor. I inherited her and her two dogs when I bought one of my first properties. Found out she would leave town and visit her folks and leave plenty of food and water for the dogs. The dogs did about 2400.00 in damages which the good doctor didn't think she should have to pay. She did pay for repairs after I told her I would be happy to have my lawyer send the bill to the hospital if she was having trouble getting mail at her new home. Boy have I learned aot since then. --199.253.xxx.xx

After she moved out we nicknaned her Dr. DOOLITTLE...as in more animals than humans and doing little. It's a very nice house now! We still reminisce about her days and her "ark" ! --99.203.xx.xxx

Not me, but the mother of a former colleague at my W2 job was attacked by a dog of a homeowner. The dog did serious damage to her hand. The mother was there because the family had a child on home-bound education. I think there were 3 surgeries, plus a settlement in the mid-six figures. "I just don't know what got into that dog" was a comment made when it happened. --131.151.xx.xx

I’m teary eyed now. --70.92.xxx.xxx

My worst damage was carpeting pee stains from a Yorkie. Once I shined a black light on my bedroom carpet, my relationship with my wife's dog changed forever. --108.69.xxx.xxx

--174.209.xx.xxx

That's until the attorney had to board the dog a sue me for his costs. This was a fun day in small claims court. I asked to a real judge, not a commissioner or attorney pro tem. We had to wait from 9 AM to 4:30 PM to see a judge. My tenant lost around $1,000 worth of income. His case was thrown out also. --47.156.xx.xx

THAT is why I am afraid of dogs, despite owning and loving many. --50.82.xxx.xx

--73.102.xxx.xxx

Now I am regretting accepting pets. --73.120.xx.xxx

--71.232.xxx.xxx

Vee, I got rid of cat pee smell by painting the floor, putting luan over it, putting self stick down on the luan, and then carpeting. No smell. --73.248.xxx.xxx

Most Awful case of stench though is from neighbor who had a puppymill and birds and was a hoarder. He was in the hospital a long time and died. You could stand 20-30 feet away outside and walk home w/ stench on you. --24.194.xx.xx

Cats are clean animals by nature and will not foul their own area unless forced by the fouler condition of their sand box. If going out is an option, every cat will choose to 'make' outside rather than in their home. Damage done by pets is not their fault--it is the fault of the owner who should be seeing to their needs appropriately. --108.87.xx.xxx

You are more likely to experience damages caused by kids. There will always be someone who sounds great but turns out not to be. The solution, although I haven't officially ever implemented it yet is the in-home visits. --216.186.xxx.xx

I was looking at a potential house yesterday where the metal front door was COVERED in punch marks inside and the siding was kicked in on the front of the house to the side of the door, and it was obvious the door had actually been kicked in at some point. Expensive damage. --50.82.xxx.xx

Met the Court officer for a lockout after the 4th and final eviction attempt. Tenant paid up at the last minute the other 3 times so Court dismissed those cases - but not this time. Anyway Court officer and I entered on lockout day. What a mess. Lot's of junk left behind and place was filthy. 2 different hollow 6 panel doors were scratched/chewed through. Small mixed breed dog was found behind one of these doors - piece of plywood was pushed against it to keep animal from getting into this room again. Empty food & water dishes. There was also about 2sq' carpet chewed up and feces scattered about. Neighbor said tenant moved out weeks earlier but came back every few days to check on dog. --73.215.xxx.xx

THIS WAS A NO PETS LEASE. Place was extensively renovated just prior to this tenant moving in - sheetrock, carpet, appliances, etc. I called the Town animal control warden. He arrived in short order and used one of those pole devices to commandeer the dog. It was a high energy several minutes wrestling with the dog but he finally retained it and put it in his SUV. While speaking with me and a neighbor outside the animal control officer suddenly went limp and collapsed onto the sidewalk. He stopped breathing - apparant heart attack. --73.215.xxx.xx

By the grace of G o d and with the assistance of a 911 operator I performed CPR and was able to revive him. EMT's took him to a hospital, he was in for a week, then back on the job. He later told me he remembered receiving the call but nothing else from that day. Sadly, he died less than 2 years later. --73.215.xxx.xx

Tenant skipped out. I brought a variety of civil and disorderly person actions (pet abuse/abandonment/property damage) against tenant. There are bench warrants out so someday hopefully she will be brought to justice. --73.215.xxx.xx

It’s definitely the adult humans who do most damage. Kids might scribble, spill nail polish, dogs might scratch, kitties spray, but when properly supervised, those behaviors can be curbed. When two adults won’t control their tempers.... --70.92.xxx.xxx

This is why we do not allow animals in or on our properties. We have only done this once and never again. On all of our flyers we have it in bold print. You will not imagine how many people still asks if we accept pets. Duh! --24.253.xxx.xx

i like dogs but they are ALL vandals --24.25.xxx.xxx

Does anyone have the answer? --24.252.xxx.xxx

All of our buildings are pet friendly and in the last 20 years I recall only one situation where there was damage over $300, and it was from a cat! And our security deposits have always covered any problem, and usually it is between $40 -$100. --75.83.xx.xxx

I make about $ 5,000.00 a year on pet fees. Expense less than $ 1000.00 a year. Tenants stay longer. New tenants with pets never mention what I call a dirty/wet dog smell. Yes the big dog have oil and leave a wet dog smell. Takes a lot of effort to get it out. The worst pee case , removed the carpet from the basement put it in the drive way. It was so full of urine, the pee ran down the drive way. Cleaned the floor, scrubbed the floor, tried Odorex, the pee laughed at it. Talked with the owner of Odorex. Tried Odorex again, pee still laughed at it. Stain killed the floor. The smell was gone. Now between every tenant we have to paint that floor. I am investigating a company that does floor polishing. The floor is sealed and looks shiny. That will be on a different/next pee floor. Over all more applicants with than without pets. Ps. If the dog misbehaves, damage, barks etc. They are not covered under any support law. --68.41.xxx.xx

The only pet we had in our first rental was a cat that was neutered and sprayed every window in that property and the owner was a paralegal and she tried to get her security deposit back and the lawyer boss she did not have a leg to stand on if she pressed the issue. I kept her SD and pet deposit. --24.253.xxx.xx

On a more cheerful note (not really) my SIL had her mouth and other parts of her face permanently damaged by a nasty dog bite much too gruesome to get into details here, but the pictures would make you sick. She spent tens of thousands on facial reconstructive and plastic surgeries to try to make herself look somewhat "normal" again. She had to sue the owner for enough just to cover her expenses and very little for all her pain and suffering. --24.20.xxx.xxx