“Goolsby now has four dogs, seven cats, a fish and a bird.”

The woman in the article has over 10 animals. This isn’t a renters vs landlords thing this is an irresponsible pet owner.

You should instead be asking why they chose an obvious outlier to represent pet owners. That one lady has 10+ pets doesn’t change that 2/3rds of families have pets and only 20% of rental housing allows cats and dogs of all sizes.

I am a renter with pets, and don’t think landlords should be forced to accept renters with pets.

I also acknowledge that pets can do an insane amount of damage to a property if not properly cared for.

I helped my brother repair the damage from a squatter (long story) after he allowed 4 dogs to completely destroy the interior. We were sanding pee saturated studs and priming over them, after ripping out all of the drywall, just to try to defeat the stink.

That’s more damage than any plausible pet deposit can hope to cover. It was absolutely disgusting.

People can also cause insane amounts of damage, that doesn’t mean it’s the norm. I’m sorry about your brother’s property, but that’s not a reason to allow banning of pets. Nightmare tenants (or squatters) exist, it’s just the gamble taken for renting out an investment property. Most pet owners take care of their pets and have no serious problems, after all, they’re actually living with the results of their pet care.

I think it’s a perfect reason to ban pets.

I do not owe you the house I paid for. You have to apply for it like everyone else and agree to the terms of my lease. If you don’t like it, literally rent from anyone else, but you are not entitled to my property. Peroid.

Except you actually don’t get to unilaterally decide who can live in your house. You can’t ban black people, you can’t ban children, you can’t ban the handicapped. And soon, if you live in California, you may not be able to ban pets. You live in a society, with rules for what you can and cannot do with the real estate you own.