KLRU
Animal Holocaust
RECEIVED Wed., Nov. 23, 2005
Dear Editor,
In regards to Rachel Proctor May's "Whatever Happened to the No-Kill Millenium?" [News, Nov. 18], I say that Austin has a reputation for being pro-animal, eco-friendly, nature-loving, and tree-hugging, but appearances are deceiving. If you're a renter and an animal lover, you'll find Austin a largely hostile place, especially in the central part of town, as I discovered last year when it took me almost two months to find an apartment in the off season.
It's very difficult to find a landlord or management company that is 100% pet-friendly – most forbid pets totally, some allow only cats and small dogs and will insist on signed documentation from a vet that a pet is under a certain weight and height, and some have started charging something called "pet rent." (Now I think a pet damage fee is reasonable, but pet rent just seems like a creative excuse to overcharge renters for no good reason.) Some get downright nasty about their pet policies and some make the ridiculous suggestion "Can't you just leave your pet with a friend while you live here?"
If we really would like to have a No-Kill Millenium, one cheap and easy step to take would be for the city to provide some sort of incentive to landlords and management companies that would encourage them to allow pets of all kinds on their premises. If more renters were allowed to have pets, then theoretically more renters might adopt pets.
Also, it might help us to put a face on this holocaust. Regardless of what any style guides might say, I have always been bothered by the practice of referring to an animal as an "it," as opposed to a "he" or "she." This is not anthropomorphism, it's just consideration toward a fellow living, suffering being.
In regards to Rachel Proctor May's "Whatever Happened to the No-Kill Millenium?" [News, Nov. 18], I say that Austin has a reputation for being pro-animal, eco-friendly, nature-loving, and tree-hugging, but appearances are deceiving. If you're a renter and an animal lover, you'll find Austin a largely hostile place, especially in the central part of town, as I discovered last year when it took me almost two months to find an apartment in the off season.
It's very difficult to find a landlord or management company that is 100% pet-friendly – most forbid pets totally, some allow only cats and small dogs and will insist on signed documentation from a vet that a pet is under a certain weight and height, and some have started charging something called "pet rent." (Now I think a pet damage fee is reasonable, but pet rent just seems like a creative excuse to overcharge renters for no good reason.) Some get downright nasty about their pet policies and some make the ridiculous suggestion "Can't you just leave your pet with a friend while you live here?"
If we really would like to have a No-Kill Millenium, one cheap and easy step to take would be for the city to provide some sort of incentive to landlords and management companies that would encourage them to allow pets of all kinds on their premises. If more renters were allowed to have pets, then theoretically more renters might adopt pets.
Also, it might help us to put a face on this holocaust. Regardless of what any style guides might say, I have always been bothered by the practice of referring to an animal as an "it," as opposed to a "he" or "she." This is not anthropomorphism, it's just consideration toward a fellow living, suffering being.
James Scott Bankston
