New tenant's boyfriend's dog

[Mike Adams]

We just turned over a unit and placed a new tenant in the unit.  She's a young 22 year old female, and stated she has no pets.  However, her boyfriend sleeps over on the weekend and has a medium sized dog.  She knows we have cameras and we are turning over a unit and see the dog nearly daily.  Any suggestions on how to deal with this? Since the dog is her guest's dog, would this be a lease violation? If so, how to rectify this? 

[Kevin Sobilo]

@Mike Adams, I dealt with this a few years back. My tenants gf kept bringing her big dog over.

The first I heard of it is when I got a call from an older neighbor who was upset because the dog chased her and her little dogs. So, I started with a conversation. They claimed it was their gf's animal but I pointed out the lease did not allow for pets on the property. So, after that is was 100% clear.

A couple weeks later I get a call from another neighbor where the dog was there again and in the yard and scaring children getting off the school but. I went right to the house and caught the dog there. The tenant was near the end of the lease, so I non-renewed them and they were out shortly thereafter.

If it wasn't near the end of the lease they would get a written lease warning. If it happened again, I would evict based on the lease violations. My state requires a lease warning explaining the violation and what they need to do to correct the situation before evicting. 

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Mike Adams:

We just turned over a unit and placed a new tenant in the unit.  She's a young 22 year old female, and stated she has no pets.  However, her boyfriend sleeps over on the weekend and has a medium sized dog.  She knows we have cameras and we are turning over a unit and see the dog nearly daily.  Any suggestions on how to deal with this? Since the dog is her guest's dog, would this be a lease violation? If so, how to rectify this? 

Simple. Contact the tenant immediately and remind her of your "no pet" policy. This means no pets, period. She can't have visiting pets. She can't pet-sit for her elderly aunt. No pets means no pets. The first warning was the day you signed the lease. This is the second warning. If it happens again, hit her with a hefty fine (mine is $200) or terminate the lease.

Follow up with a written letter so it's documented.