If he's gone dark/hasn't been communicating, I'd say the biggest risk is that if he's a contractor, there are no wages to garnish. 

Lack of communication and unresponsiveness is the worst trait a property management company can have.

They should communicate any time there's a problem or a pending turnover.It's my belief that a PM that requires baby-sitting is a PM that should be fired.

I do this often, and that normally gets rid of 50% of the people, and I then focus on emailing/communicating with the ones that could potentially qualify!   

They are also all thumbs when it comes to computer stuff.Also, since communication is a two-way street, make sure that you followup on your end of things and be transparent.

Usually it is private communications. 

New to real estate am trying to get my feet wet, not sure if the agent I am talking to now is going to be very reliable as he doesn’t always communicate or takes to long.

Also, some apartment communities like the communication that it creates with the tenant coming in to grab a package from the office. 

Do you have any written communication between you and the new landlord regarding the dog?

I seriously think you should cut off all communication with the tenant and hire an attorney immediately.While your attorney deals with the tenants, I think you should do some research and find a quality property manager that can handle this for you before you make a big mistake that will derail your investment career.