With that said, I don’t think that my quality of life will be very good if I continue to abuse my body the way that I do and I want to be able to enjoy my retirement.

The main guy who runs this site is pretty rough (abrasive) on his students (to a point that it's abusive in a way).

There's a bus (TTA) that goes direct from downtown Durham to Chapel Hill Campus.

Instant excuse to deny liability in the event of a loss.. 

Thus the situation you find yourself in: most landlords, in order to minimize their risk and level of effort put into their business, simply choose the path of least resistance and deny pet owners.I'd say that your only shot might be to proactively make your willingness to pay a pet deposit and additional "pet rent" known to a landlord BEFORE that subject comes up for discussion when looking at the property.

Apparently, an applicant was passed over for another person and someone questioned whether they could be denied due to criminal records.

@David Burdick I dont see how or why an insurance company could deny coverage based on a tenant receiving section 8 or why they would even care?

If you are facing a debtor who is getting involved in Bankruptcy and you believe that they are purposefully abusing the system, find a Creditor's Attorney with familiarity in Bankruptcy Litigation.

If you denied them go on to the next application and repeat.If you accepted the first applicant, return any checks from other applicants explaining that the vacancy was filled.Keep a file for each tenant with all the paperwork involved with this process.I also keep the paperwork (prescreening worksheets) on the contact in case I have a vacancy in the next few weeks, I can always call them back with out advertising.

Just over 3 years ago I escaped from an abusive husband, who in front of the judge told me there was no place I could hide and the next time I wouldn't get away.