My opinion is deposits don't work, and the animal(s) are gonna cause more damage than that deposit anyway, just stick with a monthly fee, even it its small like $25. 

I've seen this animal in the wild more than I ever hoped to.   

(They are NOT the same animal by the way.)

As a part of your agreement to allow the cat, did you require spay/neuter of the animal?

VA loans have many unique characteristics like entitlement so you need an expert. 

However, you need to understand that a large portion of Section 8 tenants are complete animals.

Would you also evict the tenant if they had called animal control and had your cat trapped and taken to the shelter?

You need to know the answers to questions such as  - do you accept comfort animals?  

We tell them we specifically publish our criteria because we do not want people who don't meet it to apply.QUALIFIED APPLICANTS WILL- Have at least 3 times the rent in gross income and 2.5 times the rent in net income in verifiable, reliable income (exception Military with BAH or HUD voucher)- Have no more than 2 occupants/bedroom- Not owe any money to a previous landlord- Not have any recent evictions- Have no aggressive breed animal- Not have any unpaid utilities or car payments reported on the credit report or court records- Not have been convicted of any crimes against people or property- Not have been convicted of any drug manufacturing or distribution charges

What happens when the cash tenant decided to get 5 pets in the 1 bedroom rental exactly 61 days after moving in without telling me....and when I said it's a violation of the terms of their lease, they said these were service animals and I was not allowed to ask them for proof of their need for a service animal....then they subsequently decided to start not paying rent because they lost their job and there was nothing i could do because of their condition.When one of my Section 8 tenants loses their job, the Housing Authority covers their entire rent. :-)As for why househackers are exempt?