Thunder...My dogs bark...
As long as they aren't howling at the moon you'll be fine. Just find that place and move in!!
My dogs will bark if they see a dog walking by but only briefly. I hear other dogs in the vicinity that bark. 8 months and I've never had a complaint.
Howling is not our case... !! Thank you!!
Here I am again... So we visited Zug, we visited the apartments that allowed dogs in the first place in the area...and we booked one... So far so good. And then the contract arrives and at the bottom of it is hand-written the following note:
"The dog should not be left unattended in the apartment. Any damage caused by the dog shall be borne by the tenant"
For the second part I bear no stress. I have signed Personal Liability and Household insurance just to be on the safe side and most importantly my dog has never caused any damage to my appartment, why shall he start demolishing now a place???
But for the first one I am really irritated. The ad allowed dogs in the first place... and please, don't tell me that everybody stays home and has no personal or professional life just to be physically in the same place with the pet. Am I the only expatriate who has a dog and wants to work as well? If I didn't care about my pet prosperity or if my dog could not live in an apartment I wouldn't transfer it from my homeplace to another! Don't you find it rational?
Please, advice me what I should do and if this note is normal. Just for your info we have not signed the papers yet...
If I were in your situation I would continue to look for another apartment because you don't want to be bound by a contract that says that you cannot leave your dog alone. I also have a Labrador (Coco) and for the most part I take her with me, but there are definitely times when I go places that are not dog friendly and it is better for Coco to stay at home. We have also found it hard in summer time because it is too hot to leave her in the car while we run errands. If you plan on working then there is no way you should sign this contract. This will only cause problems not only with your neighbors, but with also your landlord. Neighbors can be really funny here. My husband has cases at his work where people have called the Police because the dog was left at home while the owners were at work. The dog owner had to hire a lawyer to prove that he is really a good dog owner and takes his dog out in the morning, at lunch time, and at night. But what a pain! I think you could completely avoid such a situation if you don't sign a contract that says you cannot leave your dog at home alone. We personally have had no issues with any of our neighbors and what I have learned from our situation is to find an apartment where there are other dogs. Our neighbor is a dog sitter and watches some dogs that bark a lot and another neighbor has a barking poodle. This makes our dog look like an angel even if she gets an occasional bark out. I also agree with others that it would be a good thing if you could find a landlord who also has a dog.
Hopefully you have time on your side and can continue looking for another apartment. We had no problems finding an apartment that is dog friendly and we have wood floors too. Good luck!
AggieCoco
Wow... I am really speechless! My situation makes me wonder whether it is an issue of the landlord or of my agent who is so much afraid that she might receive complaints just because she is lenting an apartment to a dog owner... I am willing to sign anything that is written in law but not norms or rules set like that and can be translated in many diffeerent ways.
I just noticed that they had initially written "darf nicht" and then turned it to "soll nicht" ...my German is really poor but still I can understand I cannot feel very comfortable with this. Most probably, we will be searching again soon...
That is an example of an extreme case, but it does happen especially when your neighbors are retired, jobless, or have nothing better to do then watch your every move with your dog. I think it is a good idea that you look for another more dog friendly place. You and your dog will be more happy in the end. On a positive note, I have found Switzerland to be extremely dog friendly. We take Coco with us to hotels, restaurants, hiking, to the mountains, on trains, off leash, etc. and have had no problems. The train conductor checking tickets on our train in Wengen even had treats in his pocket to give to all the dogs on the train. So please don't be afraid to bring your dog because having a dog in Switzerland is so much fun.
Where do you think could be better for us to search in Zug, Baar, Unteraegeri, Cham, Rotkreuz,...? Any ideas or views?
I'm sorry I have never lived in Zug so unfortunately I can't help you with a good area to live. I don't know if you have looked on www.homegate.ch , but I just found some apartments in your price range with a garden and it says dog's are allowed It's always nice if you can find a place by the forest, lake, or walking trails, etc. If you need any help with homegate just let me know.
AggieCoco
I may know of somewhere in Baar
Two pieces of advice....get a new relo agent, because I think the one you have is not very helpful and secondly, don't sign the papers. Send them back unsigned and don't pay any fee. If you wrote on the application that you have a dog, and they came back to you with this nonsense, they wasted your time.
Chara,
Mrs D is absolutely right - it sounds like your relo agent is not working in your best interest. Time for a change.
Were it me, I'd look at all properties where dogs are truly welcome first, and then worry about location second. I'd even look in other cantons, where you would likely find more choice. From experience, it's much easier to commute than to live your life constricted by a landlord or neighbors who do not like dogs.
Hope you find a welcoming place, and that you and your dog settle in soon.
I just got a new flat after numerous rejections because of my dog (and worse, a piano). The agent even made a specific contract with regards to my dog. Terms were similar to yours with the exception of the dog not being allowed to be left alone at any time - mine is 2 hours maximum. The agent only brought that dog contract for me to sign on the day of the handover (after assuring me that dogs are allowed) and thats where I saw the specific term. Sneaky *******s.
I had to maintain a poker face as I thought it was ridiculous. I know there will be times when my dog is left alone for more than 2 hours and whilst its an extremely reckless thing to do, I reckon that my dog is not an excessive barker (only at doorbells or passing dogs and he's learnt to stop barking on command) and will not cause any problems. I've asked for feedback from my current neighbours and they've not heard a peep from him when I am out.
So I signed it anyway for the above mentioned factors as well as not wanting to face the prospect of being homeless.
I can understand that you are worried, if time is not a problem for you, I'll keep looking and find a more pet friendly landlord. It will be hard, but not impossible. If you were pressed for time like me, go for it. You mentioned that your dog's real good, so I really wouldnt worry about the neighbours being disturbed.
Yes, that was sneaky, particularly if it was not in writing when you signed the lease agreement and not a special condition in the lease. But it was also not legal. I wouldn't have signed it on the handover date, assuming you signed the lease agreement in advance, and paid a deposit, and the apartment was yours, they could not force you to sign that agreement on the handover date. The only papers completed on the handover date are the protokoll (inspection report).
They never would have tried this stunt with a Swiss person, or with someone who knows the rules. I never would have allowed a client to sign a paper like that. By signing it you have left yourself open for trouble.....just wait until someone knows you are out for 2 hours and your dog is alone....if you agree to a condition and don't keep to it they will look to throw you out. All they need is some evidence and that won't take much.
Where is the workplace? Is the commute by train, and if so, what is the closest train station? In an earlier post you said 40 minutes max. commute...but it would help to know the station, and if the office is located within walking distaince of the station or only on a bus route.
Yes, the contract was sent to me about a week before the handover. I signed both copies and brought them to the handover with me. To be fair, I called before the handover and asked for a specific letter allowing dogs - but the 2 hours term was slipped in to the letter. *sigh*
I am screwed
Doesn't your lease agreement state that pets are allowed? It should be specific too. This should have been part of the lease agreement. If on your application you stated that you have a dog, if you were accepted as a tenant then the lease should have been prepared accordingly. You should not have needed a letter.
The lease stated that "small animals" are allowed - for example, hamsters, fish etc. Strangely enough, dogs and cats fall under the category of "bigger animals" which require specific written permission. I was told verbally that dogs are allowed when I went to view. Was only when I read the contract that I saw that dogs fall under the latter category hence, I asked for a specific letter allowing dogs, which they sneakily slipped the 2 hour rule in.
No worries, I'll just bite the bullet and live dangerously
Assuming you filled out an application form and said you had a dog, if they sent you a lease, it should have been based on the information you supplied. I would not have gone back further and asked for anything unless you did not say on the application that you had a dog. If the box on the front of the lease was ticked off, saying pets allowed, I would have assumed that meant your dog. Every application form I have ever seen asks whether you have a pet and what kind.
I hope you have don't have any problems.
Thank you so much guys for your help! Friday proved to be a crazy day spending half day talking with my agent. So for your update... I sent her an email describing that I am disappointed and that I will not sign a document stating something that I won't be actually doing and expressed as my "ethical obligation". I said I found unfair the fact that although the ad was under the "pets allowed" category someone (it could be her actually so that she is covered in case of neibours making complaints..could be!) added this note so... in the beginning tried to convince me to sign it with a remark like "I will make sure my dog is happy" Anyway I insisted that such a sentence about not leaving my dog alone in the apartment makes me feel uncomfortable and that gives the right to someone even saying that "Your dog is not barking but you are supposed to stay inhouse with it", right? So at last she said she understood (...or just wanted to close my case and not keep searching for apartments... she is obliged to find us a place anyway) and that she talks with the other agent who is handling the specific house (no idea who and where the landlord is). And all of a sudden the other agent realised that we are responsible and that they no longer need this sentence and will remove it. (Honestly no idea which of the 2 agents really put this sentence...I am quite suspicious). So now we are waiting for the hardcopies to check. Don't you find it suspicious that they removed this rule? I don't believe that if I were a strange landlord, I would remove it so easily... Anyway! Let's hope that we won't have other issues...
I am so thankful to you for your feedback. It is so difficult knowing the rules of a game when you are miles away...