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Comment by vipervpn | Hacker News Reader

I'm concerned about house pets (like dogs and cats) in such a small apartment. Are these micro apartments fit for dwelling in for long periods of time? I don't think so. Cats and dogs need space too, and they don't have the freedom to come and go whenever they please.

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I suspect pet owners are not the target market for this type of living space.

Sure, although it's common for single people to have a pet.

I don't know about the US, but in Canada I think it's illegal for renters to discriminate against pet owners. Many still do however.

In the US, it's very common to discriminate against pet owners, either by not renting to them or by requiring extra deposit against pet-induced damage -- or even worse, just demanding extra "pet rent".

In the province of Quebec you can specify a "no pet" rule in a lease. You can even be more specific and allow for a certain number and type of animal (e.g. max 2 cats, no dogs).

There's a lot of stuff you can't discriminate on, but animal ownership isn't a fundamental right.

In Ontario, the law stipulates that a land owner may not restrict leasers from owning a pet, unless the pet runs afoul of other stuff (like if they somehow interfere with another leaser's ability to live a reasonable life). But everyone still puts the 'no-pet' clause in the contracts.

I lived in a smaller apartment than the one described.

Pets were strictly banned, and rightfully so (it would be torture for them).

People do live in those apartments for long periods (in my case, I had some neighbors that were pensioners on small funds that couldn't afford something better, they've been living on those apartments for 15+ years)

Thats ridiculous. If you had a big apartment and a big dog, wouldnt it be just as bad on the dog? 700 sq ft with no yard and a 50 lb dog would be miserable. Your argument doesnt scale at all.

My comment was to bring attention to the humane treatment of animals.

I'm an apartment renter and I've lived near many dog owners. I make it a point to introduce myself and offer to walk their dog(s). Without fail, the dogs are beside themselves with excitement when I get them.

Dogs especially need lots of space and exercise. What a pet owner may think is a big enough apartment may not be.

ok, that makes sense. I don't want to get off topic, but imo, this is a larger, society wide problem and it doesnt really matter whether the apt is 250 ft or 1000 ft. Dogs are under-excercised in the US, (which is probably why theres so many 'how to fix your dog' shows on tv). The way to keep dogs happy and normal is hours and hours of excercise and attention, which the vast majority of city-dwellers cant provide

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