finding a pet-friendly apartment

As bunny owners, our furry friends are true members of the family! But in some areas, it can be difficult to find pet-friendly apartments.

The last thing anyone wants to do is give up their pet because of a difficult housing search. There are some things to look for when trying to find housing that will work for you and your fur child.

4/5 of the apartments I’ve had over the last six years have not been officially “pet-friendly.”

Here’s what worked for Baby (my lionhead fur child) and I!

What to look for in an apartment listing

If you don’t see a lot of listings for pet-friendly apartments in general, try narrowing the search to “cats allowed.” A landlord is typically more likely to allow cats than dogs. Plus it’s easier to get your prospective landlord to compare a rabbit to a cat (both can be litter trained, both are relatively quiet, etc).

But don’t necessarily let “no pets” warnings within the listings deter you from asking about a rabbit. Oftentimes landlords automatically think of pets as cats and dogs, so they might consider a smaller pet.

When I owned an aquatic frog as well as a rabbit, I literally asked my prospective landlord, “I know the listing said no pets, but would you allow a little bunny and a frog?” He ended up laughing and saying he’d definitely allow such small pets.

Sometimes it just comes down to how you frame your question.

How to convince your landlord to allow bunnies

In my experience, it all comes down to framing.

Many landlords seem to have the antiquated perception of rabbits as pets. They picture your bunny in a tiny little cage, more like a hamster.

While it’s important not to lie, I typically don’t specifically say I’ll be free roaming my rabbit. I just play up the cuteness of bunnies and how little they are. Doing this seems to minimize the impact of rabbits on the wellbeing of the building itself in the landlord’s eyes. Like how could my little bunny rabbit possibly be any trouble?

It also helps, of course, if you’re a stellar tenant with a great track record. Make sure to fill out applications properly. Chat with the potential landlord to create a positive repertoire. And hopefully you haven’t let your rabbit destroy past apartments so you can have good references to vouch for you!

What to say to your potential landlord about your bunny

Here are some things I’ve said to landlords:

“I know the listing says ‘No Pets,’ but do you allow smaller animals like fish or rabbits?” – I find putting rabbits in the “Fish” category makes them seem less problematic.
“I have a white rabbit. Is that alright?” – This is typically followed by showing the landlord a bunch of cute photos of Baby, my rabbit. It can be hard to resist his lionhead allure!

Decide whether to free roam or not

In an ideal world, all pet bunnies would be able to free roam all day long. But for many renters, that may not be an option.

Know your rabbit.

Some rabbits can free roam all the time and be perfect angels. Others will start riping up carpet the second you turn around.

If your bunny is destructive, I’d recommend a hybrid approach.

While living in our first apartment, I started out Baby free roaming full time once he was litter trained. Then, a few months in, I discovered he’d been secretly ripping up the rug in one corner of the living room. Not only was this a danger to my deposit, it was very dangerous for Baby’s digestive system. From then on, we’ve let him free roam while we can supervise, but put him in a large playpen at night and when we have to leave the apartment.

Tips for bunny-proofing your apartment

If you do decide to free roam in any capacity, you’ll want to take a mental analysis of your apartment.

Even if you bunny-proof to the extreme, you should routinely check around to make sure your bunny hasn’t gotten past your defenses. There have been many times where Baby has masterminded his way around some of our tactics. We compare him to a velociraptor from Jurassic Park sometimes!

What kind of flooring does your apartment have?

If your bunny is the type that’s afraid of hardwood, you might need to buy some area rugs. If your apartment is carpeted, you may have to put down some tiles (you can buy by the square at a hardware store) or buy rugs to out on top of rugs.

We did the double rug route for underneath Baby’s playpen since he’d be there even when we couldn’t supervise.

Does your apartment have baseboards?

Some rabbits love to chew on the wood.

You can block off baseboards with wire cube storage squares. We’ve also used these to block off the bottoms of tv consoles and some areas with wires.

Where are the cords in your apartment?

This is especially important if you have a long cable/internet cord. In some apartments I’ve had, these cords have been VERY long.

You can either block off the area with wire cube storage squares or put a wire protector over it.

Respecting a landlord’s decision and avoiding disaster

At the end of the day, it’s your landlord’s choice whether to allow pets or not.

The one thing I would never do is secretly keep a pet in an apartment that does not allow them.

One of my landlords let me have a rabbit in a no-pets apartment when I asked in advance. But he told me a story of a former tenant who had secretly gotten a dog. When another tenant complained about the barking, he had to tell her to either move out or give up the dog. She ended up giving away the dog. Such a sad story and so avoidable! And the landlord is a really nice guy who felt awful about the whole thing.

Lying to a landlord and breaking a contract could result in heartbreak or, even worse, legal trouble! Don’t put you or your rabbit in that kind of situation. It’s worth putting in the extra work to find an apartment that really does allow pets or even moving to another town to find more options.

Finding alternatives

Unfortunately, things don’t always go the way we plan.

Maybe there are barely any apartments in your area for rent. Maybe you’re priced out of all the apartments that allow pets. Maybe there’s just too much of a time crunch to find anything.

Whatever happens, it’s important to do what is best for your bun — whatever that means to you.

I’ve seen stories on rabbit Facebook groups of people who have lived out of their cars with their rabbits so they could keep their families together. Others have given their rabbit to friends or family on a temporary basis.

If you do have to give your rabbit up permanently, make sure you do so safely.

Do not give your rabbit up for free or even for a small fee on Craigslist or Facebook. Some people use those platforms to find easy food for snakes. It’s much better to find a local shelter or home-based rescue. These groups tend to care very deeply for animals and have the resources to connect your bunny with a new home.