No-pets policy in new social homes in Whitehall could force people to choose between a stable home and beloved animal

Dublin City Council is currently allocating 124 new social homes in Whitehall. But any prospective tenants with pets need not apply.

The advert for the social homes screams in bold capital letters: “NO PETS ALLOWED”.

Save for some breeds of dog, council tenants are usually allowed to keep pets, says independent Councillor Mannix Flynn.

A blanket ban on pets is not reasonable, says Flynn. “I believe that it is an infringement of civil rights and human rights.”

A spokesperson for Tuath Housing, the housing charity that will manage the homes, says that it isn’t responsible for the all-out ban on pets.

“The management company for Broomhill House establish the House rules and the Managing Agent is responsible for implementing and enforcing the rules on pets,” says the spokesperson for Tuath.

The spokesperson directed questions about who controls the management company to Dublin City Council.

Dublin City Council didn’t respond before publication to queries, including whether the ban applied to all pets, why the rule is necessary, and whether it is in place because the homes are leased.

It’s unclear whether the homes – developed by Luxembourg-based Irish Social Housing Property II SARL – have been leased long-term or bought outright for social housing.

Sinn Féin Senator Lynn Boylan says that people who have pets and are offered one of these homes are faced with an impossible choice between keeping their pets and securing a stable home.

It is a devastating dilemma says Boylan, who is a dog owner. “That idea of having to choose, I couldn’t do it.”

Flynn, the independent councillor, says that social tenants should be allowed to have pets, as long as the animals are not causing a disruption to others.

A Devastating Dilemma

Boylan says she first encountered the issue of pets being banned from social housing a few years ago, when a woman who had a dog had been allocated a home by a housing charity, Clúid.

Clúid at the time had a strict rule that no pets were allowed, says Boylan.

She was surprised at how strictly the housing charity implemented the rule, she says. “It seemed to be a very hard and fast rule.”

The woman was devastated at having to give up her dog, she says.

“I’m sure they have exceptions for guide dogs and possibly support dogs,” she says. “But there are a lot of people who use dogs for emotional support that don’t have official status.”

Boylan raised the issue of people struggling to find accommodation where they can keep their pets in the Seanad in February, citing figures put out by Dogs Trust.

Accommodation issues are among the top three reasons why people surrender their dogs, said a spokesperson for Dogs Trust.

Through work with dog wardens, the trust has learnt that a huge increase in dogs surrendered to pounds is largely because owners can not find rented homes that allow pets, said the spokesperson.

If more properties were dog friendly, it would ease pressure on pounds and rescue centres, they said. “As the number of dogs being surrendered would lower and the number of people in a position to adopt would increase.”

Boylan has heard stories of people sleeping in their cars because they do not want to give up a pet they love, she says.

With the eviction ban lifted, it is likely that more people will have to surrender pets because they have to move on and can’t find accommodation that accepts them, she says.

Children growing up in social housing shouldn’t be deprived of the opportunity to have a family pet, she says. “Children learn empathy through having pets.”

What’s the Solution?

A spokesperson for Tuath, the housing charity that will manage the new complex, says that the organisation doesn’t have a blanket ban on pets.

“Tuath Housing has a strict no dangerous dog policy for all our homes,” she says. Apart from that they make decisions on a case-by-case basis and depending on the rules set by management companies.

“It is often the case, like that of Broomhill House, that the Management Company have a no pets rule and as members of the Management Company we must be compliant with the house rules,” she says.

In 2021 Labour Senator Rebecca Moynihan proposed legislation that would stipulate that tenants should ordinarily be allowed to keep pets, unless there was a specific reason why the property was unsuitable.

“It’s time to bring renting in Ireland into the 21st century and end blanket bans on pets for renters,” she said last year.

“The blanket ban on pets by many landlords and even approved housing bodies is simply unfair and it is an erosion of renters’ rights and ability to live the life they want,” she said.