Having a pet in Australia

Hello guys!!! Today I will talk about how to have a pet in Australia!

This is another question my friends and family have already asked me many times. In Brazil is pretty normal to have dogs and cats (and other animals) at home. Here in Australia I found out that this is very common as well. The country has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world. More than 60% of Australian households own pets, according to RSPCA (they’re the main public body regarding animal welfare in Australia) .

But of course, when you are a student things are much more difficult. First that you don’t have your own house (99,99% of times you are just renting it), and second that you don’t have the stability to think that much in advance. When you buy a pet you are talking about 10, 12 years at least with them in your life, and as a student you never have this assurance of staying that much time in Australia. So this is a very serious obstacle, and you must think a lot before deciding to own a pet. Don’t be selfish, because if you have to go back to your home country, there is a big chance that you will have to abandon the pet as well.

If you will really take the pet back with you, or if you have a strong plan to stay here for all that time, than you have to see if your rent policy allows pet. This is terrible, because I would say that 90% of the apartments have a strict “no pet” policy. In Brazil everybody can have pets, even if renting an apartment. Here everything is more bureaucratic, everything demands time, and etc. This is very annoying to be honest. Me and my wife are planning to have a dog, but our apartment does not permit pets. We had to talk to the strata agent and promise that we will train the dog, we will clean the house more frequently, we will send pictures of everything, etc. We also offered a “pet fee”, so the owner could have a little extra warranty that his house will be preserved and nothing will happen.

Not to mention that you MUST train your dog, and I am talking about paying for a private and professional trainer to teach him the basics. No, this is not a joke. It seems bizarre to think about it in Brazil, but here everything must be done this way.

Also, you have to contact the breeders and it would be better to opt for a breeder which is registered in a council. This gives you more safety in terms of the health and quality of the animal you are buying. I’ve seen many people buying pets from websites and in the end everything was just a fraud. I know, this is sad.

Well, in the end everything comes down to the owner of the apartment accepting or not the pet. And you have can’t do anything. If he accepts, perfect! Go for it! If the owners decline your offer, you will either have to look for a new place which accepts pet, or stay there without a pet.

I personally think that there should be some laws regarding this matter. It’s pathetic how difficult is to have your pet accepted. In the other hand, pet owners must have common sense and train their pets! In the end everything could be much easier, but I also understand that sometimes the apartment owners don’t trust and don’t have enough warranty that their units will be preserved.

That’s it guys! See you soon