Rental shortage sees Kalgoorlie-Boulder pet owners forced to pick between pets and a roof over their head

Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s rental shortage is seeing pet owners forced to surrender their beloved animals just so they can secure a roof over their heads, RSPCA WA says. Goldfields Inspector Fiona Brown says she has been inundated with surrender requests by pet owners who are unable to secure a rental property in the city. She said in recent months she had gone from rarely hearing about rental issues as a reason for surrender to getting up to 20 requests a month. While many of the requests came from pet owners who were relocating to Perth where they could not find a pet-friendly rental, local families were struggling to find a property to lease at all. “Rentals in Kalgoorlie-Boulder are generally more accommodating for pets, but the shortage is getting so bad that owners are being forced to surrender their pets because they’re couch surfing or in some other temporary form of accommodation,” Ms Brown said. “The rental shortage in Perth is not as dire, but many landlords just don’t allow pets as a rule, and it gets even more difficult when you have more than one. “They are having to make that heart-breaking choice between surrendering their pet or putting a roof over their family’s head.” Among the dozens of animals being surrendered are Ally and Chopper, a pair of much-loved Maremmas, who were recently surrendered to Ms Brown. Their owners, a family of seven, are relocating to Perth and told the RSPCA none of their family or friends were able to take on the dogs locally, and they could not find a home in Perth that was pet-friendly. “These owners are trying to do the best thing for their pets,” Ms Brown said. “They need compassion and reassurance that their animals will be well cared for and find a loving new home.” Ally and Chopper are being cared for in Kalgoorlie-Boulder before travelling to Perth for rehoming through a breed-specific rescue group. In the case of cats, Ms Brown said she was seeing people moving out of their Goldfields homes and simply leaving the cats behind. She encouraged pet owners who were considering abandoning their pet to reach out to RSPCA WA or another local rescue group for help. RSPCA WA said the issue was not just being experienced in Kalgoorlie-Boulder, with one in four pets coming through RSPCA’s Perth shelter surrendered because of financial strain or rental issues. An RSPCA WA spokesperson said the organisation welcomed the review of the State’s Residential Tenancy Act. “As part of this process we are pushing for laws to shift in in line with ACT and Victoria, where the onus is on landlords to provide a valid reason to refuse renters with pets,” they said.

Rental shortage sees Kalgoorlie-Boulder pet owners forced to pick between pets and a roof over their head

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