Furrry Babies.

No I am not talking about human babies, I am talking about fur babies! Our pets are family in most cases and become a factor when buying and selling property believe it or not!

I am obviously very interested in selling equestrian properties, and these are the ultimate choice of buyers wanting the best for their animal friends. Then there are the rest of us, statistics show that MILLIONS of Canadian households have at least one pet. Personally I grew up with dogs, cats, horses and ponies that lived on the same property as my family. My brother and sister both had a pony at one point, but that was short lived as my brother tried to trade his pony for a motorbike by making a sign to place at the end of the driveway. My equine obsession brought me across 46 states, 7 provinces and even across the 'pond' to England. 

You could say I am an animal lover.

I don't current own any horses, but I do stay active in the horse community and frequent the local barns to ride and teach. My constant furry companion is a miniature dachshund named Frankfurter, he is a fiercely loyal and obsessively loving little force to be reckoned with. I thoroughly enjoy his pointy little nose poking into whatever I am doing.

I go in a lot of houses and I talk to a lot of people about their ideal home and very often pets are a priority in choosing a property. Things like proximity to a busy road, fenced yards and pet friendly flooring are common topics of discussion. I have one property listed inhabited by a very self assured Jack Russell who believes that he is the king of the castle whenever I show the home! He comes to greet everyone and proceeds to 'show us around' when buyers arrive.

At one showing a while ago, we were told not to let the cat outside, a very cute mottled black, grey and orange - striking looking animal to say the least. We had a good look around the property with the buyers two young girls in tow, they were fascinated with the cat but obeyed when told not to touch. Towards the end of the viewing, we head outside for a final recap and out of the corner of my eye I see the odd coloured feline just beyond the fenced in pool area. Not sure how it got out, and not wanting to be caught, we teamed up to herd it back inside... Meanwhile I can't shake a nagging feeling that we had been so careful not to leave any doors open. I tuck the kitty under my arm to stow back in his/her designated bed on the windowsill (can you guess where this is going...?) I get to the cats perch only to find an identical animal already there! WHOOPS! Bring the outside cat back outside, leave the inside cat where it is and get out of there before a feline fight ensues! 

Do you have a special needs pet that would require adjustments to your real estate needs? Tell me about your furry family members!