When you live in a community, being cordial with your neighbors and not interfering with their right to peacefully enjoy their home and property are some of the responsibilities you have to take on. At the same time, you have the right to enjoy your own home and property without interference. For the sake of this story, a new home buyer, I’ll call Rebecca, has run into an issue with their neighbor and questions if they’re handling it the right way.
A New Place To Live
Rebecca bought her first apartment last year and moved in with two cats. It came equipped with a few terraces. She decided to use the terrace at the back of her apartment as an area for her cats. She modified the space by adding a cat door and a floor-to-ceiling metallic protective net to securely allow the cats to get fresh air and leave their food and litter outside. The terrace is fully covered and shares a wall with her neighbors’ terrace.
Discovery
However, she discovered her neighbor is severely allergic to cats. His allergy is triggered by anything cat-related, such as litter, hair, and dander. Since becoming aware of his allergy, Rebecca has thought of possible affordable solutions, such as placing the cat food and covered litter boxes inside enclosed cabinets. She could also install plexiglass panels to block the part of the terrace that borders her neighbor’s wall to keep the air from circulating.
Peaceful Enjoyment
After spending a substantial amount of money making her terrace safe for her cats, Rebecca isn’t thrilled about bringing the cat food and litter boxes back into the apartment and not enjoying her space to its fullest. But she’s also mindful that a person’s health is more important than her cats having access to the outside and that her neighbor has a right to use his terrace. Rebecca asked an online group if she was being neighborly enough, and their members provided well-thought-out answers.
It’s Your Home
While the online group was generally sympathetic to the neighbor’s severe allergies, one user articulates that he should live in an apartment that doesn’t allow pets because it’s unreasonable to expect others to change how they behave in the privacy of their own homes to accommodate his allergies.
The Risk of Communal Spaces
A responder expresses that this is the risk anyone takes when living in a communal space like an apartment building. If they want to live in a more controlled environment, someone else states they need to buy a detached house.
A Thoughtful Effort
A commenter on the forum observes that Rebecca has put in a thoughtful effort to minimize the cat smells and allergens but that her neighbor can also undertake the solutions she has come up with. It’s his responsibility to protect himself so that he can install plexiglass on his terrace.
Above and Beyond
“He can’t expect people living in the real world to all be cat-free. His allergy is his responsibility to manage. You’ve gone above and beyond what you are responsible to do,” shares a contributor to the online thread. Rebecca isn’t violating any rules about having pets on her property.
Don’t Change
Somebody in the discussion who’s also a severe allergy sufferer volunteers that they receive treatment for their condition, and they don’t expect the world to change for them. Unless Rebecca’s neighbor never goes out in public, he must have some way to deal with his allergies.
More Than Generous
A group member believes Rebecca has responded more than generously to her neighbor’s severe cat allergy. It’s his job to manage his allergies and not anyone else’s. Another one agrees, writing, “It’s your house. If this is affecting your neighbor, then they should be the ones to do something about it.”
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