Roommate and possessions

[CMNILS87]

Ive been living with my current roommate for a year. Cool friend that i met through others. I rent out his basement of his house and pretty much have it to myself. I don't really have an enforcible lease besides the fact that i pay him X dollars to rent from him every month. Now 2 weeks after i moved in, he asked if it was ok to get a dog and i was like "yea that's cool this is your house, i just rent". 10 months later the puppy chewing phase starts. He originally replaced some of my things that he chewed up, but now its "if there's anything left laying around downstairs that he can get, you need to lock it up in your room". Which honestly i find ludicrous. He should be watching his dog regardless. so he doesn't chew anything up or lock him up. Recently he ate 2 sets of headphones at 75/piece that were downstairs and on top of my work desk and he wouldn't replace them saying that i should've locked them up. We had a talk and i told him he needs supervision or he needs to be kenneled or outside till i get him and he agrees. His sob story is that the dog is too big now to be crated all day and its too hot outside now blah blah blah. I come home this morning and the dog is upstairs on the couch all alone. I go downstairs, hes ripped apart a box of wires and controllers and he ate my personal workout sleeve to my Ipod worth about 30 bucks. How do I go about this without getting angry and being aloof, cause at the moment I'm irate with the amount of **** hes eaten of mine. I thought about moving out, but its cheap, i get the whole basement and etc. Do i need to draft up a contract and say said owner is responsible for actions of his dog against others personal property? My rational against his is that if his dog rough housed with another dog at the park and drew blood, Said owner would make swift amends and pay for any medical bills for stitches and such for the other dog correct?

 

[Bible_Belt]

All you can do is move.

 

[Malcontent]

Can't you just lock your sh1t up? You told the guy you were cool with the dog before he got it. Didn't you know puppies act like puppies for a while? I wouldn't lock up my dog either. That sh1t makes them have psych problems. Who wants to be in a fvcking cage all the time? Your buddy should get the dog some toys and sh1t to chew on that the dog knows are just for him. Dog's gonna chew no matter what. You can beat him and yell at him. I've been down this road already. It's part of having/living with a dog.

 

[BetterCallSaul]

Only solution is to move out to a place of your own.

You already said it was ok for him to get a dog. This is on you now - just admit it you f*cked up by saying ok, move on and try to figure something else out.

You also expect him to watch his dog constantly? Seriously? No person is ever going to be able to keep an eye on their pet or even their own kid in the manner you describe. Sometimes sh!t happens.

 

[Bible_Belt]

If this were a dog forum, everyone would be telling you how ignorant the dog owner is. Being in a crate is much better for a dog than being allowed to roam a house and eat whatever he finds. Even if he avoids poison and electricity, swallowing random objects can frequently cause an intestinal blockage, require immediate surgery to prevent death.

 

[CMNILS87]

Can't you put up some kind of divider preventing the dog from going into your basement apartment portion of the house? Otherwise just lock up your stuff in your room.

He's finally talked about putting a gate up at the top of the stairs.

For all the other naysayers saying lock all your stuff up.... my work desk and computer sitting in the living room. How would I get that in my room if he decides to chew the power cords up? My guitar and amps and cords? I would literally not have a bed to sleep on in my room. The fact is his word of mouth was that he'd replace anything of mine he chewed up, now it's costing him money and he's reneging it.

Trying to be empathetic if this was my dog, I would take the hit and pay for anything that's eaten up. It's my dog, my liability. That's like saying you can't fault a dog for his instincts and not train him or barricade him. A dog is a dog is a dog.
I've heard arguments from both sides. My father is red pill and a hardcore Business man. He said the dog is a liability and a responsibility. If he chews up others stuff or bites a dog, it's his responsibility to take care of it, an owner should know that going into buying a dog. The other side is lock everything up. I don't think anyone realizes how hard that is.

I'm in the middle of starting a business and a career change, so moving all my shot at this point would be stressful.

The main problem is the dog is left out or crated all day. hes home alone, and when the owner get home. He "might" take him out for a walk or not depending if he has activities that night. The dog is a Labrador/Chesapeake mix... A dog that needs lots of exercise and hes used as a 85 lb house dog companion at the moment. I personally take him out on 30 min rollerblade workouts just to chill him the **** out

 

[KingBeef]

His dog, his responsibility. If he's not prepared to handle all the responsibilities then he shouldn't have a dog to begin with.

 

[Bible_Belt]

Ask the roommate to reduce your rent. Take that money and rent a storage facility to store your stuff until you can find a new place.

 

[Yewki]

He's finally talked about putting a gate up at the top of the stairs

I'm confused why didn't you already do this. You could prob find some type of gate on craigslist for $20. Or piece of wood from Home Depot for $10. Or just anything around the house that can be used to block the entry

 

[CMNILS87]

I'm confused why didn't you already do this. You could prob find some type of gate on craigslist for $20. Or piece of wood from Home Depot for $10. Or just anything around the house that can be used to block the entry

He's hid behind the rational that a puppy is gonna chew no matter what. So I should lock my stuff up and close all doors instead. I finally got on his case to lock him up or keep him outside . He got pissy cause he didn't want to cage him anymore, so he offered to get a gate.