I Wonder How Much is the Pet Rent for THAT

About a month ago, I spotted a porker outside of a cottage apartment that my wife and I briefly considered renting sometime last year. While charming, with excellent windows, and lower monthly obligation than our current place, the one-bedroom flat came up short on living space; we wanted a little more square footage, not lots less. How then is it big enough for the current residents, which I guess includes the pig?

Then there is the question of pet rent, which already is an abomination applied to cats and dogs—and it’s too common a fee here in San Diego. Consider BLVD North Park, which actually is located in University Heights: Prospective tenants pay a $400 deposit for their animals and $50 additional monthly rent for each one. The fifty, even one-hundred, is typical for places demanding the fee—and so is $500 for deposit, which may not be refundable. Landlords could as reasonably pump a pint of blood from each resident, every 14 days, for the plasma. The vampires.

Pet rent is pure graft, unbridled greed. Landlords don’t charge extra for kids—and one toddler with crayon or marker and blank wall can do way more property damage than purring Fluffy or tail-wagging Puggsy. In the neighborhood where we live, tenants are more likely to have pets than children.

So I wonder: How much is the outrageous pet rent for the piggy—and I hope it’s none or at least no more than for cat or dog.

For weeks, I wanted to shoot a portrait of swizzle-tail, but anytime he (or she) was outside, family groups stopped to gawk. Since we’re all supposed to “social distance” because of SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2)—aka COVID-19—I walked past on the other side of the street.

But today, he (or she) ate breakfast alone, which allowed me time and space enough to take the Featured Image using Leica Q2. But I had to be quick. The front door was open, and I could hear a baby crying inside. I didn’t want to impose on the family or the meal, which the porker ate between grunts. See how trim Hamlet (yep, real name) keeps the front lawn? Photo vitals, aperture manually set: f/8, ISO 160, 1/125 sec, 28mm; 9:33 a.m. PDT.