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diabeticman

(3,121 posts)
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 02:32 AM Jan 2015

Vent: Those two board members. partly my fault too.

My wife works from 3- 12. I work 11 - 7. I wake up and get an envelop from the condo assoc. I don't look at it fully because I have other things to do but I see it is a budget for 2015. I put it down not going through all of it and do as my wife requested --clean out the fridge and take garbage out so we can get ready for a possible snow storm this weekend and also get ready for work.

Wife gets home looks a little more at the papers and behind the budget sheets is a paper how things like grease oil and hair EVEN KITTY LITTER down drains can cause damage to pipes. My wife read that and she is upset. She is calling them sick and sadistic women. She called me at work crying.

19 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Vent: Those two board members. partly my fault too. (Original Post) diabeticman Jan 2015 OP
Of COURSE kitty litter down drains can cause damage. elleng Jan 2015 #1
I hope you are right but maybe it is my wife's depression but she honestly feels they are taunting diabeticman Jan 2015 #2
They may be taunting her, elleng Jan 2015 #3
She was never given pills when we had cats they where the only meds she needed. diabeticman Jan 2015 #4
At least the budget was sent to everyone. I like to think everyone got it. diabeticman Jan 2015 #5
PLEASE explain the likelihood of this to your wife, elleng Jan 2015 #6
Gotta agree here. nt cwydro Feb 2015 #16
In all of the years that I have had a cat, avebury Jan 2015 #7
considering they DO NOT ALLOW CATS right now what the hell would you need to put that in a letter. diabeticman Jan 2015 #9
The Condo Association would be reasonable in avebury Jan 2015 #11
^^^this^^^ nt LiberalElite Jan 2015 #15
kitter litter goes into trash bags and then into the trash blackcrow Jan 2015 #8
THEY DO NOT ALLOW CATS NOW WHY THE HELL WOULD ANYONE HAVE CAT LITTER IN A PLACE diabeticman Jan 2015 #10
Kitty litter is not just for cat owners. avebury Jan 2015 #12
Kitty litter is also used to absorb grease stains like from car oil. riderinthestorm Jan 2015 #13
If they would relax the no cat policy, LiberalAndProud Jan 2015 #14
I'm starting to have a sneaky suspicion Texasgal Feb 2015 #17
I agree with you.......... mrmpa Feb 2015 #18
Yup. I think you're onto something. I also agree LiberalAndProud's post above. In_The_Wind Feb 2015 #19

elleng

(130,151 posts)
1. Of COURSE kitty litter down drains can cause damage.
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 02:38 AM
Jan 2015

No surprise. The fact that the condo association has mentioned it should not be surprising. What it might suggest, however, is that there are a few, who knows how many, residents who have cats in their condos. That seems to favor your position.

diabeticman

(3,121 posts)
2. I hope you are right but maybe it is my wife's depression but she honestly feels they are taunting
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 02:57 AM
Jan 2015

her.

elleng

(130,151 posts)
3. They may be taunting her,
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 03:02 AM
Jan 2015

but were the documents you received also sent to others? Let your wife know this was probably not targeted at you 2.

And tho probably not easy, help her to try to ignore these obnoxious people. There are such people all over the world (like repugs!) but life is too short to let them ruin our lives.

Is your wife undergoing therapy? Does she take anti-depression medication?

Good luck.

diabeticman

(3,121 posts)
4. She was never given pills when we had cats they where the only meds she needed.
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 03:12 AM
Jan 2015

Right now all we can afford is once a month. Her next visit is Feb 12

elleng

(130,151 posts)
6. PLEASE explain the likelihood of this to your wife,
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 03:20 AM
Jan 2015

to try to defuse her thoughts that the board is targeting you.

avebury

(10,946 posts)
7. In all of the years that I have had a cat,
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 07:15 AM
Jan 2015

I never ever put kitty litter down the drain. When you scoop the box you can always put the kitty litter in a doogie scooper pooper bad and then throw it in the trash bin outside. And, living in Oklahoma which does get rather hot in the summer, my outside trash bin never smelled. A well thought response back to the condo board can straighten out the misconception that they are passing around.

There is nothing wrong with alerting people to the impact that kitty litter can have on the pipes but that does not mean that everyone is stupid enough to put is down the pipes. Your wife over reacted to the letter and needs to calm down. The only way you have a chance to win the battle in the long run is to remain calm.

avebury

(10,946 posts)
11. The Condo Association would be reasonable in
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 04:19 PM
Jan 2015

requiring that nobody put kitty litter down the pipes. I am not sure where you live but in some places people will use kitty litter on their walkways (as well as storing a bag in their cars) for icy conditions. I have done that myself. Kitty litter is less damaging to walkways then ice melts. Possession of kitty litter is not restricted just to actually owning a cat.

As long as condo owners adhere to a requirement that you don't put kitty litter down a pipe, that issue alone, is not a valid one for forbidding any condo owner to own a cat. Your response has to be rationale and reasonable. If you just butt heads with them they will just dig in and you won't have any chance of obtaining your goal. The pipe issue can be perceived as a valid issue. You have to countermand it with a valid response.

I have a lot of friends who own cats and none of them would ever even think of putting the kitty litter down a pipe. It would be interesting to find out just when the condo association has had problems with their pipes and what the ownership of cats was during the comparable time. There would be nothing wrong with telling them that the pipe comment is interesting and that you would like more information (i.e. when they had pipe problems and what the cat population was at the time of those events). How long have they been a pet free condo association? Did they start out as pet friendly and then became anti-pets later on? It would be definitely worth your while to find someone (not on the condo board) who has lived there a long time and get that person to tell you the history of the condo association.

Does your Condo Association have any meetings that the condo owners can attend? You can write all the letters you want but, with some homework (in the form of talking to some long time residents to learn the full history of the place) a face to face meeting with the Board might get you further. If your wife is going to get all emotional over the issue, leave her home. Knowing the history of the development and being prepared with rational responses to any of their concerns might help. You are upset because your wife is upset and that can cause you to act out on the issue in a manner that might end up ruining any chance of success.

 

blackcrow

(156 posts)
8. kitter litter goes into trash bags and then into the trash
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 08:40 AM
Jan 2015

I can't imagine anyone thinking pouring it down a drain is anything but asking for a big plumbing bill.

You guys need to both chill out.

diabeticman

(3,121 posts)
10. THEY DO NOT ALLOW CATS NOW WHY THE HELL WOULD ANYONE HAVE CAT LITTER IN A PLACE
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 12:46 PM
Jan 2015

THAT DOES NOT ALLOW CATS. That was already adding salt to a wound.

avebury

(10,946 posts)
12. Kitty litter is not just for cat owners.
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 04:30 PM
Jan 2015

Many people use it on their walkways, driveways, (and carry it in their car) during winter time to put on the ice. It is less destructive then ice melt.

Using all caps is an indication that you need to calm down, chill out, and pull it together. Failure to do so will only cause your efforts to change the condo rules to self destruct.

LiberalAndProud

(12,799 posts)
14. If they would relax the no cat policy,
Sat Jan 31, 2015, 08:03 PM
Jan 2015

cat smugglers in your complex might not flush the cat litter down the toilet. Is it possible that there is some plumbing history that informs the board members' anti-cat stance?

Texasgal

(17,029 posts)
17. I'm starting to have a sneaky suspicion
Tue Feb 3, 2015, 10:29 PM
Feb 2015

that there ARE cats in your complex and that people are avoiding the HOA by disposing of the evidence differently than most people! I say it's time for a REVOLT!

Let the CATS STAY!

mrmpa

(4,033 posts)
18. I agree with you..........
Wed Feb 4, 2015, 04:15 AM
Feb 2015

I live in a pet free condo, but know Board members who had them. One former Board member moved her cats across the hall so she could run for office because "she was in good standing."

I want a pet.

In_The_Wind

(72,300 posts)
19. Yup. I think you're onto something. I also agree LiberalAndProud's post above.
Thu Feb 5, 2015, 06:52 PM
Feb 2015

If the tenants don't have a need to hide the litter they won't flush it.

Let the CATS STAY!

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