Horsing Around
A Day In The Life...
I once worked for a management company that had a portfolio which included several single-family homes. In addition to garages, the homes featured small, fenced-in yards that were always in high demand—particularly with dog owners.
Although our pet policy allowed larger dogs that were not typically accepted in apartments, it excluded the more aggressive breeds. Even so, I was not surprised when I received a call from one of our residents claiming he’d seen a pit bull hanging around one of the neighboring homes.
As I was driving over to investigate, I noticed that the garage door at one of the residences was raised slightly. I didn’t think much about it, knowing that during the long Texas summers, people sometimes did this to allow some of the heat out.
I Wasn’t Ready For This-
Since I didn’t have much to go on, I decided to start my search for the pit bull with the home that had the partially raised garage door.
I parked on the street in front of the house, intending to stroll down the sidewalk as I checked things out. However, I devised a new plan when I caught sight of a large dog barking his fool head off at me in the front window. It was definitely a pit bull.
I marched up the sidewalk, mentally preparing for a confrontation with the resident but stopped short when, above the racket the dog was making, I heard the unmistakable sound of a whinny.
Oh, my gosh! I thought. That sounds like it came from a horse!
Abandoning my initial quest, I turned and walked in the direction of the whinny. Standing outside the partially open garage door, I called out, “Hello, is anyone in there?”
When my inquiry was met with a loud bray and a snort, I got down on my hands and knees and peered under the door. Sure enough, there was a large white horse ‘parked’ in the garage! From my somewhat awkward vantage point, I could also see a bale of hay and several piles of manure.
Working to stay calm while trying to clear the smell of horse crap from my nostrils, I returned to the front door and rang the bell. After several minutes with no response, I pounded on the door and yelled, “Management!”
I finally decided either no one was home, or they were avoiding me. I ended up leaving a notice on the door for the resident to contact the management office immediately.
In my long career in property management, I’d written plenty of dog violations, but this was my first (and thankfully), only horse violation!
From the book "I Have a Complex, But I'm Managing It!", stories from property managers compiled by Monica E. Simmons.
Monica E. Simmons, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for JDC Enterprises, LLC, has worked in the multi-family industry in several different capacities since 1987. She is a published author whose books include; I Have A Complex, But I’m Managing It!, It Happened in The Hill Country, 30-Love and it's sequel, Match Point.
Contact her at: Monica@TheVendorGuide.com
