MacKenzie Elmer

melmer@dmreg.com

An Ankeny couple says their decision to train a service dog for a combat veteran has cost them their apartment.

Christina Dimit, 18, and Bryan Stamper, 19, began training Lake, a 6-month-old golden retriever, in April.

Their apartment complex has a no-pets policy, but the couple thought they were protected under Iowa law since Lake was being trained as a service animal.

They told Northwest Property Management about the dog, and Becky Beach from the Puppy Jake Foundation spoke with the landlord about the training program.

Puppy Jake is an Urbandale-based nonprofit that provides trained service dogs to wounded military veterans to assist with post traumatic stress disorder and mobility impairments. Volunteer foster families train dogs for 18 to 24 months.

“Ever since I was a little girl I wanted to train a service dog to give back to my community,” Dimit said. She is studying psychology and human services at Grand View University.

Dimit and Stamper thought they had satisfied their landlord until last month when they were notified that their lease would not be renewed when it expired on July 31.

“After receiving multiple complaints from other tenants, it came to Northwest Property Management's attention that Mr. Stamper and Ms. Dimit had a dog living with them in violation of their lease,” a letter from Jonathan Schroeder of the Davis Brown Law Firm read.

Des Moines attorney Roxanne Conlin filed an injunction to stop the rental company from forcing the couple to move, but it was denied by a district court judge last week.

“This is a really nasty thing to do to this young couple who's trying to do something really kind for an injured war veteran for crying out loud,” Conlin said.

In dispute is a section of the Iowa Code that defines rights afforded to service dogs and their trainers. The law protects the rights of people with disabilities and those training service animals to be accompanied by the animals in a long list of public places. However trainers are not mentioned in the portion of the law requiring landlords to waive pet restrictions for service animals.

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The code reads: A landlord shall waive lease restrictions on the keeping of animals for the service dog or assistive animal of a person with a disability.

“The Code of Iowa clearly makes no provision for protection for a tenant training a service dog,” District Court Judge Scott D. Rosenberg wrote in his decision.

Beach and Conlin said they plan to talk to lawmakers to broaden protections for trainers.

“I’m going to suggest we make the law that prohibits discrimination against people training service dogs,” Conlin said. “I think it’s clear it meant to protect this young couple and it just doesn’t.”

Dimit and Stamper moved the last of their belongings into an Ankeny storage unit Friday. They plan to stay with friends until they can find other living arrangements.

"There needs to be a change," Stamper said. "It's making it difficult for veterans and for our organization that's trying to find volunteers."