What would cause this damage to the door trim?

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What would cause this damage to the door trim?

Logan AllecBusiness Member

Accountant · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 980 votes

Tenants claim that no animals have ever lived in the house.

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Account Closed

Contractor · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2014 · 651 posts · 510 votes

10y

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Account Closed
Contractor · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2014 · 651 posts · 510 votes
10y
11 Reply
Rob Young
House Flipper · Mason, OH · Member since 2014 · 30 posts · 13 votes
10y
Either they have a dog or a very determined toddler with strong fingernails. I'm betting on the dog.
2 Reply
Karmen Kiler
Austin, TX · Member since 2015 · 17 posts · 6 votes
10y
If an animal isn't the cause, what is their explanation?
1 Reply
Remmy Vernon
Vilas, WI · Member since 2015 · 79 posts · 41 votes
10y
yeah, looks like a dog to me. my ex's dog did this at the front door - looks the same to me.
1 Reply
Brian Karlow
Rental Property Investor · Algonquin, IL (Chicago suburbs) · Member since 2014 · 155 posts · 76 votes
10y
Where is the casing to the door? Was this how you discovered the property or did you remove the casing for some other reason?
Brian
1 Reply
Dana WhickerPro Member
Investor · Fernandina Beach, FL · Member since 2014 · 557 posts · 374 votes
10y
That poor doggie just wanted to spend some time in the crapper with his best friend. Poor little fella.
3 Reply
Remmy Vernon
Vilas, WI · Member since 2015 · 79 posts · 41 votes
10y
@dana whicker - that's what mine always want to do! lol
1 Reply
Brian Karlow
Rental Property Investor · Algonquin, IL (Chicago suburbs) · Member since 2014 · 155 posts · 76 votes
10y
Moral support...lol
1 Reply
Joleen Perry
Real Estate Agent · Littleton, MA · Member since 2015 · 1 post · 1 vote
10y
caused from a small dog!!
1 Reply
Carlos Enriquez
Santa Rosa, CA · Member since 2015 · 191 posts · 75 votes
10y
Looks like the inside trim is also affected? I've seen this with moisture damage to the wood. What's just above that door frame?
1 Reply
Arlen Chou
Investor · Los Altos, CA · Member since 2014 · 942 posts · 1k+ votes
10y
@Logan Allec I also vote on a pet doing the damage. That pink ball on the right of the picture sure looks like some type of pet toy...
2 Reply
Dawn AnastasiPro Member
Rental Property Investor · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2013 · 6k+ posts · 4k+ votes
10y
"No animals have ever lived at the house" ... looks like a dog to me. Those type of marks don't cause themselves. Regardless of the cause, I would get it fixed and charge the repair to them.
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Ryan Lackey
Tehachapi/Bakersfield, CA · Member since 2015 · 4 posts · 5 votes
10y
Dog chew toy or cat scratching post. Take your pick of the two.
2 Reply
Cameron Price
Real Estate Broker · Hartsville, SC · Member since 2015 · 174 posts · 69 votes
10y
looks like a dog or cat to me as well. I had to fix the same thing at one of my rentals. I used wood putty to fill in the gouges, sanded it smooth and painted over it. It was actually pretty painless of a fix...
2 Reply
George P.
Property Manager · Livonia, MI · Member since 2011 · 4k+ posts · 1k+ votes
10y
a desperate dad begging his daughters to get out of the bathroom so he can pee?
or it can be a dog. not sure.
4 Reply
Mary lou L.
Investor · Wichita Falls, TX · Member since 2014 · 382 posts · 123 votes
10y
Bottom part I can see a cat doing that..but the upper part? Did he climb up and claw his or her way down??
Or is there something it may have been standing on? ...either way I also vote for animal...
1 Reply
Greg Kimura
Investor · Castaic, CA · Member since 2015 · 19 posts · 4 votes
10y
No dog has ever lived at the house? It sure looks like a dog did the damage.
1 Reply
Brad M.
Rental Property Investor · Glen Allen, VA · Member since 2013 · 85 posts · 39 votes
10y
Isn't that a cat toy just to the right of the photo? With the pink plastic ball? If not, and no animals have lived in the house, what exactly is it?
My vote is for a cat.
1 Reply
Colleen F.Pro Member
Investor · Narragansett, RI · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 4k+ votes
10y
That is a cat and if that is a piece of furniture the pink ball is sitting on that is how the cat got so high. Charge them , notify them of the lease violation. Let them know you do not appreciate lying. Could be kid that is gouging the doorframe with a knife but I doubt it. Could be a dog but really looks like a cat and they are easier to hide on inspection. This is a case where I would have no problem calling these people out to their face. You can probably find more cat toy evidence in the house to point out.
2 Reply
Account Closed
Investor · Central Valley, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
10y
Who cares what the tenant says? They're going to be paying for the repair regardless of the cause. Pictures and receipts are all you need. I've seen similar damage from walkers and wheelchairs. But the fine shredding near the bottom indicates claws, the height of the damage indicates an animal on its hind legs.
I would be very careful about searching out other possible pet damage though. If you have carpet and pad that you are not planning to replace make sure you have someone with a sensitive nose check it out. IMO there is zero chance that a pet owner (or host) that allowed that kind of damage had a pet that never had an accident. Seriously, zero chance.
3 Reply
Account Closed
Investor · Central Valley, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
10y
Originally posted by @Brian Karlow:

Where is the casing to the door? Was this how you discovered the property or did you remove the casing for some other reason?
Brian
I'm curious what you mean by casing? I don't know the location of the property, but here in the west, that doorframe and molding is considered complete finishing in 1970s and later construction.
2 Reply
Edward Hamill
Professional · Nokomis, FL · Member since 2013 · 123 posts · 99 votes
10y
Key word might be "lived"... if they watched a neighbor's dog everyday while the neighbor was at work, did it actually "live" there (Yes, I have heard this argument before...just a few months ago)
2 Reply
Mary B.
Real Estate Investor · Lansdowne, PA · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 656 votes
10y
I was thinking the same as Edward Hamill on this. "Lived" being the keyword yet its obvious some small animal has been there at least a few times even if it was 'visiting' due to the tenant pet sitting or having company with their animal in tow. I'm leaning towards a pup since the bathroom is often their favorite place. The little guy was thirsty. Either that or possessed toddler but I'm betting on a animal being the cause. Doesn't matter if it lived there or not the damage is done and its the tenants responsibility, or lack thereof...
Kudos,
Mary
1 Reply
Maggie Tasseron
Investor · Palm Desert, CA · Member since 2015 · 215 posts · 64 votes
10y
Originally posted by @Account Closed:

Originally posted by @Brian Karlow:
Where is the casing to the door? Was this how you discovered the property or did you remove the casing for some other reason?
Brian
I'm curious what you mean by casing? I don't know the location of the property, but here in the west, that doorframe and molding is considered complete finishing in 1970s and later construction.
You can see where the casing used to be by the white paint that was under it. I'm curious also as to where the casing went...haven't seen a reply to that by the owner.
1 Reply
Viviana Rueda
Investor · Miami Beach, FL · Member since 2015 · 22 posts · 2 votes
10y
Usually I see this with dogs but the scratches tend to go to the lower quadrant of the door. with that level of scratching the dog needs to balance and correct me if I'm wrong but those scratches are pretty high up? Sooo...they had a pony masquerading as a dog perhaps. When they get desperate they tend to scratch and chew at the bottom and work their way up. The one time I saw a scratch high up is when a German Shepherd learned to to use a lever door handle to open doors and even then he only scratched around the door handle and then down. Maybe they watched too much "True Blood" and tried out their vampire nails. ;-) Sorry. The scratches appear on the interior of the door frame too. That I can't see blaming a pet for. Maybe they slammed the door a lot if it were jamming?
1 Reply

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