Yahoo News Banker and wife in court bid to keep 'therapeutic' dog in £1m penthouse flat despite 'no-pets policy'
A banker and his wife are fighting a legal battle to keep a dog in their £1million penthouse flat because it has "therapeutic effect".
Gabrielle Kuehn 45, and her 42-year-old husband Florian could be left with a £50,000 bill over a battle to keep their terrier, Vinnie, in the property in Limehouse, east London.
Mrs Kuehn claims the dog has a "therapeutic effect" on her and that she bought it during a stressful period of her life.
The couple claim they were given permission to bring Vinnie by the property's freeholders, shortly before their move in November 2015.
It was a particularly stressful time in my life and there is absolutely no question that my dog has a therapeutic effect
Gabrielle Kuehn
But now they are facing a legal battle, as Victory Place, the management company, claims the lease has a "no-pets policy".
The couple arrived at the Mayor's and City of London Court with Vinnie. In court, Mrs Kuehn, a recruitment consultant, told the court she first viewed the property in June 2014 when Vinnie was two-years-old.
She said: "When we were looking for a property all the agencies that we were registered with were aware that we had a dog and we were only interested in looking for properties with leases that permitted this."
She told the court that nobody at Victory Place had made her aware of their "no-pets" policy until after she bought the penthouse flat.
Mrs Kuehn told the court she her made enquiries with estate agent to check it would be acceptable to bring Vinnie and claimed she was told it would not be a problem.
The freeholder granted consent and they were provided with a licence, the court heard. Mrs Kuehn told the court how the concierge had approached her and told her of the no-dog rule when he saw her with Vinnie.
When the management firm Victory Place told her she would have to remove the dog, the couple refused. Mrs Kuehn told the court how the dog had a "therapeutic effect" on her.
She told the court: "The reason why I got the dog in the first place, it was a particularly stressful time in my life and there is absolutely no question that my dog has a therapeutic effect.
"I was suffering from anxiety and stress and my dog has a therapeutic effect. I would have considered that to be a special circumstance."
Tim Hammond, representing Victory Place, told the court how one neighbour complained about "constant barking" until 10.30pm on one occasion.
Another couple, who lived below the Kuehns, complained of a series of incidents over a four month period of "whining, loud noise, growling and barking" from Vinnie. The freeholders then revoked the couple's licence in June 2016.
When asked about her neighbour's complaints, Mrs Kuehn suggested they could have mistaken dogs barking from a park below the flat as coming from Vinnie. The hearing continues.
