tenant's rights in WA for mobile home park, lease did not address animals

Tenant/Landlord Animal Issues: I own a manufactured home that is on a lot in a "park". I pay a monthly rent for the lot that my home is on. I have lived here for 8 years. I have pets, and in the past have given all of my pets information to the park managers (i.e. spay/neuter certificates, microchip numbers, vaccine history, etc.). My dog is leash walked only, and I always pick up after her. I have cats that are both indoor/outdoor, and have been since we moved in here.

In the "park" there is a large number of feral cats (of which I am not involved). These feral cats are fed by numerous people, and have free run of the area. Many of them are not spayed/neutered, and do not receive any veterinary care. Over the years there have been many complaints about the feral cats in the neighborhood.

Very recently I was approached by the "park manager" and told that due to the numerous complaints that have to do with the feral cats, I MUST now keep all my cats indoors only. When I moved in here this was not the agreement and was not stated in my lease. Unfortunately, my cats do not understand that they must be indoors only, and dispite my best efforts to keep them indoors, they do still get outside. I received a "written warning" last week pertaining to my cats. The warning states that if 3 are given during a 12 month period they can evict me.

I have done a little research online and what I have come up with; is that a landlord can not mid-stream change the living habitat of an animal. To me this would mean making an indoor/outdoor cat indoors only, or even forcing an indoor cat to stay outside exclusively. I would really like to know what my legal rights are as far as my cats go. Do I have to keep my cats indoor only now, because they say so? Is them changing their "living habitat/situation" legal? Do I have any recourse in this?

Sincerely,

Tirina Holgate
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