EXCLUSIVEWhy posh people don't toilet train their pets: As rows over 'deep pee stains' and 'pungent odours' end up in court, expert reveals what's behind a lax attitude to housebreaking

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Bitter legal battles, feuding spouses and compensation claims sound like the standard stuff of divorce proceedings, but lately it's pets' toilet training that has become a matter for discussion in celebrity court battles. 

Earlier this month, Made in Chelsea's Tabitha Willett was ordered to pay more than £4,000 in compensation to her landlady after her Cavalier King Charles spaniel left 'deep pee stains' on a £9,000 carpet in a Notting Hill flat the reality star - who was previously engaged to Prince Harry's pal Fraser Carruthers - was renting. 

Meanwhile, playwright Polly Stenham MBE this week appeared in court to face her landlord who accused her of 'trashing' a £5,000-a-week flat and letting her cat urinate all over the furniture, leaving behind 'pungent odours'.

The court ruled in Ms Stenham's favour, but she did admit that her cat had urinated outside of the litter box 'on occasion'.

US reality TV star Christine Quinn of Selling Sunset fame also had details of her pets' lack of potty training raised in court, when her estranged husband claimed she 'refused' to toilet train her Yorkshire Terriers - who urinated over his belongings.

Even the late Queen Elizabeth, famed for her love of Corgis, could not escape the curse of the untrained pet, with a royal writer previously claiming that staff had to mop up after royal dogs when they did their business on expensive furniture. 

What's more, fans of the Real Housewives franchise have taken to social media to question the stars' hygeine standards, with one writing on Reddit: 'Their dogs often seem to not be potty trained, but they don’t care. Where I come from this is absolutely unthinkable. Is it a rich women's thing?'

So, why is it that the upper classes seem to have a lax attitude to housebreaking? Femail consulted Laura Windsor, founder of the Laura Windsor Etiquette Academy, and according to the expert, the answer lies in a heightened sense of entitlement.

After reality TV star Tabitha Willett (pictured) was ordered to pay over £4,000 in compensation to her landlady after her Cavalier King Charles spaniel (pictured together) left 'deep pee stains' on a £9,000 carpet, Femail consulted etiquette expert Laura Windsor on why posh people often have untrained pets 

Selling Sunset's Christine Quinn (pictured) was embroiled in a bitter court battle with her estranged husband, who claimed her Yorkshire Terriers urinated over his belongings

Queen Elizabeth's beloved Welsh corgis were far from pleasant and even at times 'pyscho' (pictured: Queen Elizabeth II , accompanied by Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones, carries one of her pet dogs at Windsor Great Park on May 01, 1977)

'I hate to use this word, and I use it sparingly, but it seems as if they feel a sense of entitlement,' Laura said.

She continued: 'They believe that whatever they do is acceptable. No one who has integrity and respect for themselves and others would allow their dog to damage other people's property.'

It's a message perhaps now loud and clear for Tabitha Willett given the legal dispute with her landlady Charlotte Hill - the twin sister of her former friend Sam Pemberton.

The court found that lifestyle influencer Tabitha, 32, who featured in the 15th series of Made in Chelsea, which follows a group of young men and women born into affluent families, had trashed a £1.8 million apartment she was renting in London's Kensington.

During her eight-month stay in the £3,500 a month two-bedroom flat, she left make-up stains and drawings on the walls, drilled holes for pictures and a television, left a £9,000 carpet stained with dog pee and damaged a hob.

Ramona Singer with her dog Coco: Real Housewives fans took to social media to point out how her pet did not appear to be house trained 

The influencer counter-sued claiming that her right to 'quiet enjoyment' of the property she stayed at with her five-year-old daughter and King Charles Spaniel, Ruby, was being violated by being 'constantly checked up on' by the landlady. However, the court dismissed the claim.

The 32-year-old has now been ordered to pay £4,749 to her landlady for damage to the luxury apartment, which she rented from March to November 2022.

The debate of pets damaging rented property was revived once again this week when playwright Polly Stenham MBE was accused by her landlord of 'trashing' a £5,000-a-week flat and letting her cat urinate all over the furniture.

Despite Madonna having three chihuahuas, she didn't like dogs and kept them as 'live-in accessories', her brother claimed (pictured: Madonna walking her dog 'Chiquita' in New York outside her apartment in April, 1995)

Tabitha Willett (pictured) has been ordered to pay over £4,000 in compensation to her landlady after her King Charles spaniel left 'deep pee stains' on a £9,000 carpet

The Made in Chelsea star was found by a court to have trashed a £1.8 million apartment she was renting in upmarket Kensington, west London

Playwright Polly Stenham (seen in October 2022) won a bitter court battle with her landlord after he claimed she left his flat smelling like cat urine

The author of the Olivier-nominated play That Face, 38, was accused by media lawyer landlord Elio Cassandro of leaving his Notting Hill flat with a 'pungent odour' after she moved out - and marker pen stains on his sofa.

He also claimed she left scuff marks all over the floor with her wheelie suitcase. In all, his compensation claims, lodged at Central London County Court, totalled £10,000 - and prompted bitter exchanges in court between the pair.

However, Cassandro, 45, failed to win any compensation after a judge ruled that the minimal damages that could have been caused by the playwright were covered by a pricey security deposit she had put down at the start of the tenancy. 

In her written defence, Ms Stenham pointed out that she in fact paid for a professional clean of the property after her exit, also insisting that her landlord had 'exaggerated his claim'.

However, she did acknowledge that her cat may have experienced some accidents, adding: 'On the occasions that the cat had urinated outside its litter box and it was discovered, the spot was cleaned.'

Cats are creatures of habit and very easily litter trained, and it is rare for them to go outside the box unless there's a medical issue, such as kidney problems, or they're suffering from stress. 

It is unclear what caused the 'occasional' episodes, in the case of Ms Stenham's cat. 

However, etiquette expert Laura draws a distinction between owners allowing pets to soil rented property compared to living spaces in the possession of the pet owner.

'On your own property, your dog can do whatever it wants,' Laura said. She added: 'If their pets can't behave, or rather they have not been trained adequately to stay in other people's property, they should be left at home.'

'I don't think the late Queen Elizabeth II took her Corgis, who were well-known for misbehaving, to someone else's house to wreak havoc.'

While it's true that the Corgis may have been doing their business in the confines of a royal palace, it still created a headache for staff. 

In his book, Not In Front Of The Corgis, royal author Briay Hoey explained: 'The corgis don’t seem to be totally housetrained. Staff have to carry a supply of soda water and blotting paper to deal with the consequences.' 

Christine claimed her estranged husband Richard had thrown a bag containing a glass bottle at Quinn but missed and hit their son instead - but Richard alleges the row erupted over Quinn's dogs urinating on his belongings

Pictured: Selling Sunset's 36-year-old Christine Quinn with one of her Yorkshire Terriers 

Meanwhile, Selling Sunset's Christine Quinn, who often poses with her two Yorkshire Terrier on her arm like the latest designer bag, was embroiled in an explosive argument with estranged husband Christian Richard over the behaviour of her dogs.

According to court documents, the Selling Sunset alum, 35, claimed that after she called him out for the 'lack of effort' he was putting in their marriage, things turned volatile, according to Us Weekly.

The Texan, who owns two Yorkshire Terriers, stated that Richard pulled out 'dog feces' from the trashcan and hurled it at her. 

'I then locked him out, and our son and I spent the night in the master bedroom,' Quinn claimed in her court documents. 'I could hear him continuing to shout and yell and could hear him smashing and breaking things through the house.' 

It was claimed Richard had thrown a bag containing a glass bottle at Quinn but missed and hit their son instead - but Richard later alleged that the row erupted over Quinn's dogs urinating on his belongings, per TMZ.

Richard claimed the two family dogs were not housetrained and urinated and defecated all over their LA home - and said Quinn refused to have them trained.

He claims he discovered the two dogs had 'urinated all over some valuable belongings of his' despite him blocking off the area from the dogs.

Laura said: 'Dogs are seen more as a fashion accessory item nowadays but it can become an inappropriate fad. She added: 'If you want to treat your dog as a fashion accessory, do so, but it is not an inanimate object.' 

'There are no excuses for not training them.'