You could have tried a metal spatula instead of the putty knife.
Now, go buy some wood filler and a putty knife and fix the wood your landlord screwed up.
That was the one thing I noticed when I first moved to NC, the local restaurants were few and far between. There were Friday's, Applebees, Ruby Tuesdays, O'Charlies.... There's plenty of good local stops here though. And some great pizza.
They usually scatter when they see me and/or my dog. But I do throw apples out there that have been in the fridge too long. My neighbor put out a salt lick.