Dogs

Cher21
Level 1
Indianapolis, IN

Dogs

If your listing says “pet friendly,” do you expect guests to let you know if they’ll be bringing them?

7 Replies 7
Emily487
Level 10
KCMO, MO

@Cher21 

Yes, I would.

I would make sure to outline that as an expectation in my listing/house rules/thank you for booking message.

Robert1909
Level 2
Dallas, TX

Yes. Wouldn't there be a pet deposit? Or some parameters? Like no Great Pyrenees?

Cher21
Level 1
Indianapolis, IN

Thank you.  Never before has it been an issue.  The guest shared every detail about their stay and forgot to mention they’d be bringing two (quote large) dogs to my house.  Seemed rather rude to me.  I could have had the scooper on the porch and some other things in place (as well as warning them that our kids play in the yard) had I had the heads up.  Seems almost sneaky to me.  And downright rude.  Guests prior have always asked/given the heads up.  This one took me off guard.  

Jeff158
Level 10
Caernarfon, United Kingdom

@Cher21 

I had to add to my house rules:

One well behaved dog welcome & must not be left in the cottage unattended.

I now get messages asking if its OK to bring 2 or 3 dogs

Mark116
Level 10
Jersey City, NJ

@Cher21   Yes, I would expect to be notified in advance.

Amanda660
Level 10
Auchenblae, United Kingdom

A couple of weeks ago a guy arrived with his partner and some friends to celebrate a 30th birthday.  I live just across the road and saw two big pooches running around as they unpacked their car.  I went over and asked him about the dogs, he was very apologetic/embarrassed and said he’d been too busy to read the rules

 

After that I tweaked my welcome message (I send out a few days before arrival) to include the following to next three guests.  ALL came back advising that they WERE taking dogs????? ALL agreed to the £10 per night per pooch charge which is mentioned twice in my rules/info.

 

CCTV
Please note for added security CCTV covers the gate entrance.

***********
Only registered guests are permitted on or within the property - strictly no parties, unregistered guests, gatherings or events.

***********

Pets are very welcome but must be agreed and booked in advance along with the pet fee.
**********

 

Terrill0
Level 7
Dresden, ME

I just had this happen to me for the first time and I’m super frustrated by it. I had already changed my listing advising people that unregistered guests result in cancellation. My current guests claim they told me about the dogs which they did not. I do believe it was an honest oversight on their part. The guests and their dogs are nice, however the situation is frustrating. I charge an extra fee for pets because I do additional cleaning, and these guests have side stepped this charge. I resent having to either confront them or blow it off. I  don’t want to “out” their bad behavior with a public review, and I don’t want to set up another host for a similar experience. The idea of politely and constructively explaining the situation to them so they understand is the way to go but it still involves some awkward confrontation and I resent being put in that uncomfortable position. The main issue is we have a young high energy puppy that shares the yard, and so we need to screen people, confirming their dog is good with other dogs..

one of the women is a vet tech which makes the situation even sillier!

I’m just hoping the dogs don’t cause issues during their short stay.