Dogs in hotels

The poster above competes in sports where her dogs are needed. I travelled for CPD courses/seminars in canine behaviour and welfare, so my dog kinda was essential.

The poster above competes in sports where her dogs are needed. I travelled for CPD courses/seminars in canine behaviour and welfare, so my dog kinda was essential.

Wow. I'm worth stalking :)

And now it’s flipped the other way round and those of us who have no choice but to avoid dogs (or risk an asthma attack/eczema flare etc) find ourselves having difficulty finding somewhere. Except people have choice to take their dogs or not - it’s not actually necessary to take dogs everywhere (obv with the relatively rare exception of assistance dogs). So I guess you might have some insight into how we feel.

Yes, I always stay in Premier Inns if possible and have never encountered a dog there. I was surprised to find quite so many in the HIE so it took me aback. But now I know so I won't make that mistake again. I stay in different hotels around 40 nights a year and have never seen a dog. Most people are sensible. I'll be more picky with hotels in future.

Agreed. I used to travel a lot with my terrier for work reasons and often had to stay outside of/on the outskirts of town because dog-friendly, central places were not easy to find.

We almost never found anywhere we could eat out unless we were deep in the countryside.

There's absolutely no need for dogs to stay in hotels. They're animals, if you have to take them with you somewhere they can stay in the car overnight with a window cracked open, it won't kill them.
I recently went on a city break, was about to book a really nice independent hotel when I read the bit of the website that said they were dog friendly. So the chain hotel that did not allow dogs got my business instead.

when have people ever left their dogs home alone when they were going away for the weekend or holidays, really?

Yanbu at all. We have dog allergies and it is ridiculous how hard it is to find dog-free spaces these days.

People used to live life just fine without the need to have their dogs with them at all times, it’s beyond frustrating.

Where do you want to visit? I am willing to bet you a month's salary I can find you dog-free hotels and eateries in your chosen destination.

I travel around and stay in hotels a lot because I compete in a dog sport with my dogs, and go to competitions all over the UK. So I kinda have to bring my dogs. I usually stay in Travelodges as it’s the cheapest option but have stayed in other chains and independent hotels. I don’t really know what your problem is though, there’s far more NON dog friendly hotels out there, so just choose one of them? Premier Inn, for example.

I was on a train once with my late terrier. He was shattered from a weekend of training activities, so he spent the entire 2 hours under my seat, gently snoring.

As we got close to my stop, I woke him to put his coat on coz it was pissing down, and we were walking home.

The woman sat opposite me immediately started coughing and complaining that he was setting off her asthma and the smell of him was making her nauseous. She sent her poor, embarassed looking husband off to find a member of staff to complain because dogs are not allowed on trains.

I bit my tongue, but I really, really wanted to say "dude, he's been here for two fucking hours, and you've only just noticed."

That’s all well and good if dog-free businesses were easy to find. Unfortunately these days the majority are dog-friendly leaving those allergic to dogs with next to no choice about where to stay or where to have coffee.
Too many places have listened to their customers, unfortunately it’s easy to be vocal about how you would like them to welcome your dogs, it’s much harder to put across the anti-dog side because these days not wanting to be around dogs apparently makes you some kind of awful person.

Businesses are listening to their customers, that’s why many are dog-friendly. Believe it or not, lots of people actually enjoy travelling with pets or spotting them around hotels. Hotels can’t cater to every allergy, preference, or phobia, some welcome dogs, some don’t. OP’s meltdown? Easily avoided with a little research… or common sense.

My dog lives the epitome of a ‘natural’ life - he does the exact job he’s bred to do. Outdoors. In all weathers. When he’s not working, he’s outside with me with full run of our smallholding. He loves a car journey with his nose out the window and will race you to the car door. Goes to play golf on a Sunday with my OH. He’s in peak health, perfect condition. He spends at least half his day- often more- flat out sleeping. Because he is tired and fulfilled. He does not care where he sleeps, as long as it’s comfy and quiet and he can cuddle into me if the notion takes him. He’s not ‘holed up’ when he’s in a hotel - he’s happily resting because he’s a content and confident dog who can settle anywhere as his needs are consistently met.

Some folk are bonkers 😂