To expect pet friendly to mean a dog can go everywhere

[Fluffyelephant]

We arrived yesterday in a holiday house for a family trip that was booked because the place described itself as pet friendly. On arrival though we were presented with very intense written rules regarding dogs - they were in bold and used terms like ‘under absolutely no circumstances with no exception can your dog…’

If we had been told these rules in advance we would never have paid to stay here as they absolutely won’t work for our dog and we know that. The main rule causing issue is that he’s only actually allowed in the living room and part of the hall so 75% of the house is off limits including the stairs. He’s well behaved and good natured and is a breed that doesn’t shed hair. But he’s a clingy breed and follows us around and always sleeps on the floor by our bed otherwise he gets very distressed.

The owners know a dog was coming because we told them and we paid an extra £50. But none of these rules were mentioned. If he caused damage then of course I would pay (as I would if it was caused by a child or adult) but this seems to be rules to preemptively prevent any damage from occurring in the first place.

Last night in an attempt to follow the rules I tried sleeping on the two seat sofa in the living room next to dog but this was horrendous so we just came upstairs. My partner says it’s impossible to relax so we’ll just have to drive gone today!

I feel like places say ‘pet friendly’ to get your money when they actually aren’t at all! AIBU?

This is my experience too.

And I totally agree, as a non-dog-owner.

I don't want to stay anywhere where dogs have been sleeping on the beds or allowed on the furniture. Yuk.

Not in my experience.

Oh that's funny. 🙄

I agree and I'm a dog owner.

There’s plenty of hotel in this country that don’t allow dogs.

That’s not unique to ‘abroad’. Obviously if you go abroad and stay inside your all inclusive resort and never leave you won’t see dogs. It’s doesn’t mean ‘abroad’ doesn’t have dogs.

Pet friendly normally means the dog is allowed in the living room but nowhere else (IME anyway). Many dog owners don't want to stay in a property where dogs have been allowed to sleep in bedrooms, on furniture, in the kitchen!

If you allow dogs in bedrooms some will accidentally jump on beds or sleep in the bed. Imagine having to wash and dry a king sized duvet and pillows in between guests and get dog smell out of the mattress and carpets. You'd need to wash all the carpets and steam clean upholstery in every room! Even non shed dogs produce dog smell, dander, sweat. They might have smelly glands or dirty feet, or have an accident in the night.

Maybe the accommodation is fed up with people ignoring the rules and letting their dogs have the run of the house? At least if you contain dog to one room it reduces the cleaning. Presumably the lounge has a hard floor, wipe clean sofa, no expensive rugs or fragile ornaments?
It also means if you sneak dog into a bedroom and dog is sick on the carpet or bed, they can charge you a massive fee for sanitising or replacing these items.

Lots of places don't allow children or say not suitable for children under 12 (usually citing safety reasons) but no doubt the risk of children damaging expensive furnishings or being noisy comes into it.
But places that are child friendly naturally have to provide suitable bedrooms/sleeping spaces, have lockable windows, secure locks to balconies/flat roofs, any railings have to adhere to safety standards etc. Children are included and paid for on the booking form, unlike pets.

I don't understand the need to treat dogs as babies. I love dogs, I have a dog. But he is not my 'fur baby' he is a dog, and as such I treat him like a dog. He stays downstairs and isn't allowed on sofas. He has his own dog bed and has no need for a human bed! (And despite being very short haired and minimal shedding/regularly groomed and bathed, I can confirm his bed stinks and needs frequent washing - the thought of that stench in my bed is grim!).

When I book dog friendly accommodation I expect dogs to be restricted to downstairs and no sofas. Everywhere I've ever booked as dog friendly has had these rules, and also stated that the dog must not be left in the house whilst you go out. Obviously we leave him at home alone, but when staying in somebody else's property I respect the rules and make sure we go on dog friendly days out so there is no need to leave him.

That said though, I have always been given the rules in advance, so I do think the OP is right to be annoyed that she wasn't told before booking.

No. Who wants to stay there after you when the smelly dog has been in the bed

Where does your dog live then?

Is there something untrue about kids and adults potentially having fleas, worms or being incontinent?

All of these are possible, likely even, especially incontinence.

Just do your thing, clean up and they will be non the wiser. Not sure what the additional £50 was for.

I think there’s a difference between cottages that market themselves as ‘dog friendly’ (I would expect something like the Norfolk cottages upthread) and those that market themselves as ‘dogs accepted’ ( I would expect restrictions and not necessarily a dog friendly setup). I would only take my pack (sighthounds used to being with their people 24x7) to the former. In OPs position I would be furious to encounter rules not disclosed pre booking.

FFS. OP said that the dog liked to sleep on the floor at the foot of the bed. I'm not a dog person (allergies etc) but there's no need to make stuff up just so that you can be extra outraged.

YANBU OP. The owner of the property should have been more clear about the rules. I think some people just don't want dogs in their place at all, but know that they will lose a lot of business by saying 'no pets'. To me it should be one or the other, with a few basic rules in place. Not stupid rules that can't be adhered to because they are so stringent and contradictory. I prefer somewhere that pets are not allowed at all, as DP and DS1 are highly allergic and I am somewhat allergic, so a holiday let where dogs had been could result in a miserable holiday for us.

OP didn't say anything about her dog sleeping in the bed 🙄

Dog owners always say their dog doesn’t sleep in their bed, as they realise how scuzzy it is, but if the dog is in the bedroom then yes it comes in the bed 🤢

But it doesn't mean that though

My dog is massive and hairy and he does not sleep on my bed or ever go on the bed.

Usually he sleeps downstairs at home. He alternates between the floor, his own bed and the sofa but in a holiday let, if they don't want him on the sofa and/ or there is no stairgate to prevent him going upstairs then I will put his bed in our room so he can be near us and shut into one room where I will know if he gets up to anything. That is actually far better for the holiday let person than him being unsupervised downstairs

My dog sleeps in my bed and I love it! The snuggles are top notch 👍🏻

Same! My dog spent the 18 months of his life being used as an ashtray and a football. First night we got him home he curled up next to me (dismissing the large dog bed in the corner) and that was that.

We choose our holiday homes carefully.

Why would anyone lie about something like that on an anonymous forum?

Mine sleeps in the bed and it's fab

Really? How do you know? How are you seeing into bedrooms of dogs owners all over the country?

You do realise plenty of dogs don’t try and get in bed with people and that some don’t like sleeping in beds with people at all, don’t you?

We have stayed in loads of dog friendly places where the rules have said no dogs upstairs and ignored them.
He doesnt go on furniture or beds at home so no issue there but in a strange place no way would he settle downstairs alone.
We always hoover etc and there is no evidence

I wouldn’t want to stay anywhere where dogs had been allowed upstairs, or in bedrooms if a bungalow, and I would expect not allowing that to be a standard rule.

However, I also think it would be sensible for rules to be readily available in any pet friendly accommodation, for the avoidance of doubt.

Absolutely not true!
I've had lots of dogs. Some that never came on the bed at all, some that would jump up for a cuddle and only one ever that actually slept on the bed (at the end). They slept on a blanket to protect the bedding.

My dog being allowed access to the bedroom doesn't mean they sleep with me.

How is it actually scuzzy though? Anymore than having another human in your bed. Especially with the varying hygiene standards humans come with. My little dog sleeps on my bed, she doesn't drool, slobber, leave dirt or smell - she doesn't even fart which is more than I can say for many men that might share someones bed! I'm struggling to see what I'll effects it might cause or how it's 'scuzzy' 😅