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?

I thought it was common that dogs wouldn’t be allowed upstairs, on furniture or left alone. We would take dog on that basis and if anything extra was allowed that would be a bonus

The number of people who ignore these rules explain why a recent holiday home trip had dog hair in the bed and basically woven into obviously washed sheets. It was really unpleasant.
We try and avoid dog friendly cottages now.

Good for you

Hate to break it to you but children and dogs are 2 separate things entirely.
Do you have a child substitute dog or something?
Do you really believe having a dog is equivalent to having a child?

Anyway - Children I would normally expect to see all rooms in a house and heaven forbid even on the furniture. Dogs, I would not.

This is why we stopped trying to have holidays with our dog. It's sad but we learned that "dog friendly" means no such thing most of the time. At best it means "dogs barely tolerated".

Ignore their rules but make sure your dog doesn't do any damage / clean thoroughly before you leave. We took our cats a few years ago. Pets were allowed but not on furnishings. We thought it would be fine as there was a door we could shut to the kitchen, but one meowed incessantly at night, so we ended up letting them in the bedrooms. We found a few scratches at the bottom of one door which we weren't sure were there when we arrived, so bought some wood filler to cover them up. No comeback ftom the owners.

Just ignore them and let the dog upstairs. If there's hair, just say it's from your clothes. I would've thought the type of person who wants to holiday with their dog is likely to be the type of person who has their dog in the bedroom, so you are definitely not being unreasonable. Weird rule anyway, surely they'd want you keeping a close eye on him rather than shutting him in a room unattended where he might cause damage? Even dogs who are fine alone at home may well be unsettled or distressed in a strange place, they should always be supervised.

YANBU. If owners don't want dogs on furniture (which is perfectly valid) then they need to make that clear in advance, not just drop it on owners when they walk through the door.

We take our dog on holiday and always speak to the owner direct before booking to get the rules in writing first.

Where in my post do I say that my dog (or any dog) is allowed to ruin sofas and beds. If somewhere is advertised as “dog friendly” then the dog should not be restricted to one room. I have never had any complaints from the numerous houses/lodges/pods etc I have stayed in, in fact I am always complemented on how clean and tidy I have left the accommodation.

YABU to be upset since nearly every holiday let I have ever stayed in (and I go on staycations 4-5 times a year and have done for the last 10+ years) has been very clear no dogs on furniture and no dogs upstairs. It's an unwritten rule that is usually then made clear on arrival. Some even restrict dogs to the kitchen. Dog friendly doesn't mean free for all.

BUT..I never have and never will respect those rules. My dogs go upstairs. I lay down old bed sheets I take with me for that exact purpose all over the landing and into the bedroom I sleep in. They sleep on them. I also take my own throws to put on sofas etc. I clean when I leave, including hoovering (take my own as holiday let ones are shit) and have never had any complaints.

I just interpret it as ‘don’t leave evidence that your dog has been upstairs or on the sofa’. I’m sure most of the places assume the rules will be broken, but it means people are less likely to take the piss & leave the place covered in mud.

The £50 is supposed to cover an extra thorough clean so I wouldn’t feel bad about ignoring the rules. Remember to take some throws next time.

That's the point of the extra £50 charge that there may be extra cleaning.

Hope you are able to enjoy your holiday and ignore the rules. If they had clearly stated the rules before booking then obviously you should follow them. But if they can't be bothered to make them clear before you book then they are unreasonable. I always carefully scan holiday details for the level of pet friendliness as have similarly been caught out before.

Pet Friendly meaning the dog is allowed in the downstairs of the holiday let but not up to the bedrooms is pretty common, isn't it?

Then again, our dogs weren't allowed upstairs when I was a child, so I see that as pretty normal. Garden and downstairs only.

This would annoy me too as a dog owner. Leave them a bad review after the holiday.

Most places that are dog friendly really mean dogs tolerated.

Tho I’d never expect the dog to be allowed upstairs or on furniture tbh.

Don’t be ridiculous , the dog doesn’t have special needs but they are creatures of habit . My dog has slept upstairs for 14 yrs , he has a routine if you don’t stick to the bedtime routine you don’t sleep ! The home owners should have given you all the info before you booked I hope you are asking for your money back .

I was going to say YABU until I read it's a holiday home rather than a hotel (where food service areas are often out of bounds even in dog-friendly places).

The owners are kicking themselves in the teeth here. Dog owners unlikely to want to stay somewhere with such tight restrictions, but the dog-friendly label will put many others off on the assumption dogs have been everywhere! The worst of both worlds!

It’s always been normal for any dogs we’ve had!

The ad was misleading, probably deliberately. I’d ignore their rules and write a review warning anyone else off.
The ad should have read not ‘pet friendly’ but ‘dogs tolerated subject to restrictions as follows.’

We did try and leave the dog downstairs but she then pissed on their sofa because she was scared as she's always been allowed up with us.

And this is exactly why I never ever book anywhere that allows dogs. How vile.

We had the same last year. Pet friendly cottage - where the dog was expected to be shut in the kitchen at all times. Not allowed upstairs but no stair gates provided, dog friendly garden, but big gaps under the fences and hedges and sheep in the field outside. My small terrier would have been in the next county if I'd let her off the lead in the garden.

I had taken big throws and covers to put on furniture and on the beds, so used those and let her upstairs, but made sure she stayed on the covers I'd brought. Keeping her in the kitchen would have been impossible in a strange place, she'd have scratched at the doors and destroyed them. Yes, she's trained, and no, she wouldn't DREAM of doing that at home, but in a strange place and thinking I'd disappeared? You'd better believe she'd try to escape.

Is just ignore them if the place was sold as dog friendly.

In my experience, as a dog owner and user of 'dog friendly' Airbnb and other self catering accommodation, this is really common. It's really usual for dogs not to be allowed on furniture or upstairs, even in dog friendly accommodation.

Also make sure to leave a review so others are aware of the restrictions before booking