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'd be asking for some money returned as that's no holiday! Also they should advertise all their rules so you're aware up front

Because having a dog in your bedroom is minging

Lockdown. When every tom dick and Deidre decided to buy a spaniel cross.

Well, quite - surely most people would choose to get into a bed a dog's just laid on over getting into a bed humans have just had sex in?!

@NoMoreTories but she wouldn't have pissed anywhere if she'd been allowed upstairs to sleep on her own dog bed next to us. She was scared in a new house she'd never been to and there was a gate to stop her coming upstairs. She never ever wees in the house.
We would never have booked a house where dogs weren't allowed upstairs and have happily paid a premium to stay places they are allowed. This was on the agency letting the house.

We take dog beds, blankets, bedding etc We're very careful and very respectful.

Rather have stale jizz and sweat than a dirty dogs worm ridden butthole being itched on the bedstead.

We are not pet owners and would try to stay in non-pet friendly properties because of allergies.

In a "pet friendly" property I would expect that to mean the dog has the run of the ground floor, assuming it's an upstairs/downstairs property. I would not expect "pet friendly" to mean that animals were allowed in the bedrooms. I would also expect some rules even downstairs such as no dogs on the sofas/chairs.

My dogs wouldn’t cope with the separation in a strange place. We take blankets for the sofas and a duvet for the bed. They don’t shed. We therefore don’t create any mess.

Wherever we have had dog friendly accommodation there have been 3 rules.

1. No leaving dog alone in property.
2. No dogs upstairs.
3. No dogs on furniture.

Easy enough to follow for us.

Honestly just ignore the rules they won't even know. I had a doberman in a rental where I wasn't allowed pets for a couple of years. It's a them problem. Enjoy your holiday and do what's comfortable, you shouldn't be paying good money to be there to have to sleep on a chair. Plenty of humans are far more minging than dogs.

If they say anything just shrug and deny all knowledge.

Yanbu

We stayed somewhere like this before. All the dog rules were written on a blackboard in the kitchen.

No dogs upstairs.
No dogs on furniture (that one I usually think fair enough)
And then dogs on a lead on the garden!!

Most places are no dogs upstairs but we just ignore it and have never got into trouble for it.

One place said no dogs on the sofa but then their advertising photos (holiday lodge place) had photos of a happy family with a dog on the sofa! We took our own blankets to that one and let our dogs on the sofa.

I think it's fine to have whatever rules you want when you let a holiday property but you have to be explicit and honest.

Then people won't book it.

Don't say your garden is secure when a dog could escape in 5 seconds.
Don't miss out rules about where a dog can go in the property. It's not difficult.

Yanbu. I'd leave and get my money back if possible. I don't have any pets and avoid pet friendly holiday rentals, but if I was staying somewhere pet friendly, it wouldn't occur to me that the dog was only allowed in the living room. I'd assume it had been all over the house

At home my dog sleeps in the lounge happily but can come into my room if needed eg to tell me he needs out. In a strange place, he's not happy sleeping downstairs alone, particularly for the first couple of nights. He's a rehome and had separation issues. We've worked really hard on that and he's improved massively, but that's just a step too far. Plus, I don't think he'd ever been away until I got him and he didn't come to live with me until he was 9.

I've voted yabu because dog friendly just means you can take your dog, and you could.

I think it's reasonable though to have expected full details of the rules to be available before booking - and I think you should have asked for details if they weren't there, not just assumed things.

I would think no dogs upstairs or on furniture to be pretty standard. I think it's pretty entitled to expect a dog to be allowed in bedrooms and in sofas.

Or just book one of the many pets not allowed places. Theres no shortage of either pet friendly or non pet friendly places.

For the pp who had stopped going on holiday with dog, I can link to several dog friendly and some that go above and beyond for dogs if you'd like?

For OP for now ignore and clean up before you go, in the future take a large blanket for each piece of furniture you think will need it. A fluffy superking sized will cover all beds sizes and most sofas.

Why is it any more "minging" than having them in the living room? 😂

What about a human's worm ridden butthole?

If you're allergic then why would you book pet friendly accommodation - surely dogs in living rooms would also be an issue for you?

I think holiday lets should really have 2 categories: pet friendly and pets tolerated. For me, those are different things. Like hotels that are not adults only, so you can take kids, are different from family-friendly hotels.

Its totally ridiculous and I think they owe you a refund! I once went with my dogs, we got there and they told us they did not like dogs on the furniture, and as I was drawing breath, said 'this is why we supply throws for all the chairs and sofas while you are here'. Much more appropriate.

I'd also like to point out that 'upstairs' doesn't have to mean 'in bed with me.'
My dog sleeps upstairs at home. She has her own bed on the landing. I close the bedroom door at night. She'd quite like to sleep outside my bedroom door in an Air BnB too, not several rooms away and downstairs.

The OP hasnt even been back, so perhaps there is no upstairs, its probably a caravan/chalet/cottage

I'd do as I liked. Let your dog sleep by your bed at night and not worry about it. They advertised that pets were allowed, then tried to change the rules about what 'allowed' actually means. Most pet owners allow their pet through the entire home. A dog is no more likely to cause problems upstairs than down!

If something goes wrong and you need to pay to clean, repair, or replace something, you'll just do so, exactly as you would have if they hadn't imposed stricter rules upon your arrival. Most likely they'll never even know. If my dog shed hair, how would they know that it was from the dog being upstairs or the dog shedding on my clothes and being carried up by me?

Of course it's normal

I agree - when I have taken my dog with me to holiday cottages I have always respected the rules - no dogs upstairs or on beds, no leaving the dog alone in the property, dog to sleep only on own bed. The next person does not want to have a bed to sleep on where a dog has been (fleas?)

I would add my dog is a velcro dog but does not need to actually be in the same physical space as me - so long as I am in the building when we are away from home.