Not allows pet in my STR but guest bring a pet

[Savittree-R0]

Hello everyone.

I am still pretty new here. I am hosting for 7 months. I never have this experience before. I set my house rule that doesn't allows pet (I love animal and I own a chocolate lab, but try to have my space clean and safe for all guests, especially the one who allergic to fur).

This current booking, they show up with their big size dog (my mom who stay at home told me when I got home after work, which is already night time). How can I know if they break my house rule? or their dog is emotional support animal? What will be suggestion for my future hosting and  have this issue again?

Thank you in advance

Savie

[Marie8425]

@Savittree-R0 

Ask.  It is nyour rental, you don't allow pets,  Ts bit a pet?

If they say a service animal.  Then I just share Airbnb rules to set my expectation of a service animal.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1869

[Savittree-R0]

Thank you so much @Marie8425  , I have limited knowledge about service or emotional support animals. Appreciate you send the link.

I am curious if I should add my house rule that if you bring service/emotional support animals , the guess should provide some kind of paper or at least let host know in advance.

[Marie8425 · Accepted solution]

@Savittree-R0  No because you will be flagged as discriminating, I am in a wheelchair I do not have to prove my medical need or warn you I require a tool,  A service animal is considered a medical necessary tool  I do not know of anything that would stop you from saying your medical tool is not allowed on my furniture,  I don't think you can insist but I have suggested before just politely ask here is my vacuum would you mind vacuuming the rugs animal was on for dog hair.  Most people if not facing aggression will just agree it is maybe 10 minutes of time.

[Mark3910]

Not sure about AZ, but many places require you to prove the need in order to get a certificate for a service or emotional support animal, although through acquaintances of mine this seems easy to do by unscrupulous people these days.

You state you do not need to warn someone that you require a tool, but it would be a nice courtesy to the Airbnb host, especially if they have a "No Pet," listing. 

[Amy158]

If you say no pets in your listing, you should contact them and make sure it's noted. If it is not a service or emotional support animal you have every right to ask them to leave. Otherwise, make sure they are aware of the Airbnb guidelines and you can draw a hard line about them leaving their animal alone in the house.

From Airbnb's guidelines for service/emotional support animals:

"A guest’s service animal must not be ... Left alone at the listing without prior approval."

I state something similar to this in my "no pets" listing: 

"If are bringing a service or emotional support animal you must follow Airbnb's policy including that the service/emotional support animal not be "left alone at the listing," and all other requirements listed here: https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1869. Any additional cleaning charges incurred due to animals will be charged to the guest(s)."

I hosted a couple who had a 'palliative care" dog and that was "well-behaved." This dog ate a whole in my front gate and also left pee stains in several places on my carpet that I was unable to remove. They replaced the gate but I was not able to get anything for the stained carpet.

I so wish Airbnb (and California) had better policies because I rent out my primary residence and have allergies to animals. I wouldn't care if it was a true service/support animal but anyone can claim their untrained pet is an emotional support animal.

[Savittree-R0]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience and some suggestion.

[Helen3]

If you don't accept pets you should contact the guest and point out they have brought a pet into your property against your house rules @Savittree-R0 

[Savittree-R0]

Thank you so much. Will do.

[Paula]

Hello @Savittree-R0, welcome to our community 😊

There are many great suggestions from our Hosts in this thread ✌️. If you find any of their answers particularly useful, please don't hesitate to mark it as the best answer. You can do this by clicking the button below the comment as shown in the following image:

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All the best.

[Savittree-R0]

Thank you Paula, will do

[Paula]

Thank YOU @Savittree-R0  😊

[Mark3910]

This is a tricky area these days. Maybe you could have a house listing as "No Animals." My listing says no pets and I would be upset if someone showed up with an unlisted pet, service or emotional support animal or not. Unfortunate for the people with legitimate claims, but  I've have seen this "medical necessary tool" misused so many times even by friends of mine that I've become a doubter.

Also I list no pets as we have a cat, so I don't want any conflicts. Pets,  service or emotional support animals also leave behind traces of themselves, hair, smell, discharges, etc. that require extra and more thorough cleaning as your next guest may have animal allergies.

If a guest did this to me I might bite the bullet to avoid conflict and possible legal action, but I would definitely note this in my review, whether Airbnb wanted to blacklist me or not, and check the "Would not host again," box. Hosts have rights too.