Recently, I've had two guests book my otherwise pet-excluded space with therapy animals. I was surprised at the lack of support for hosts in Airbnb's policy and would like to see this policy revised. I am an amimal lover and dog owner, and am totally supportive of the use of assistance animals; but there are issues for hosts that Airbnb's one-sided policy ignores:
1) That the guest doesn't have to disclose the presence of a therapy animal prior to booking.
Transparency is fundamental to trust. This is homesharing, these are not commercial spaces. It's only fair that the host is totally prepared and that any questions are resolved prior to a guest stay.
2) That the host cannot charge extra due to the presence of a tharapy animal.
This is not a only matter of how well trained the therapy animal is. The next guest may have severe allergies that, being a pet-excluded home, may not come up during the booking process. Spaces should get a "deep clean" to get rid of pet fur and dander that the therapy animal leaves behind. Airbnb may be jeopardizing the host's future guest satisfaction if the host can't afford adequate cleaning after the guest with an animal leaves.
3) That Airbnb requires no documention for assistance animals.
Any bona fide assistance animal should have documnentation that describes what services it provides and how it has beeen trained. As for Emotial Support Animals (ESA's) it's worth noting that ANY animal can be considered an ESA (birds, pigs, etc.) and it's particularly easy to get a letter or vest online. Property managers are allowed to ask for a letter from a doctor or a licensed therapist if an animal is considered an ESA.
4) Just because an animal is good with humans doesn't mean it gets along with other animals.
This should be self-explanatory, but animal-to-animal dynamics can be unpredictable and it's not fair to the host, the hosts pets or the guest's animal that unfamilar animals be foisted upon each other.
You need to do better on this one, Airbnb.
