No Pets vs. Not Suitable for Pets vs. Pets Not Allowed

[Rob131]

In the hosting options you can set the following option:

House Rules > Pets Allowed (X obviously means Pets Not Allowed)

Once that's selected it displays on your listing as:

House Rules > Not suitable for pets

This language IS NOT strong enough! It needs to read NO PETS.

I realize I could add to the listing but this is such an obvious oversight. This is a House RULE not a House SUGGESTION. By saying the house is "not suitable" you've got people who think well, my dog is a good dog and well trained, they'll be fine.

That's not the point. Pets are more likely to do damage, hair gets everywhere, they cause allergy problems, and there are tons of other reasons why people may want to refuse pets.

I just happened to see my guest entering our property with 2 big dogs and my listing is set to "Pets Not Allowed"... It's hard to blame them when the listing shows as "Not Suitable for Pets" since it seems like more of a suggestion. Now I'm not sure whether to confront them about the issue or not but we DO NOT want pets in our house.

I understand there is complexities with service animals but you would think someone would disclose animals in the house when you explicitly have Not Suitable for Pets listed on the listing? Should I mention that neighbors saw that pets were on the premise and that we specifically mention they're not allowed in the listing?

At this point they're not going to send their dogs away... and I can't really kick them out since they rented it for Thanksgiving holiday and I have a conscience... and I don't want to get a bad rating for something that's not my fault...

So what do I do? Just bite the bullet and explicitly state in the description that NO PETS of ANY KIND are allowed? Mention that we'll take the security deposit if we find you have pets? I'm not really sure what to do from here.

Thanks in advance!

[Marzena4]

In fact, since your house rules do not accept pets, you should have contacted Airbnb Customer Service upon check-in because those guests qualified for cancellation. The same would have been with extra guests, @Rob131.

As for wording, common-sense people should be able to understand "not suitable" correctly. I have had a lot of guests from abroad and it is simply that conviction "I am the one who's right" that makes people interprete rules according to their sense, not necessarily 'common.'

[Maj-Britt0]

we have also stated extra in the house rule that no pets, of any kind, allowed. For me it is kind of a double safe step, breaking house rules is reason to break you "lease". I also explain to the guests, usually before they even try to book, that we are specially suited for people with allergies and I need to guarentee that no pets were ever in the apartment. It hard some times to be strickt, especially when return guest want to come again but with a dog. I need to be able to say that people with alergies can stay here, and not have a problem.

good luck.

[Heather133]

I just had a situation where someone didn't mention they were bringing a pet to my "not suitable for pets" listing. It's a strict rule of the condo association. Two days into their stay I was called about the dog running around off leash. At that point they told me it was a service dog. When I told them it would be hard for me to argue their case with the board of directors, who would need to approve it, because the dog was not in the control of the handler, they told me it is actually an emotional support dog. Had I known the dog was coming, I would have found them accomodations at one of my properties that is pet-friendly.

I think it would be reasonable for Airbnb to require people to disclose at the time of making a reservation that they were bringing service dogs or assistance pets. If I am required to accommodate them, I should at least have a warning so that I can remove items that could easily be damaged, organize a thorough post-rental cleaning, or, in this case, obtain sign off from of the condo board. This surprise ruined my plans for the evening. 

[Leslie-And-Marc0]

I know you posted this several months ago, but the same thing just happened to me. People are getting any dog they want and calling it a service dog. No one requires proof! What a scam! And its discrimination if i don't allow the dog. That's just pure BS! IMHO. and the dog had no jacket on declaring it to be a service dog nor was it on a leash. That's against the law in nt town. 

What can we do as a host?

[Catherine53]

Leslie, airlines are now requiring proof of "service animals." I would go with their new rules. One lady tried to take a giant peacock without a cage on the seat next to her as a "service / companion animal." That was enough for the airline to finally change their rules. AirBnB must allow the same!

[Catherine53]

Yes, I agree... it's impossible for AirBnB to deny guests & owners this absolutely necessary important health information regarding pets in the house(s). They let us know if there is a "hair dryer," for God's sake. Who cares about a hair dryer? We care about our health. I have paid for rooms and then had to leave due to animal allergies and that is just not right.

I have to write to each individual host to find someone who does NOT have animals in the house, as I will end up in the hospital sometimes with allergies so bad. Many hosts have animals outside or in a different part of the house so it should not be a problem for them to list if the rented room(s) are kept animal and dander-free.

AirBnB, get with the program please!

[Catherine53]

PS: And yes, I would keep the security deposit since it costs a LOT to properly clean a room after pets have been inside. Walls, ceilings, floors, furniture, lamps: every single thing has to be vacuumed and cleaned before peple with allergies like me can stay there. Otherwise, within one hour or less it's a trip to the hospital for me. I can't believe how inconsiderate people can be, bringing pets when it states "not suitable" OR "not allowed." Can they not read?

[Catherine53]

(duplicate comment?)

[Kathy396]

Sorry guys, "Not suitable for pets" is a rediculous thing to say if you mean "No pets allowed".

Just say what you mean and mean what you say without convoluding the matter. How annoying for the guest who, like us, leave in 1 day for holiday and our cat-sitter has fallen ill. We have no replacement for her. To cancel would mean losing money for us and for the renter. If I hadn't googled "what does not suitable for pets mean?", I would have thought we might have a chance to save our holday by bringing the pet. Good grief,  just spit it out: "No pets allowed".

[Lynn217]

Well, it's clear that AirBnB was aware of the "not appropriate for pets" wording issue well before the lawyer who snuck a pet into my house used the fact that it didn't say "no pets" to rationalize their rule breaking. On top of that, no pets allowed or not, the insurance does not cover pet damage- that's just wrong!

How do you all monitor the house to make sure no pets are entering?

[Giedre-and-Andre0]

@Lynn217 @Rob131 Easy fix...

Custom/additional house rules:

NO PETS 😉

[Lauren2594]

I tried to book a room, and the listing says "pets allowed."  The woman then said once in a while she will allow a small "under 15 lb pet" into the Suite.  My dog is a legit service dog, and she said that her dog wouldn't like other dogs.  Why doesn't she just change her listing?  I reported her profile to AirBnB, and told her I was reporting her.  I would never pass off my service dog as not a "real one."