Pets -- should I allow them or not?

[Deborah0]

A common question that has come up in the host community, is whether or not to allow guests to bring pets, and if so, how to make rules about that.  If you don't allow pets to be brought to your house, can you share why you made that decision?  If you do allow guests to bring pets, can you share what steps you have taken to try to avoid problems with guests' pets? For instance, do you allow dogs but not cats, or cats but not dogs?  IF you allow pets, what will you do if a problem with the guest's pet arises, such as it pees/poops on your floor , or tears at your furniture, or barks a lot?  Does your having a pet yourself, influence your decision about whether to allow guests to bring pets? 

If you have allowed pets, what experiences have you had with guest's pets?  

[Sarah977]

@James1102  Well, of course a place is never spotless when guests leave, I would never expect it to be. They are paying for the accommodation and are on vacation, they didn't come to be house cleaners. The most we can expect as hosts is that they leave it reasonably clean and tidy and don't damage anything.

Occasionally a guest will surprise you and leave it spotless- I've had a couple of guests like that.

But I agree with you on the pets- I don't accept them, even though I'm a dog owner myself. My dog has never been allowed on the furniture from the time she was a puppy- it doesn't even occur to her to get up on the couch or a bed. Nor does she chew things or do any damage if I leave her alone, even in a strange place. She just lies calmly and waits for my return. But she is a heavy shedder, so I'd never stay anywhere she couldn't be left outside safely (she seldom comes inside at all-she's accustomed to being an outside dog)- I just wouldn't do that to someone else's house, unless they were a friend or family member and were okay with it.

But I know most dog owners have quite different standards than I do, see nothing wrong with Fido sleeping in bed with them, and there aren't any dog owners who won't tell you their dog is well-behaved if they are trying to be able to book a place and bring the dog. And yes, there is the allergy factor.

There are plenty of places that accept pets- guests with pets should look for those, not bring an ill-behaved or shedding pet to a no pets listings or try to convince a host to accept them.

[James1102]

Haha.  My spotless on checkout was tongue in cheek.  😁

[James1102]

@Sarah977... and totally agree on the cleaning comments.  

[Sarah977]

@James1102 You'd be surprised- I've seen posts from hosts who posted pictures of the "huge mess" their guest left behind- half a dozen last minute breakfast dishes in the sink, some blankets left in a pile on the couch, some toothpaste smeared on the bathroom counter, a few pieces of garbage on the floor- pretty standard and nothing that takes more than a few extra minutes to deal with during a normal cleaning. There actually are hosts who expect guests to leave the place spotless. I assume they are constantly disappointed.