Ok, so I have been a "no pet" property for years. Occasionally, if someone asks and I think it'll be a good fit, I'll accept a pet and charge a pet fee through the Resolution Center. When Airbnb finally rolled out the pet fee, I was like, "ok, cool, since some folks just sneak their dogs in anyway, let's make it all clear and upfront and allow pets and charge a $100 fee". (Per visit, because of course, Airbnb can't do something as simple as give hosts a "per night" option.) But it sounds like, whether I allow pets or not, Airbnb is pushing guests to declare their pets as "Assistance Animals" and hosts have to accept them, free of charge, no matter what their pet policy. So, I'm tempted to go back to "no pets", but then I almost wonder if that's worth it, because guests are going to claim "emotional support" (apparently at Airbnb's urging) no matter what.
My hope is that guests would be cool and recognize that their pets/support animals/whatever are indeed a real inconvenience and issue for many hosts and would opt to pay the one-time pet fee anyway because it's the right thing to do. But that's probably pretty unlikely with the level of entitlement Airbnb shows guests. (And please note, I love my guests and I love animals. My frustration is strictly with Airbnb for continually throwing hosts under busses.)