Dog-Friendly Hosting: What do you do?

[Alexandra316]

Left to right: King Bexley, Alonso, and Coogan the Terrible

Hey all, I've been a dog-friendly host since I opened my Airbnb just over 2 years ago, and I think I've hosted over a hundred dogs at this point. I chose to host dogs because I have three of them myself, and I find it tough to find accommodations that will accept them. At the moment, I offer dog treats, bowls, paw towels and dog sheets, but I'm wondering if anyone else does anything special for their canine guests.

Also, I was thinking about starting a dog wall of fame where people could post pics of their dogs. I wasn't sure how to do that: I was thinking of maybe leaving a Polaroid camera and encouraging people to take a photo and pin it to a board. Has anyone else done anything similar?

[Daphne70]

@Alexandra316 I love the idea of a canine guest wall of fame. Would love to be able to offer something similar but our listing is too small to add "extra guests".

[Alexandra316]

@Daphne70 It's worked really well for us, and I think we've had more guests than average for our market because there aren't many places that accommodate dogs - especially bigger dogs - in Canada. But I totally get why other hosts don't want to or are unable to accept doggy guests.

[Alexandra316]

This is the kind of camera that I was thinking of leaving:

https://www.amazon.ca/Fujifilm-Instax-Mini-Ice-Blue/dp/B06WW64YM6/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=instax+camera&...

Fairly cheap for the camera itself, and the pics cost less than $1 each.

[Kevin1322]

@Alexandra316  we have three greyhounds. 

Dog friendly sofas (isn't every sofa friendly to a dog) non slip floor tiles downstairs, walled garden and a doggy-day-out bag they can borrow containing a bowl, water bottle, treat bag, poo bags. 

Bit of prey drive in one of ours so we prefer not to  risk hosting rabbit sized dogs.... again for obvious reasons! (Greyhound owners will understand)

We featured our dogs in our listing very early on, and since then we've noticed that most of our visitors are dog owners although most are not travelling with their dogs.

Mutley (13), three legged Lily (5) and Daisy (2)

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[Alexandra316]

@Kevin1322 I like your dog day out bag idea: that's really nice.

Yes, I know exactly what you mean regarding the small dogs: Alonso and Coogan are okay, generally, but Bexley is not. He catches the wildlife. We also host a lot of dog lovers: most people want to meet them.

Love your pack: such cuties. Love the smile on Lily.

[Sarah_Matthew0]

Gorgeous!

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Alexandra316 

Dog wall of fame with polaroid photos would be great :))

Our place is dog-friendly but we hosted just a few groups with dogs, the interest is very low. We leave a towel for the dog and 2 bowls and a treat. The owners have to bring their own dog blanket. 

I used Airbnb with my dog twice but hosts didn't provide anything for him. I was not disappointed, I was happy they allow dogs 🙂

[Alexandra316]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 I feel the same: I've stayed in places that allow pets and I'm really happy to be able to bring them. I've never had a host who did anything special for them, and I'm fine with that. I just love leaving a little extra :-).

[Inna22]

@Alexandra316 @Kevin1322 I allow pets at all my properties, I do agree that it gives me much needed search boost in the competitive Chicago market. My human groups are more trouble and are capable of making a much bigger mess than any pet I have ever hosted. I do not own any pets, in fact was bitten by a tenant's dog once (not airbnb) so I try to stay away. Silly non dog owner question: Is there a purpose to a dog bowl other than the cute design? I always assumed my guests can just reach for one of the multiple bowls in the kitchen cabinets that I provide. 

[Alexandra316]

@Inna22 I always use a stainless bowl for my dog's food, and I feed them raw meat, so I don't use the bowls for anything else. They get put through the dishwasher after every use. They don't even have a cute design: they're just utilitarian stainless bowls. I do bring them with me when I travel so we're not serving raw meat to dirty dogs off of human serving wear, but there probably wouldn't be an issue with it, per se, as long as the bowls were washed properly.

I put all the dishes through the dishwasher on the sanitize cycle between guests anyways, because most people seem to do an absolutely rubbish job of dishwashing.

I agree regarding dog vs. human guests: I've had way more problematic human guests that canine. I've also never had a four-star review from a dog... so far :-).

[Kevin1322]

A handy thing when you are away from home with your own dogs can be  sanitizer tablets or powder such as  used for home brew, or you could use baby bottle sanitizer solution.  Thin cheap bleach would do the job if you rinse it well, but the home brew sanitizers don't even need a rinse.

We whack a bit in the steam cleaner when we are doing the tiled floors too!

Another issue with dogs can be a lingering doggy smell, some breeds more than others, and owners go "nose blind" to it.  we have a small cheap plug in ionizer that  will kill doggy smells dead in minutes in a room.

That has just made me think I should get one for the car to plug into the cig lighter.

[Alexandra316]

@Kevin1322That's an excellent idea: thanks for that. I will go to one of the U-brews to pick some up. 

Good idea regarding the ionizer. Greyhounds generally aren't too stinky - as I'm sure you know 🙂 - but it doesn't hurt to take precautions. 

[Sarah977]

@Inna22  The shape of a dog bowl is wider on the bottom than the top. This makes it stable. If you feed the dog in a normal household bowl, which normally has a smaller base than the top, of course it will do in a pinch, but it will tend to scoot across the floor when the dog is trying to eat.

Like Alexandra, there's nothing cute about my dog bowls- they are just utilitarian stainless steel.

It's more the small dog owners who tend to have "cute" things for their dogs- rhinestone collars, little hair bows, tartan jackets and such. 

[Stephanie]

This is a thread I can really appreciate @Alexandra316 - I am a big fan of dogs (and they're big fans of almost everything!) I think the dog wall of fame sounds absolutely amazing!! 

I reckon our @Suzanne302 would get a kick out of this thread too!