Prickly Guest & her Pooch

[Amanda660]

We’re big dog fans and (touch wood) have had great canine guests thus far.  Its opened up a much bigger slice of the market and its working well for us. 

Guest booked ages ago - dates were rescheduled  as the wedding they were attending was postponed.  They are due to arrive next week with their small dog.  All correspondence with her has been a struggle and she’s difficult to please and quite aggressive in her manner.

Our house rules state that if you go out and leave pooch it must be crated.  She wants to attend a wedding plus evening reception and leave the dog unattended but says she won’t crate.  She also intimidated that the crating rule wasn’t there before but it’s always been there. 

Thoughts?  I’ve been dreading her stay and the review. 

[Sarah977]

@Amanda660  Contact Airbnb and tell them the guest has made it clear she has no intention to respect your stated rule re crating dogs if they are left alone, and has been very aggressive in her communications with you, and ask them to do a neutral cancellation with no penalties to you.

[Brian2036]

@Amanda660 

I would be inclined to try to motivate this guest to cancel.

 You have a beautiful home and I can imagine the kind of damage a neurotic dog could do if abandoned in a strange place for a long time.

 I would tell her that you understand that she is unwilling to crate her dog, but she needs to understand that you are unable to change your very reasonable rules, so she can either crate the dog, take it with her, leave it at a kennel, or, better yet, cancel her reservation and stay in a kennel herself.

(You probably shouldn’t say that last part.)

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

😄 😄 lool @Brian2036 

[Jillian115]

@Amanda660 @Brian2036 @Sarah977 Yes I think it's best to encourage her to cancel. It's sounds like she's a bit of a bully by accusing you of changing your rules. You should definitely let CS know that she has stated she will not follow your house rules and has been aggressive. They can help her find a location that is more suitable for her needs. 

[Amanda660]

Thanks for all your advice.  

The offer of free cancellation did indeed do the trick. 😓

The weather is looking great for next week and I have some windows in need of a rub down and re-paint.  At least if the dates aren’t rebooked I can make the most of the breather and the sunshine.