Its great to see such open conversation about this. We are not and have never been dog owners. We took on our first holiday property which had been dog friendly, we originally continued to list it as that.
We found that the vast majority left the property in perfect condition, we had rules that said no dogs upstairs and not on furniture. We then had a run of guests that left the garden soiled and even one that left a note to say sorry that the dog had thrown up on the bed which required a new duvet!!!
We are remote owners and found that even though we asked our cleaners to spend extra time to clean after pets we could not rely on them to do so. We also realised that we were "dog tolerant" rather than dog friendly. I really think that if you are going to take pets you have to do so with a passion and make the pets feel just as welcome as the owners.
We decided to no longer take pets and we often have to turn away booking requests. We also hear from a number of guests that say they booked us because we don't take pets.
Dog policy
Ecosse wrote:+1sparkJS wrote: It's a basic hygiene issue and I see no problem in places marketing themselves as dog friendly but with toileting rules. Even if fingers in mouths isn't an issue, who wants to sit on the grass only to find their clothes stinking of dog poo residue?
We market our place as being both pet and child friendly... and I don't allow the kids to defecate on our terrasse, either
Been following this thread with interest as someone who would actively avoid dog friendly accommodation (yes, you can always pick up the doggy aroma I'm afraid) & has long had a related problem of the feline variety.
However, when catering to a mixed market, especially child friendly I don't think soiled gardens are an option. Pet ownership (like parenthood) comes with responsibility & that shouldn't be suspended before bed/first thing just for convenience. Pick ups will inevitably leave residue sometimes & were I, or a child to wander out into the yard before bed to pee up the marigolds I doubt if I'd get a pat on the head & a biscuit? Four legs or two, shared gardens shouldn't be used as a toilet IMO. Warm weather, curious kids, bare feet & excrement is rarely a good combo so for me it's an avoidable risk.
OP, as always - your house, your rules but those rules should be made crystal clear in your advertising or T&C's etc & enforced thereafter. You may lose out on a few canine enthusiasts, you may lose out on a few pet free bookings but at least they have all the info up front. Personally, I'd agree with others that dog/pet friendly & dog/pet tolerant are markedly different & you'll never please everybody, so better just to please yourself & stick with it.
From an advertising & target demographic viewpoint - as part of our green certification & pet free policy we used to qualify as a low allergen environment. It was a relatively minor USP of very limited benefit I suppose but this has proven impossible to maintain simply because our house rules are often ignored & we are left to frequently santise after feral cats are made welcome/overfed by ignorant visitors garnishing us with all of the aforementioned hygiene headaches & more in the process.
This time next year Rodney, we'll be millionaires.