Remember when I got blasted by Cs for not allowing the 2 2monthold not housebroken puppies who were “service animals”??
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Like @JJD I don’t care about greasy plates or dog hairs but I agree that the dog should be mentioned in the review. Future hosts need to know.
When I’ve had undisclosed dogs, I’ve mentioned it in the review like this “I wish I’d known that they were bringing the dog so that I could have left dog treats, feeding bowls and so on”.
That tells future hosts that the dog was not disclosed.
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The owners were aware of their dog’s aggressive tendencies as they brought a muzzle. That dog is not a service dog- it obviously has a pattern of aggression and did not heed basic commands. Honestly I’d probably flag them to AirBnB. Your review is extremely kind, as I would have likely asked them to leave after the first behavioral red flag before something worst could happen (and I’m so glad it didn’t!). It’s a safety and liability issue. Do you have an exterior security camera?
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Unfortunately no cameras, so there is no evidence of the aggressive behavior.
Ah! You might want to consider one anyways, we’ve heard it helps with claims and discourages folks from breaking house rules when it comes to extra guests
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A very low % of dogs make the grade to become service dogs. Disposition is probably one of the very first criteria that must be met to move on. I’m not buying the whole service dog routine…
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I have a service dog and I can 1000% guarantee you that dog is NOT a service dog. They are tested by the training agencies as to aggressiveness many times in the process. Any dog that shows even the slightest hint of aggressive behavior is out of the program. I would indeed mention the dog’s aggressiveness in your review to save other hosts the issues you experienced. What if it were a child that the dog ran towards?
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Yes, a child wouldn’t know to freeze. That’s a scary thought.
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Honestly, I would mention the dog. I would simply say at the end of your message. I did not know the dog was coming and would have appreciated knowing ahead of time.
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KimF “I did not know the dog was coming and would have appreciated knowing ahead of time.”
That is really good, I wish I had included it.
No. A service dog doesn’t have to be mentioned when a guest books and saying that could get a host in trouble.
It’s much better for her to mention the dog’s aggressive behavior, which makes it obvious that the guest lied about it being a service dog.
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really? Not trying to challenge your assertation, it just seems so unreasonable. My place is pet-free and I make that claim for those guests who are higly allergic to animals, even after a thorough cleaning. What about their protection? I don’t know…a service dog has hair, just saying.
The dog has to be mentioned. And reported to Airbnb. It’s an agressive dog and is dangerous. It doesn’t matter if the dog is a friggin war hero, it was being aggressive and dangerous. What if the dog isn’t reported and it kills a toddler at the next Airbnb? That is something to worry about, not discrimination. There is no discrimination in reporting an agressive dog, regardless of its job or faux-job or whatever (it’s not relevant). The idea that this dog shouldn’t be reported due to fears of being accused of discrimination by some chump answering the phone at Airbnb is absurd.
Even Airbnb’s own policy regarding Service Dogs dictates that they cannot be out of control. They cannot be dangerous. It is not allowed, not even by Airbnb. Discrimination is charging a pet fee for the dog or not making reasonable efforts to accommodate a guest with the dog. There is no discrimination in mentioning the dog in the review nor by reporting it - both of these things are actually an obligation. If anything, it would only do harm to people with disabilities that need service dogs for this “service dog” not to be reported and reviewed. In fact, it is most likely also illegal to have that dog out in public in the host’s jurisdiction, as it is in most.
And, for reference, even if it was the actual guest that has the disability (not the dog), that got aggressive and was out of control, it is okay to include that in the review and also to call the police if necessary. There is nothing about having a disability that allows agressive, dangerous behaviour. It’s discriminatory to think so.
Not to mention that these people should not even have this dog. It’s unconscionable to have an untrained German Shepherd. They are easy to train and are born desiring training. And are very dangerous when they are not. If this was going on next to door to me, if my neighbors had a dog like that they weren’t being responsible with, which is ultimately neglect and abuse, I’d report them and have the dog removed. So, really, the review is not so important, but they have to reported to Airbnb at the very least.
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It is just Airbnb policy.
Yes, it’s unreasonable, but it is Airbnb policy. Guests are not required to disclose a service dog or ESA when they book, those dogs are not considered pets, and they can book a no pets listing.
And if the guest reports the host to Airbnb for refusing these bookings because of the dog, Airbnb is likely to suspend or delist you.
However, if it’s a home share listing, as opposed to an entire place, you can specify no service animals due to health or safety issues.
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This is the best advice I have read thus far.
Now I’ve changed my mind about mention of the aggressive dog.
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It all depends how one looks at it and the real goal of the review. Are we trying to be “fully honest and comprehensive” or “warn future hosts”?
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Bear in mind - there is no proof. It is he said / she said. No photos or videos of the dog wearing a muzzle, or running amok and growling.
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One goal may be: “warn future hosts”, give a bad review and keep it simple so that it sticks.
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Another goal may be “disclose the aggressive dog” in the review. It was - so that is truth, right? The REAL TRUTH is the dog is not a service animal or even service animal in training. So why not run with that and see what happens?
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So … do we want to “tell the full truth as we see it - without proof”, and risk it getting pulled. Or punish the guest and warn future hosts?
Why does it have to be one or the other? How about tell the truth and warn future hosts? In my mind it’s not about “punishment.” I have a toddler and an AirBnB guesthouse on our property. The driveway is next to ours and if someone brought that dog I would be scared for my babe’s safety.
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The fact that the dog was aggressive should be made known in the review to warn others. That was the host’s personal experience and doesn’t require proof, anymore than mentioning in a review that the guest failed to respect house rules.
But mention of the guests claiming it to be a service dog is actually unnecessary and should be avoided, as whether it is or not doesn’t require proof on the guests’ part and could land the host in hot water with Airbnb.
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