Tips for Staying at Vacation Rentals with Your Dog

How to Get Good Guest Reviews While Traveling with Your Dog

One of the most important parts of planning a vacation with your dog is to find proper dog-friendly accommodations. It can be hard finding a nice comfortable place for you and your pet when you are traveling someplace new. It can also be incredibly stressful hoping that you and your dog can remember and follow all the rules during your stay. With our tips for staying at vacation rentals with your dog, you can feel more confident when you bring your pup with you on your next adventure.

Join our Traveling Pet Owners Group so we can share tips and help each other find great pet-friendly properties and activities for future vacations!

The Importance of Being a Good Guest

No matter where you are staying, most pet parents worry that their pup might upset surrounding guests, neighbors, or property owners. These are important and valid concerns because too many complaints can lead to you getting kicked out, bad guest reviews, or losing your deposit. A lot of dog owners even feel like they have to leave their dogs at home because they are worried about what might happen if their pets aren’t perfect on vacation.

The ability to relax in a homier environment like most vacation rentals can be a lifesaver on vacation for you and your pups. Fenced-in backyards combined with a quiet and calm environment can translate to a more comfortable and better-behaved pup. When your dog is comfortable, it will be easier to leave them alone while you explore without them for short periods of time.

If you and your pup are good guests, it translates to receiving good guest ratings and can lead to future property owners being more lenient with their pet rules. You may even be able to avoid paying some of the extra fees or deposits.

Why Do Vacation Rentals Have So Many Rules for Pets?

The lack of pet-friendly accommodations and long lists of rules and pet fees can be incredibly frustrating and overwhelming. When you consider the risk property owners take when allowing animals to stay in their rental units, it is a bit more understandable why they exist.  When pet owners aren’t careful, animals can cause extensive damage to homes and the reputation of the property.

Both can have huge financial repercussions and cause other issues for the vacation rental owner. Because of this, it is extra important for us pet owners to respect and follow the rules. Well-behaved guests can lead to more pet-friendly places for us all.

If you aren’t interested in some of the extra rules and chores you may have at a private vacation rental, we also have tips to help you take your dog camping or stay at a hotel.

How to Get a Good Guest Review with Your Dog

One of the main things property owners look at when deciding whether to let you stay at their rental is your previous guest ratings and reviews. This means that it is incredibly important to leave the property in the same (or better) condition that you found it in and be considerate of any neighbors you have during your stay.

We’ve made a list of the main concerns about pets that vacation rental owners have so you will know how you and your pup can be the best guests possible. Use these tips so you won’t have to worry about receiving any dog-related complaints during your vacation.

Tips for Staying at Vacation Rentals with Your Dog

The main areas of concern that I’ve heard from property managers primarily fall into three categories: complaints from other guests or neighbors, cleanliness, and property damage. With a little effort, you and your dog can get a great guest rating and have fewer problems finding future pet-friendly properties to stay at during your vacations.

Follow the rules

The worst thing you can do when staying anywhere is not follow the rules the owner has put in place. Whether this is a limit on how many dogs you can have, breed restrictions, or if they are allowed on the furniture, you do need to follow them. In an age where there are cameras everywhere, you will most likely be caught if you break them. This can result in you being charged extra fees or getting kicked out.

The property owner could also get in trouble if the rules in place were because of local restrictions or laws. If you are booking on a site like Airbnb or Vrbo, you can get negative guest reviews which means that future hosts will be able to see that you were less than a stellar guest and it may be harder for you to find a place willing to host you.

Avoid Complaints by Neighbors and other Guests

Complaints by other guests and neighbors about your pup can quickly lead to a huge loss of revenue for property rentals. A few bad reviews can lead potential guests to search out other accommodations and angry neighbors can lead to problems for the hosts. Luckily, there are a few simple things you can do to avoid your dog being the cause of other people’s frustrations.

Be conscientious of noise

All dogs bark and that’s ok. Barking is one of the ways that dogs communicate. What is not ok, is letting them bark continuously and regularly disrupt those around you. I LOVE dogs but even I don’t want to hear a dog bark continuously during the day and especially throughout the night.

With a bit of effort, there are ways you can work on training your dog to bark less. Excessive barking often happens because the dog is either bored, anxious or has a lot of pent-up energy. You can combat this by making sure they get plenty of exercise and that they are comfortable in their new temporary home.

If your dog does start barking excessively, find a way to interrupt them. You can make a sudden noise or ask them to do a different behavior. Once they stop barking, reward them and offer them a toy or treat to keep them occupied. If your dog is barking outside, then simply bring them in until they quiet down. Your neighbors and the owner of the property will appreciate it!

If your dog is indoors and tends to bark at strange noises, you can also leave a white noise machine, radio, or tv on to help drown out any outside noise.

Follow local pet laws

Check up on local animal laws like breed restrictions or leash laws. Leash laws are important to know and follow to avoid tickets and most importantly to keep your pets safe. Remember that neither you nor your pup is familiar with the area. If they get startled and get lost, they may not be able to find their way back to you. There is also the risk of them getting hit by a car or injured by other animals or people in the area. A tracking system like the Fitbark GPS Tracker is a great tool to have in case you and your dog ever get separated.

Even if you can have your dog off-leash in the neighborhood, remember that not all people have had good experiences with dogs. Unleashed dogs can make the surrounding guests and neighbors uncomfortable which can lead to more complaints to the property manager or owner.

Pick up after your dog

Not only is this usually the law, but it’s essential to limit the spread of diseases amongst our pets. Feces can carry several different bacteria and parasites which can make our pups and other animals sick. Not to mention that it can put a cramp in your day if you end up stepping in a pile of poop!

The smell can also be nauseating.  If you are in a vacation rental, make sure to bring extra bags so you can pick up all piles of poop in the yard even if it’s not yours. This will not only keep the property manager happy, but it will also help you avoid any extra cleaning fees because someone else had to clean up after you.

Keep it Clean

If you own dogs or cats, then you know having them around means extra work to keep your living space clean. Any living being that has hair sheds, and there is always the risk of your pet having a bathroom accident in a new or strange place.

General Cleanliness

As a pet owner, you already know that it takes extra work to get the pet hair off your clothes, carpets, furniture, etc. When you rent a vacation rental, be prepared to do a decent hair cleanup before you leave. I found this to be a common request in most private vacation rentals if they allow pets.

To limit the amount of time you have to spend cleaning up all of the fur during your last few hours of vacation, here are some things you can do to help speed it up. Consider bringing along some old sheets or blankets to cover the furniture (or even the bed) if your pets are allowed to be on it. Extra towels to dry your pup off if they are wet or to clean muddy paws can also be a lifesaver.

Some hosts will provide special blankets and towels for pet use, but it’s always good to bring your own just in case. If you bring your own linens, then you won’t have to worry about washing them before you leave which can be a huge plus!

Since you won’t always know what will be available in your vacation rental, it’s a good idea to bring some of your own supplies to help with cleaning up after your animal. This way you will have the best tools to clean up your dog’s hair, especially since pet hair is not all the same.

A small handheld vacuum, lint rollers, or rug scraper may come in handy if you have room to bring them along. You can always check ahead of time to see if your hosts will provide a vacuum or other equipment.  

Only let your pets have access to the rooms that they NEED to be in. If you have rented a multi-level home for your vacation, it is likely that your dog doesn’t need to enter every room in the house. Remember, the fewer rooms your pup is in, the fewer rooms you will have to clean.

Bathroom accidents

Even the most potty-trained pup can slip up and have an accident in a strange place. They may smell where a previous animal had peed and feel the need to mark the area, or they may be nervous and stress-pee. Your pet’s daily schedule will be off and which means they might need to go to the bathroom when you aren’t around.

Luckily, there are a few easy ways to ensure that your animals don’t leave a mess in someone else’s house. Most importantly, pay close attention to their bathroom cues. Remember that their normal schedule has been disrupted and you should plan on more frequent bathroom breaks until they get settled in.

If you have a dog that’s prone to having accidents indoors, you can always have them wear a diaper.  As our dogs are getting older, some have developed medical conditions that result in them having less control over their bladders. Reusable diapers are a great way to make sure the floors and furniture stay clean from bathroom messes. Puppy pads are great tools to use around litterboxes or crates to create an extra layer of security in case your pet does have an accident, so it doesn’t get on the floor.

Property Damage

One of the biggest and most expensive concerns people have about animals staying in a new place is the amount of damage they can do to the space. Pets can damage furniture, decorations, and even the building in a relatively short amount of time. They can scratch, bite, and tear anything within reach when they are bored, stressed, or have too much energy (just like barking).

It may be best for your dog to be crated when you leave them alone in your rental. Not only will this help guarantee that they won’t damage the property, but it will also prevent your dog from accidentally harming itself while you are away. The average person is unaware of everything that can be a potential danger to your pup. This can be foods, plants, essential oils, etc. I’ve even found rat poison in a corner of a place that my dogs could get to.

If your dog doesn’t do well in a crate, the best thing you can do to avoid incurring any damage from your pet during your stay is to then set them up for success.

• Let your animals get used to being alone while they are in the comfort of their own home before you leave them alone in a new place. If they don’t handle being left alone at home well, they definitely won’t be ok being left alone on vacation!
• Bring along some of their favorite things. Having things that smell and remind them of home will help them feel more comfortable.
• Keep their schedule as close as possible to their normal routine.
• Don’t leave them alone the moment you arrive. Give them time to acclimate to their surroundings and get comfortable. This will also allow you time to notice if there is anything in the area that may need to be moved or adjusted to avoid any issues with your pets during your stay.

Start Booking Your Next Dog-Friendly Vacation!

Now that our dogs are getting older, we will be booking more private vacation rentals when we travel. The ability to have all of our dogs in a more private and climate-controlled environment is crucial to us with their current needs. I hope these tips help you feel more comfortable bringing your dogs to a vacation rental and leaving them alone for short periods of time. If you need extra help finding a dog-friendly property to rent, check out Dogs Welcome.  This is a relatively new website and new properties are being added all the time!

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