Traveling with Pets

[AccountingDrone]

I did have one person bring her service animal with her. She was very open about the fact that the dog was an emotional support animal and that she wouldn't be able to leave the house without her (the dog). the dog had her own cards explaining what she did and papers and everything. Her handler offered copies of all of these just so we would have them incase someone asked about her being there. I did not ask at all since I know the law about it. You may inquire "is this a service animal?" once that is answered, that is the end of the story. You do not ever ask any more than that.

You know, there are specialty 'coats' and collars that have 'service animal' embroidered upon them ... next time you have someone like her who is willing to provide proof, suggest that she might get one, it visibly marks them as a service animal. If their animal is not a standard size, I have a friend who custom makes service animal gear. Not sure he could make something for the parrot I can remember meeting [epilepsy indicator =) amazing what animals can do! ]

[Threesidedorchid]

I've had issues with pets in two of my retail jobs -- a health food store and a bookstore cafe. In neither case was the pet a service animal in any way, and in both cases the managers had made an 'agreement' with the person that they could bring the animal in even though it was technically against policy. In the case of the bookstore, the woman was told she could bring the animal into the store but only if she did not set foot in the cafe due to health code -- a rule she totally ignored.
In both cases the animal urinated or defecated on the floor. : (

I like animals, but I like the policy against pets more -- I have a fear of dogs, and I know numerous people who are very allergic to dogs/cats, and I really don't want to have to deal with either one of those things when I'm wandering around a store/hotel.

[candyshopgirl]

What is it with people these days? I never have ever expected any hotel I've ever stayed at to take my pets.They go to grandma's house for the week.Yes they know the words grandma's house.They run out and sit in the car.

[LillFilly]

The hotel I used to work at was pet friendly, but the guests had to sign a waiver stating that they would be charged for damages and the animal was not to be left alone in the room. We had people ignore the second rule and would have complaints of dogs howling at all hours. We'd then call their contact information and try to get in-touch with them. If we couldn't, upon their return they'd be asked to leave the hotel for violating the rule (We couldn't actually remove the dog from the room and put it somewhere away from guests because we weren't trained for that, and what if it hadn't had its shots). The majority followed the rules.

At the mall I was at, you'd have a LOT of people sneaking 'pocket dogs' around, which was a no-no because of the food court. This happened a lot because the State I was in was very liberal and animal-friendly everywhere. This woman tried bringing her CAT to the mall. It sat in a shopping cart. She brought paperwork but all the cat was was an animal that would visit sick people and the elderly in hospitals and nursing homes. NOT a service animal and it was in NO WAY assisting the owner while she was at the mall. So we were able to ask her to leave.

You wouldn't believe the people who would come and complain about a legitimate service animal. Customer Service would see a service dog, they'd let security know, so we'd have the head's-up in-case someone tried to complain. And then we'd get this:
SC - "Someone has a dog! It's a pit-bull/boxer/german shepard/poodle!"
Me - "Yes we know. That's a seeing-eye dog."
SC - "No! It can't be a seeing-eye dog, only labs/golden retrievers can be seeing eye dogs! I'm going to complain!"

So people were very stereotypical about 'what type' of dog they THOUGHT could be a service dog. And yes, we had support animals and a hearing toy poodle too.

[Yurimaru]

What the heck is wrong with people? My family travels with a total of FIVE small dogs. Every summer. We use sites like TravelPets to find places that will take us with our dogs. When we stop for food, two people go in for takeout. The others stay outside with the pets, as far away from the restaurant as we can park, so as to not have our pets in the way of other customers. We never complain if we ask about our pets at a hotel on the way, and they say "no". It's up to the pet owners to check beforehand, and accept what they're told. I'd also never be silly enough to think a hotel with beautiful historic antique decor would want pets in the building... Its people like that who make the rest of the pet owners look like EW's...

One amusing side note... One of our pets (the littlest dog) is a bit high strung. So, we stopped at a KFC last year, and parked wayyy over by this grassy area, really far from the doorway. The little dog was bopping around on her leash, yapping, but we were far enough away to not bother the customers. However... People went out of their way to come across the parking lot and "see the doggies". With her going ballistic anytime people got close. She is just really loud, but it got annoying while we were trying to eat. Why do people come way the heck over to where we are, when we are so obviously trying to stay away from people? Argh!

[blas]

Back in my day, when you traveled, you gave a trusted neighbor or a friend/relative an extra key to your home and they fed/watered/walked your pets.

[Red_Dazes]

God people are stupid. .. If I am planning on going somewhere I always check the hotels in the area BEFORE I leave my house, to see who accepts pets and who doesn't.... and if no one does... poor fuzzes have to stay at a boarding house. It is ridiculous how stupid people can be.

[Morningchaser]

I run into this problem, and I work at the Green Siren Coffee Shop! On five seperate occasions I had to explain to some EW (always in gucci sunglasses and an OBSCENE amount of gold jewelery on. Which is another thing: this isn't a bad neighborhood, but it's bad enough that you shouldn't walk around like that if you don't want to get mugged...) why she couldn't bring her little poopsikins inside. All of them have tried to argue with me about how "we'll only be a second" "she doesn't like to be alone" "It's so hot outside!" and I've had to explain to these bimbos why it's JUST PLAIN STUPID to have an animal somewhere we serve food and drinks, and the small fact that I'm allergic to dogs and have really bad eczema, so unless you want blood and skin in your latte, you'll take tinkerbell outside!

(sorry if that grossed you out, but I feel that if they don't get it by the "we make stuff that goes inside you!" line, I gotta ratch it up a little.)

[bookworm]

I have to say that we always travel with our dog, always have, always will. For the people who think we should put her in a kennel - 2 things, 1. I can barely afford to pay for the vacation, I sure can't afford a kennel for a week. 2. Rascal is part of our family and we plan our vacations around having her with us. Leaving her home with a family member is not an option.

That being said...I always make prior arrangements, and in fact we decide where we're going based on where I can find a place that will accept her. I had hell finding a place in Arkansas last year when we went trout fishing on the White River. Finally did find a place that allowed us to bring her.

I expect to pay a deposit, and I assure the owners/managers/whoever that she will not be left alone in the room (unless I'm running down to the car or something). I've never had any trouble, especially after they meet Rascal, everyone loves her.

It also helps that she's a really good dog and we have very little problem with her.

I do have to share this one though. We'd gone to S. Padre island a couple years ago and spent the night in Ft. Worth or somewhere at a Motel 6. There was no tub in the bathroom, just a shower (curtain not door). Rascal tried to wake me up that morning and I ignored her. About an hour later I got up, went to the bathroom, and see a little puddle of pee in the shower....Rascal had to go and she picked the best possible spot for it! I was so proud of her (and for those who are skeeved out, I did tell housekeeping so they could bleach it if they wanted. And of course, I cleaned before I took my shower.)

So, if you can't tell, I love my pooch and wouldn't dream of leaving her behind. I also know that it's getting harder to find places that will let her in (damn sucky dog owners).

[Bradester]

I personally have no problem with most pets in motels/hotels, but I am also referred to by my nephew as a "dog-hugger instead of a tree-hugger".

Yes, your pets are your faaaaamily, but by the same token, they're your family. Would you allow your children to be obnoxiously loud at all hours, make messes of the rooms, bite oth- oh. I'm ashamed for even asking such a question on this site.

The point is, ideally, owners should love their pets but realize that not everyone around them will, and either find alternative arrangements or train the animal well enough that it can stay in human lodgings without incident.

About an hour later I got up, went to the bathroom, and see a little puddle of pee in the shower....Rascal had to go and she picked the best possible spot for it! I was so proud of her (and for those who are skeeved out, I did tell housekeeping so they could bleach it if they wanted.)

Well, then, there are times when I should probably leave a note for housekeeping after I take a shower...

Oh, c'mon, I know damn well I'm not the only one!

[Shpepper]

You know, there are specialty 'coats' and collars that have 'service animal' embroidered upon them ... next time you have someone like her who is willing to provide proof, suggest that she might get one, it visibly marks them as a service animal. If their animal is not a standard size, I have a friend who custom makes service animal gear. Not sure he could make something for the parrot I can remember meeting [epilepsy indicator =) amazing what animals can do! ]

Some of the service animals have those vests, but again since there are specific laws about what you can and can not say, it is inappropriate to suggest something like that to them. It's a great idea and I wish that there was a way that they could all have a vest or something but sometimes it's not possible or the person wants to avoid as much attention as possible.

[auntiem]

I'm horribly allergic to most breeds of dogs. I can assure you I check if it is a pet friendly hotel that there are some rooms reserved "pet free" at all times and will take that room.
People used to try and bring their pets into the office all the time - most of them looked like I wanted to shoot their dog for just asking them to take them outside. And the ones that said "I'm just picking up tickets I'll just be a minute" that still means that I'll be useless and misrable for the rest of the day. Thank goodness for glass front doors - most of the time you could stop them before they came in.

As for service animals - because the paperwork and the card have the condition the animal is helping with that is why you can't ask. It is part of the medical privacy laws. I have seen service poodles that make excellent seizure warning dogs or such, and most of those clients have zero problem at least showing they have the paperwork since they realize that most people are just used to the retriever seeing eye dog types.

[PepperElf]

and don't forget the Service Monkey!

One of my friends from back in VA was considering getting an apartment with another friend who was either a paraplegic or a quadriplegic & had a service monkey to help her pick up things & stuff like that. I can just see someone going to the mall with the monkey ... prolly cute as hell actually.

which reminds me... of seeing a dog in training at the mall. the trainer was standing on the side and the dog was just sitting in the middle of the floor unleashed. i'm assuming the dog was being trained to be around strangers in crowds etc.

very cute doggy. actually to me all properly trained service dogs are adorable. just cos i can't touch them, doesn't mean i can't look and think "oh what a cute doggy!"

[Seshat]

I would like to see a registration card that says simple 'this is a service animal'. Not what type, just that it is.

Also note that there are in fact service horses. Miniature horses, a similar size to the guide dogs, but suitable for people who are allergic to dogs.

I wouldn't be surprised if we start getting service parrots, for people with dexterity issues.

which reminds me... of seeing a dog in training at the mall. the trainer was standing on the side and the dog was just sitting in the middle of the floor unleashed. i'm assuming the dog was being trained to be around strangers in crowds etc.

Yes. They have to be capable of being calm no matter what is gong on.

[ottid]

If I see a service dog at work and it looks to adorable not to pat, I ask the owner first, generally they will say yes, which is great But I am also aware that they are a working dog and therefore they may not necassarily be given pats and things all of the time as this may interfere with their job or training.