Bring pets on hotel shop?

Hello! I've been ms'ing for about 7 months now part-time, and have yet to work up the courage for a hotel shop. DH and I have two tiny dogs, and we'd like to go on a mystery shopping road trip weekend with them in the fall. I've seen postings for shops of hotel chains where I know pets are allowed, and have also seen emails from schedulers stating pets are okay on certain assignments.
Our guys are small and well-behaved, and have stayed in hotels with us before, so this would not be out of the ordinary for them. They can be barky though, when people enter our space, so I am worried they would be loud if we needed someone to come into the room to fix something (burned out lightbulb, broken remote, whatever).
I am hesitant to sign us up for a hotel shopping assignment without hearing if anyone else has taken their pet(s) with them. If you have, how did it go? If there was an additional pet fee, was it reimbursed to you or did you pay it out of pocket? Did you mention that you brought your pet(s) in your reports? Did you notify the scheduler you would be bringing them? Did you mention your pet(s) when making the reservation?
Thank you!

Create an Account or Log In

Membership is free. Simply choose your username, type in your email address, and choose a password. You immediately get full access to the forum.

More About Veterinarian and Pet Mystery Shopping

I am not the voice of reason here as I've never done a hotel shop, but I would assume that unless the instructions explicitly tell you CAN bring a dog, you shouldn't.

My assumption would be that pets are not recommended. I would not take one without first clearing it with a scheduler. They probably would not reimburse for a pet fee.

Some of the pet friendly hotels allow shoppers to bring pets. It's almost always stated in the shop description and you definitely need to let the scheduler know you are bringing a pet either way.

Bringing a pet is like bringing a child, however, as you can not guarantee their behavior and it can complicate the assignment (pet designated rooms may also have a lot more defects to photograph). I would advise getting a pet sitter for your initial hotel shops and adding the pet in once you are comfortable with the shops.

All of the 'pet-friendly' shops I have done covered the additional expenses for my pet, including a room service pet meal!

I have asked the Msc if okay before going.
I was told as long as the hotel
Allowed pets they would cover it

Thanks for your feedback! Pet sitters are super expensive where we live ($100/night for 2 dogs), so that's not really an option. Also, we prefer to be with them, so if it came down to don't bring the dogs or don't go, we just wouldn't go.

One thing pet owners don't realize; you are supposed to stay in the room with your pet, managing their behaviors and keeping control of them. When the maid comes to clean, she does not want to fend for her life, by a barking dog or frightened cat.

I love animals very much

and have 3 cats, but this was told to me by a hotel (not on a shop):

If the maid can't clean the room, or you are out in the field, leaving your dog to bark endlessly, disturbing guests, they can and WILL ask you to LEAVE.

I am sure this would screw up everything shop related. (I am thinking of the money lost on this one, if they ask you to leave because of your pet).

Be forewarned...

When I was doing my first and last extended stay shop, I noticed that they give you a magnet to put on the door alerting people (maids?) if you have a pet inside.

Thanks SunnyDays2! We don't like to leave our pets unattended in unfamiliar surroundings, so most likely we would bring them with us into the field (DH would hang out with them someplace dog-friendly while I am shopping, and we'd do takeout food shops, not dine in). We're looking at the low-end hotel shops, so we wouldn't have to be out of the room at the bar/restaurant/what have you to complete the shop. RiverSong, i've never heard of the magnet thing, but that is a great idea!
I'm considering doing a higher end hotel shop in my city alone someday (DH would stay home with the pets overnight but could come to the bar/restaurant portions) but I would like to have my first hotel shop be a lower-end one, as there is less out-of-pocket risk if I mess up. The lower-end ones are farther away, so I'd want hubs & pups to come along too.

I have brought my dog on all my extended stay hotel stays...never got the magnet and I have done so many I was wondering why that question. Now I know. The ones I have stayed at say you can leave your dog in the room if you go out for a few hours but you need to stop at the desk and let them know. They take your cell number and you need to be close enough to come back should they call to tell you there is a problem. There are some issues that can be addressed with the desk that do not require someone to come to your room, at least at that hotel. If you call for more towels or something like that,especially if in the evening when there are less staff, they will request you come to the desk to get them. I have not done upscale places with my dog, but at the extended stay places the pet rooms are every room. Despite what some of the places are evidently like according to other shoppers, all the ones I have stayed at in California have been very clean and nice. My dog who would bark was not a problem. The walls must be thick as I could not hear other dogs either but I saw many in the hallway so I knew they were there.

Sandyf, that is great feedback- thank you for sharing your experience!

Sorry, only registered users may post in this forum.

Click here to login

Bring pets on hotel shop?

Create an Account or Log In

Official List of Mystery Shopping Companies

Mystery Shopper Magazine