What do you look for in a dog-friendly cottage?

Hi,

I was wondering if I could get some advice from the forum readers out there.

I run dog-friendly self-catering accommodation in Northern Ireland. We've made some changes to the cottages to make them more dog-friendly, such as non-carpet floors, sofa-throws, dog rugs, leave plastic pick-up bags, but these have mostly been for our benefit (in terms of being able to clean the cottages more easily).

However, I was wondering if there is anything you like to find when you go on holiday with your dog? For example, would it help to have feed bowls, drying towels, ball throwers, or brushes (to suggest some things), or do you prefer to travel with your own items?

Thanks for any help you could give me!

Didi

Sounds great. Towels would be lovely. Best of all a secure garden.

same with me a secure garden, and no limit on the number of dogs, most people with multiple dogs will go out of there way to make sure they leave holiday accomodation as they find it, and finally a decent sized freezer there are a lot of us out there that feed raw

Thanks Talassie and Lizzy,

will sort out towels (especially with the awful weather we're getting at the moment!)

Our cottages have plenty of space around them, with some having gardens at the front and back, and we are situated well away from the road. However, they're not secure gardens, so it should be something I look into, putting up some fencing at some of the cottages.

Hadn't thought of a freezer for the dog's food - good idea though!

Thanks again,

Didi

Information about dog-friendly walks, beaches, pubs etc.
Throws and a washing machine. Somewhere to dry stuff.
A hoover that works!

I agree, a well fenced garden is a must for us. A list of dog friendly places to go is helpful. Im not so worried about things like toys, towels etc as I always take my own but if they were there Im sure we'd use them. A nice thing to have in hot weather would be a plastic paddling pool and a hose for the dogs. We have one at home and Tilly seemed to miss it when we hired a cottage in Cornwall recently.

access to a hose pipe at any time of year, i know the mud magnets come back filthy sometimes

A secure garden is my main concern anything else is a bonus.
Info on the local vets was a lovely touch, in one place I stayed. And something I never considered till I got the info so a nice touch that would get me to use that cottage over others, as it means the owners "want" dog owners there.

Then same as they other dog friendly walks. etc I take dog towel bedding bowls food etc, and I do vacum before leaving.

definetly fully fenced garden for us, not least because we have a toddler aswell as a dog so require security of being able to open the door and let them out!!

info on local dog walks, vets, dog friendly pubs etc

I have a holiday home in the South East UK, and it has a newly fenced garden, secure all round, and that's the very first thing people ask me when enquiring. An outside tap and hose is an absolute must, how on earth can people be expected to clean their dogs off before coming back into your property otherwise. I also have a big plastic paddling pool around the back for when the weather's really hot, the dogs can have a paddle and play. I have a pile of cheap throws, which I leave half up there and wash them at home each week and swap them over, and everybody so far has used them each time, so the furniture has stayed clean, along with the spare beds if they haven't used them, they've put throws on the top in case the dog gets on them. A good hoover is also a must, and I always leave it in full view, I don't hide it away, coz from what I've found, doggy people are far more concerned about keeping the place clean than the people without dogs quite honestly, and I know they've used it, coz not only has the place been spotlessly clean on change-over days, but the cylinder is always full, so I know they've used it all week, or even for 3 days!

I don't leave toys, people don't like toys that other dogs have been playing with coz afterall, you don't know what they could pick up, so just stick to the practical things, things that make their lives easy when they're on holiday. I don't bother with towels either, coz I ask them to bring their own towels, I couldn't be doing with washing human's towels, let alone dog ones, I only wash bedding and cushion covers and the shower curtain each week.

I also leave a couple of dog collar tags with the address of the holiday home on it, phone number of the nearest vet etc., coz you never know, the owners might have forgotten to get some done and dogs sometimes go astray. I also have two slip leads hanging up in case they come in handy for letting the dogs out during the night or something. Torches are good too, I have two of those hanging up with the leads, coz my home is right in the middle of a forest and not a street light in sight, it's pitch black, so think about that too if you're right out in the middle of nowhere.

Good luck, you'll be amazed how busy you'll get offering a dog friendly holiday home, I know I am!! I've probably had only 2 weeks of lets this summer where they've had kids instead of dogs, and I sure notice the difference on change-over days when it's been doggy peops, they leave the place as clean as they found it, not a dog hair in sight!