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On the contrary, the visitor would know before hand that I have pets and they are in the house and are part of the family. If they can't deal with that, they can stay in a motel and be as comfortable as they like. Also I would not close up my dogs in one room of the house for several days or even overnight to accommodate a guest. The dogs live here, the guest doesn't. There is a difference between dogs and cats though. Your cats feel safer and are comfortable staying in one room of the house away from guests. Most dogs wouldn't feel that way.
The OP was asking the question relative to keeping his animals safe, because guests might forget to close the door.....Not because his guests do not like pets.
OP, I like the suggestion about notes on the doors. Right at eye level. Or, if you are really worried, because the guests may have kids going in and out there are those cheap little door alarms, which would alert the adults to an open door.
I watch my doors too. Love company, but love my dog and 2 cats more
Wow you animal lovers must not have many friends with comments like "i like my pets more than someone who is visiting".
I DO like my pets more than I like visitors. I do not particularly like visitors coming to my home. I'm much happier meeting them somewhere for dinner or an activity. I mean, sure, they CAN come over, and some do sometimes stay overnight if they've traveled a longer ways, but...
My pets LIVE here. This is their home. I'd much prefer THEY be comfortable and safe than be worried about the comfort of my friends.
And ya know what's funny? All of my friends have pets, too, and they all feel the same way!
Just so ya know...if you ever do come to visit, my dog will greet you and will very soon be shoving his nose under your hand for pets. He will also lean into you and sit down so he is touching you, so don't wear dark colored clothing - it shows his fur more easily. You will leave with dog fur on your clothes.
One of my cats will also be in your lap within about 29 seconds of sitting down. If you push her off your lap, she will not get angry. She will get even. She will quietly size up the situation, see where you have placed your glass of refreshment, and she WILL tip it over when you are not watching. So it's in your best interest to just let her curl up in your lap. Again, a reminder to not wear dark colors - you will also leave with cat fur on your clothes.
I cannot stand to go to someone's house and they let their dog jump on me, jump up in my lap when I sit down, lick me, stick their nose up my butt, etc. A person should put their dog up when company comes over until they are sure that the guest is fine with having a dog all over them. I am not.
Can you tell I am a cat person? Even so, a person should not allow their cats to jump on anyone unless they know the guest is ok with it.
Another thing I can't stand is when people go to someone else's house (who does not like animals in the house) and they take their dogs with them, take them in the host's house without even asking, let them run all over the place, jump on the furniture, jump on other people, etc. That is just rude in the extreme. And I would say the same for cats in this case also.
Dogs and cats are not humans - they are not children.
I'm a pet sitter/dog walker.
When that happens, stand up - point to them and say "NO" and wave them off to the floor. Yes the owner may be horrified - too bad. They could learn something, too.
If they get up there on the sofa ON YOU before you can stand up, take your arm and BLOCK them swiftly. Or your LEG.
That is dog communication. He who has the winning body language of TOP DOG wins.
NO SPEAKING. NO LAUGHING. That conveys weak playful energy.
This also works for cats, too. Blocking and directing.
If your'e going into someone's home with unruly dogs, take a tennis racquet to use to block them. LOL not kidding.
I use a simple paper folder that I happen to be carrying in when I do a Meet & Greet, too. They don't know it's paper.
There are a few people I like very much whose home I will no longer visit because they allow their pet to harass me while I'm there. Clueless.
I love well mannered pets, but not the other kind of pet.
My husband's sister briefly owned a very poorly trained Rottweiler when our children were young. The dog weighed more than our two preschoolers put together. We were visiting from out of state and they invited us for dinner. My husband asked very politely that they keep the dog outside or in another part of the house for the couple of hours that we would be there. His sister was absolutely horrified that we would even suggest such an outrageous thing.
You can imagine the rest. The dog bothered us the entire time, grabbed food off our plates & then growled at us if we tried to keep our plates away from him and similar things. We left when the dog knocked over our toddler, causing her to hit her head on the coffee table. She started to cry and my SIL yelled at us because our daughter's crying "upset her dog".
BTW, they only had the dog a short time because it bit a child in the neighborhood and the neighbor's threatened to sue if my SIL did not either train or rehome the dog.
Back to the original question. Yes, you should tell your friends about your animal house rules but understand that they may forget them.
I wouldn't go to people's houses who have dogs if I were you. You can't always stop a dog from sitting on someone's lap. Even more of a challenge when you have multiple dogs. And remember that furniture belongs to the dogs. They are the residents. Not you.
You ABSOLUTELY can stop ANY DOG(s) from "sitting on someone's lap". Within seconds.
The only reason people "can't" is because they won't.
BTW I'm a pet sitter/dog walker and no dog even THINKS of doing that to me. Because I speak dog language and convey it the moment I walk in the door.
I now have 2 large dogs and 4 kitties. One of those dogs is my service dog. Everyone coming here is aware but we have options. First, if we're going to be doing a lot of sightseeing with those guests, I will board the two dogs, at least for the day. I don't like leaving the 2 dogs cooped up in this tiny house >900 sq ft. so boarding is a good option for them. My service dog loves her time out from work and the other dog is attached to her.
We have 3 options for guests staying overnight(s) - there is a bed in the house but the kittens WILL say hello during the night - and try to snuggle. The other option is to stay in the travel trailer we have about 50 yards from the back door. OR, if they have brought their own, to plug in their own travel trailer.
So far, we've had guests use all 3 options and every one was pleased with his/her choice.
We have 2 doors to get through on the way out the back way - it creates an airlock of sorts - and traps kitties trying to escape. We put a sign blocking the knobs on both sides of the 2 doors so that the guests cannot forget to shut the doors. Mostly, I try to put the kitties in the front "kitty play yard" (a no-escape fenced area) but if the weather is not good, they do have the run of the house. My dogs are trained to sit at a door and wait for the command to go through the door, so even if it's ajar, they sit.
One of my best friends from "back home" is petrified of animals but she trusts that I remember that (I do) and that my pets leave her alone. She opts to stay in the trailer and we spend most of our time outdoors on our huge deck when she's here.
Basically, we work with our guests and have consideration for our pets at the same time.
We have a yappy territorial 10 yr old Chihuahua. She snips and yaps at people she doesn't know but settles down after a couple of hours of them around. When my mother (who is terrified of any pets) came to visit, the dog barked for only 10 minutes at her. After a couple of hours, she was sitting right beside her on the sofa as if she has known my mother all her life...and my mother was actually rubbing her head. Shocked the heck out of us.
We usually lock her in a bedroom if we have company or handyman doing house maintenance for a short period of time. She is a good watchdog though and we love her...even though I call her a bad ass every now and then.....lol
When you have company (overnight visitors), especially those who do not have animals of their own, do you explain the house rules regarding pets to your guests and expect that they follow the house rules?
For example, if you have visitors that are not used to closing exterior doors, and you're concerned that your animals might escape the house if an exterior door is left open for 30 seconds, do you simply expect your guest to follow the house rule? Or do you recognize that the guests might forget, and therefore you need to ensure that your animals don't escape via other means?
I just want to know why the guests would be leaving the entry doors open to my house?
We have a small dog and the only rule is, stay away from his teeth and protect your ankles. He thinks he is ferocious but in reality is harmless. He is scared of people and will bark at them and then get scared if they make a move.
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Even so, a person should not allow their cats to jump on anyone unless they know the guest is ok with it.
