Trial Run for Dogs in Resort Rooms

[Dis703]

More then 350,000 people are treated for dog bites a year in the United States.

*edit* sorry that's treated in emergency rooms, 4.5 million people a year report dog bites.

And those are only the ones that are reported. Dog bites are quite common.

 

[Ensusieasm]

I'm super late to this party, and this decision just means I'll simply stay at the Swolphin more than I already do, although I did enjoy an occasional stay at the YC, but no big deal.

So, forgive me if this has been covered, but if you get in early, use MDE (shudder, its terrible without dogs), and your room isn't ready...what's the plan there? You can't go to the parks, I'd suppose you can't put Fido in with bell services, so, what's the plan?

I guess, hang out in the doggie relief area until they get their room assignment text, drop the dog off in the room, put out the special do not disturb sign, and go off to the parks for 7 hours, or really, as long as they want because who's keeping track?

 

[JACKNAG]

There is no scanning of your band when you leave the room, so there is no starting point for the 7 hour timer. I covered this earlier in this now really long thread.

Dan

In our system at work no one has to scan to leave the exit, but when someone leaves the relay on the door shows door open on the computer system. count 7 hours and magic band swipe to get in the room and pluto was barking all day and all magic bands to that room were swiped at a park. Here comes the fine $$$$ or at least a warning

 

[amberpi]

I guess, hang out in the doggie relief area until they get their room assignment text, drop the dog off in the room, put out the special do not disturb sign, and go off to the parks for 7 hours, or really, as long as they want because who's keeping track?

I think that'll create a whole host of additional issues on check-in and check-out days. YC was the only one of those resorts I have or would use, so it's not a huge loss to me personally, but I think to @HopperFan's well considered post above, it is going to create VERY dog centered stays.

For those who are concerned, switching hotels or going offsite is possible. It may not be ideal, but you CAN most certainly vote with your dollars.

 

[ArwenMarie]

The doggie relief areas will probably end up being a joke. What that usually means is that is where management puts up a dispenser of poop bags and a garbage can. Which is great, no doubt. But unless your dog is trained to go on command, which most dogs aren't, he's pooping when he needs to poop.

 

[Madame]

And the poop stations indicate these dogs will be spread throughout the resort. There is ZERO reason to have poop stations far away from dog rooms because Disney says they can't be on the public walkways. The rate is very reasonable! They have too lax rules, more lax than any other hotels so that they will appeal to a wide base. Disney is lining up it's ducks to make dogs very welcome resort wide, whether adding resorts or expanding to full resorts. A YEAR LONG trial forces it on everyone, hopes we let it go and they can keep claiming it's just a test until they are over the hump.

No breed restrictions, No size restrictions, Unattended allowed, 7 hours unattended, allowed on resort internal buses (it's a dog, they like to walk, why do they need a bus ride?) .... Common sense is when you try something new you start out strict and over time as you see how things work out you reduce restrictions. But Disney has started with virtually no rules and will have a very difficult time implementing them later when they see issues. But these lax rules will pull folks from neighboring resorts, most which won't allow unattended.

The funny thing is I have said for some time Disney is moving towards their adult base because honestly that is where the big bucks are for dining, drinking, spending, special events etc ............ This screams of adult base, many folks have dogs instead of children, many older guests have dogs that are like children and they want to travel with them, adults would tend to have less fears, or more able to stay aware of allergies etc. I know when we were shopping in St Augustine realtor told us dogs have had big influence there on changes for rules of condos and rentals, many restaurants adding patios for dogs etc. They realize the pet is going through a huge surge in this country.

If Disney is getting rid of "value, moderate etc" and just creating an individual identity for resorts .......... this makes sense. POR is in need of renovations, is laid back woodsy and green ........ YC has never had lots of people stating they love it, folks always say stay at BC and it seems a more sedate adult resort, FW is already dog friendly and a perfect spot, AoA is confusing - they totally should have made ASMu all dog resort; perfect for it.

Disney seems to be personalizing resorts with it's own pros ... maybe it will expand to other resorts, maybe we will see these resorts many rooms ... for sure this is just the beginning of what I think will be lots of changes in Disney's offering. There are simply way too many being built offsite that offer more amenities .... Disney has to rebrand to some degree what makes them special, right now their perks may not be enough anymore.

I agree & they will pay for it long-term if they abandon their focus on children & miss the opportunity to « brand imprint » when they are younger. Short-term gain at the expense of longevity is also trending at the moment.

 

[Belle1962]

Just some ???. Let's face it folks. Disney is NOT going to let rooms sit empty. There has to be some magical date that they will start taking reservations for those rooms from anyone. How are CM's being trained to respond to dog related issues-such as barking? Will they just call the room in question and ask them to quiet the dog--and what if they're not in the room? At what point do you give up on Disney handling it and contact the police if the barking is outside the county noise ordinances? If you need a room size to accommodate your family (i.e 5 in a room) and the only pet rooms have a 4 max. will those families then be told Fido has to stay home even though they want to bring them?
Do we know if pets are allowed on ME? If so, how will the driver decide who has the greater "right" to ride without detriment to their health?

There just too many variables/scenarios for anyone (probably including Disney) to be able to offer any definitive answers on this. Do I personally believe this is a bad call on their part? Absolutely. Am I willing to be the "test family"? Absolutely not. Will I book offsite if the only hotels available are the ones deemed "pet-friendly"? Oh HE** yes. I wouldn't want to risk getting a room that Disney states is a "pet free" room (see above note about not letting rooms go empty). Will I recommend Disney hotels (at least those that allow pets) to people who seek my advice? No-I will recommend they stay at another property or offsite.

Someone somewhere here asked how you handle it at home when you come in contact with dogs. Running into dogs out and about is very different than having to spend any amount of time locked in a room (i.e trying to SLEEP) that was previously occupied by a dog or two.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

And those are only the ones that are reported. Dog bites are quite common.

Seems like those statistics also state that at least 80% of those bites cause no injury too. A bite that causes no injury yet some how the CDC knows about it? Honestly that's very strange.

And I believe most dog bites are from the owners own dogs.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Almost every other hotel chain does this. All of the Universal hotels accept pets and even the new hotels they are building will accept pets. Clearly it's something that works over there.

I'm curious as to why people think that WDW won't be able to handle it and Universal/Loews can.

 

[CT Disney]

I have a question for the people who have opted to have their room allergy-cleaned before they arrive. I'm guessing that this extra service takes away some of your flexibility at check-in?

For example, we love the Yacht Club...but, one time we checked into our room (which was a standard) and were really unhappy with the view. We knew that standard included rooftops and parking areas and we were prepared for that. But, we were not prepared for a view of the awful garbage service area, with beeping trucks picking up and depositing trash throughout the day. We ended up going to the front desk and asking to be put in another room if possible; and they accommodated us and moved our room.

I'm presuming that if we had requested an allergy cleaning prior to arrival they would have been far less willing to move us??

If I was going to stay at one of the dog hotels, I'd probably want to request the allergy cleaning prior to arrival; but I'd be hesitant if it reduced my flexibility at check-in.

 

[Gryhndmom]

Almost every other hotel chain does this. All of the Universal hotels accept pets and even the new hotels they are building will accept pets. Clearly it's something that works over there.

I'm curious as to why people think that WDW won't be able to handle it and Universal/Loews can.

Good point! Anyone stayed at a universal hotel and know how the pet policy has worked?

 

[gwynne]

I have a question for the people who have opted to have their room allergy-cleaned before they arrive. I'm guessing that this extra service takes away some of your flexibility at check-in?

For example, we love the Yacht Club...but, one time we checked into our room (which was a standard) and were really unhappy with the view. We knew that standard included rooftops and parking areas and we were prepared for that. But, we were not prepared for a view of the awful garbage service area, with beeping trucks picking up and depositing trash throughout the day. We ended up going to the front desk and asking to be put in another room if possible; and they accommodated us and moved our room.

I'm presuming that if we had requested an allergy cleaning prior to arrival they would have been far less willing to move us??

If I was going to stay at one of the dog hotels, I'd probably want to request the allergy cleaning prior to arrival; but I'd be hesitant if it reduced my flexibility at check-in.

Well, unfortunately, a dumpster view can be a standard view. I agree, it's not ideal.
I would think they will expect folks to take the room that was given an extra special allergy cleaning if that was a specific guest request.

 

[jmagoo]

This morning I noticed the news about the new dog policy. Our family was excited by the news and we made our reservation at the Wilderness cabins for a 2 night getaway just after New Years.
We are APH on and off for over 20 years, and Florida residents. So no need to spend all day at the parks for us. The new policy did get us to make a reservation that we wouldn't of made otherwise. Keeping the faith that the people who do bring their dogs really make the effort to act responsibly.

 

[Dis703]

Seems like those statistics also state that at least 80% of those bites cause no injury too. A bite that causes no injury yet some how the CDC knows about it? Honestly that's very strange.

And I believe most dog bites are from the owners own dogs.

It's actually not strange at all. People report them because they want it to be known that a dog bit whether or not it broke the skin. They do this to make sure animal control is on notice that the dog is potentially dangerous. Sometimes they didn't do damage because it was a warning bite and other times because they weren't in a good position or thick clothing protected them, etc.

And yes most bites may likely be from the persons own dog but that makes sense because they spend the most time with the dog.

And even the bites that don't break the skin can be extremely terrifying. Especially for children.

 

[HopperFan]

I agree & they will pay for it long-term if they abandon their focus on children & miss the opportunity to « brand imprint » when they are younger. Short-term gain at the expense of longevity is also trending at the moment.

Disney has been doing this for a few years. Between the lack of offerings and the increase in pass cost ... many dropped their APs so I think they heard those lost dollars. It wasn't too long ago us AP holders felt abandoned. Many of us felt they were ignoring us because we don't spend lots once we are there, especially in merchandise. Or we stay offsite. This year we got lots of discounts at dining and merchandise, we got Avatar AP previews (and hope for TSL SWL).

We saw that Disney was focused on that once in a lifetime family that dropped the big bucks, buying everything they could fit in their suitcase. I don't think this decision will help that. Those folks are focused on an awesome vacation and that means no dogs along to worry about. For every family that said they no longer could afford there were six lined up to replace them. Hotel occupancy was high.

NOW ... not sure why the shift. It would be interesting to know the actual reasons. Maybe the occupancy rates at these hotels are not great, maybe the cost to renovate POR (it is a big resort) is high, maybe AoA is simply not filling (it's not cheap) .... Maybe they looked at all the competition in Orlando and what is coming down the pike, maybe much of what is being built is very younger family centric ... right across from Disney Springs they are supposed to build a Great Wolf Lodge and Waterpark, the new Grove Resort, more and more true deluxes with lazy rivers and activities .... Maybe this is Disney's gimmick right now.

Year long, four resorts, free for all rules .... this isn't a little let's test it out for two weeks. For reasons they have really committed to this. Question is ... will it pay off. I personally will not stay at any of those resorts. POR was a favorite and I get it wasn't getting any upgrades like CBR and CSR ... but I won't stay there again if there are dogs. It's all good, if I want that budget I can stay much nicer offsite sipping my drink on the Hilton lazy river.

 

[Dis703]

Almost every other hotel chain does this. All of the Universal hotels accept pets and even the new hotels they are building will accept pets. Clearly it's something that works over there.

I'm curious as to why people think that WDW won't be able to handle it and Universal/Loews can.

It's been addressed in this thread that Universal, and various other hotels, have a more strict policy limiting the types of dogs, size of dogs, and requiring the dog not be left alone in the rooms for more than very short periods of time.

Aside from that though if we know a hotel allows pets we always opt for another hotel. It's just not something we want to deal with.

 

[KarenP64]

I'm not comparing, I'm simplely stating facts: Disney had water ways a child could have drowned in, which we're home to gators, with no fencing, these were only fenced after that tragic incident.

My point is Disney won't change this policy unless some one is hurt.

Hopfully no one is hurt. And this works out well and is safe. But want if a child steps on a dogs tail? And it turns and bites them? Now again that's unlikely and I would hope that doesn't happen.

I was also criticized when I mentioned the alligator incident & how Disney may do something AFTER a child was bitten. My point was, if it's your child that is bitten and/or killed, there is NO DIFFERENCE in the situations. Your child has been killed. End of story.

 

[Dis703]

I have a question for the people who have opted to have their room allergy-cleaned before they arrive. I'm guessing that this extra service takes away some of your flexibility at check-in?

For example, we love the Yacht Club...but, one time we checked into our room (which was a standard) and were really unhappy with the view. We knew that standard included rooftops and parking areas and we were prepared for that. But, we were not prepared for a view of the awful garbage service area, with beeping trucks picking up and depositing trash throughout the day. We ended up going to the front desk and asking to be put in another room if possible; and they accommodated us and moved our room.

I'm presuming that if we had requested an allergy cleaning prior to arrival they would have been far less willing to move us??

If I was going to stay at one of the dog hotels, I'd probably want to request the allergy cleaning prior to arrival; but I'd be hesitant if it reduced my flexibility at check-in.

My understanding is that yes if you ask for a deep cleaning you can anticipate being stuck with the room they assign you.

 

[CT Disney]

Well, unfortunately, a dumpster view can be a standard view. I agree, it's not ideal.
I would think they will expect folks to take the room that was given an extra special allergy cleaning if that was a specific guest request.

The bolded above...these are the important things I did not know until I started reading The DIS

 

[Madame]

Almost every other hotel chain does this. All of the Universal hotels accept pets and even the new hotels they are building will accept pets. Clearly it's something that works over there.

I'm curious as to why people think that WDW won't be able to handle it and Universal/Loews can.

I have a feeling that b/c of the way these resorts - not so much YC, but the others - offer a more open outdoorsy vibe, that it will attract more dog owners than Uni where you have a more indoor hotel feel.

From what I’ve read Universal limits dogs to 75lbs & under & requires dogs left in rooms to be crated & owners to return frequently to check on their pet. It’s easy there. You can walk back in no time. How well this is enforced....

This does NOT feel well thought out. It feels thrown together like many other things WDW does. Like someone at the top said « this went over well during Irma, let’s capitalize on this! ». & the poor damn frontline CMs are going to be dealing with irrate guests who can’t nap because of barking, or have stepped in dog feces & on & on. And they don’t want a negative guest interaction with the owner of the barker or the guest who’s been disturbed. Damned if they do... & they ultimately won’t enforce the rules & who can blame them really?

I could be off base completely, but that’s my feeling.