Charges to take your dog Caravaning

[ProfJohnL]

Why do sites charge for dogs - simple because they can, and its s money spinner for them.

Most families that have a dog(s) often consider them to be part of the family, and rather like cars, booze and cigarettes they will continue to have them even though they find they are paying more for the privilege, Verbal complaints may ensue but real action will only be taken when it really hurts financially.

I don't think the charges are designed to discourage dog owners, as it would be far more effective to simply ban dogs on the site, so its about raising money.

Sites charges and tarrifs are not regulated so basically they can charge what they like, and will continue to do so until someone successfully challenges the charges in an unfair contracts case in court.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

Why do sites charge for dogs - simple because they can, and its s money spinner for them.

The topic wasn't why they charge Prof but why do some charge such exorbitant prices.
You are right, the vast majority of people consider their dogs as part of the family and that is why they take them away wherever they go. What isn't clear though is why some sites charge £5 pnpd. What to they get for this extortionate money?
To charge it seems that they must be trying to deter dogs but if so why not say no dogs. They obviously aren't trying to deter them but seem to be counting on gullible people who don't mind being ripped off unless they have so much money they have no sense.
What does intrigue me is does anyone actually pay these charges?
I suppose how the rip off merchants (read robbing b*****s) sees it is that it's cheaper to pay their cheating prices and have your dog with you than pay kennel fees. In other words playing on peoples feelings for their dog. The Rachmans of the pet world

 

[Surfer]

Seems oldage traveller discriminates against those that are pensioners or on low income as he does not want them on the same site as him. Next he will be objecting to caravans that are more than three years old and people who have kids. Some kids and their parents behave a lot worse than some dogs.

 

[oldagetraveller1]

Hello, surfer. I think I can safely claim to be a pensioner on an extremely small pension!
No, I hope I don't discriminate, but someone needs to speak up for those who don't appreciate so many dogs on sites. That's not discriminating - it's just raising an issue. Last year, I was on a CL where the dogs actually outnumbered the campers! Let's be reasonable. Allow some dogs, but 2 or 3 or 4 in one unit?? Come on!! And, why shouldn't dog owners pay towards the cost of cleaning up after their pets. Despite the squeals of denial - we all know it happens. But, yes - £5 seems excessive.

 

[Parksy]

Let us all take a deep breath, calm down and respect each others views or at least agree to disagree please.
Old age traveller isn't a dog lover and he's entitled to his opinion and to put his point of view across.
He hasn't 'objected' to anything so please don't speculate about his preferences, he wants to be in a separate area from caravanners with dogs and he has every right to say that on the forum.
The best way to discourage caravan site owners from overcharging for dogs is to vote with your tow hitch and go somewhere more dog friendly. Dog owners might also consider sending emails to sites which charge excessively to ask why their charges are so high. If the sites concerned start to receive emails stating that you had considered staying on their site but were put off by the excessive prices for dogs then the penny might drop at least for one or two of them. During a recession site owners will soon start to adopt measures to ensure that the money that the customers spend is with them rather than a with rival site.

 

[graham_somersham]

I have no problems with dogs, it is just those owners who do not train them correctly. I'm presently pitched on a CCC siite and the site rules state that leads should be a max of 2 metres long. A guy has just walked past with two dogs on leads about 4 metres longs and one of the dogs has just urinated up against a ehu post while the owner stood there watching. Now some unfortunate person has dog urine soaking his ehu cable. The sad thing is that the dog owner did not seem to think that was anything wrong with letting his dog urinate on peoples property. I wonder if he would have tried to get compensation if his dog had received an electric shock off the post (ok I know they have rcd protection).

 

[oldagetraveller1]

In fact, I am a dog lover! But I happen to think that dogs and camping don't mix. That's just my opinion, though.I have expressed it and now, for me, subject closed!

 

[HenryB1]

As a dog owner there is one site, Bo-Peep farm near Banbury, where I am happy to pay their charge for taking my dogs there. They charge £2 per dog per visit and in return all of their fields have paths mown 2 metres wide around them with dog poo boxes at strategic places. The boxes also have free poo bags on the front of them. No excuse for any dog owner to allow their dog to foul near the caravan/camping area.

 

[SpudDog57]

We've always owned dogs, we also have two dogs back home with our daughter. Walking a dog around a strip on a small field set aside for dogs does little for a dogs behaviour. Dogs like to run ten times further than human owners, we get out morning and night with Spud no matter where we are. It's good for us and him, he's fit and always satisfied and doesn't bother with anyone else because he always has a good excersize quota.

 

[Tony_5041742]

I currently don't own a dog so I don't really have an axe to grind, but for what it's worth I can't think of any real reason why pitch fees should include charges for a dog. I therefore have to conclude, like others have said, that this is about being charged because site owners think they can get away with it. Another stealth tax? Whatever next, an additional charge for a satellite dish, windbreak, bicycle, or motormover?

 

[JonnyG]

I love dogs, especially hot dogs with onions, of course the other version of dogs, are also nice,(Mod Note: Unnecessary reference to another culture deleted)
leisure Caravaning and camping is something i assumed "humans" came up with as something for all the family to do together?And i think "family" actually means "humans" not cats budgies dogs hamsters or any so called domesticated PET.
I have already said my piece on this topic, but the thought that I, prioritise Humans before animals, should not really have people thinking that I am not a dog liker,because whilst away on holiday, I would rather not have them all around me, no matter how cute some of them are.
Now i say this because parksy who is pretty level headed "assumed" that because what oldagetraveller was saying,It meant he didn't like dogs. being as i share most of his views on this topic, then naturally the same could be labelled at me. Which would be wrong.

I was reading a caravan mag that had a booklet on caravan security. one story concerning trackers. Was headlined "our dog was in the van when it was stolen" !
The story was all about how the van was stolen from a caravan park, they had gone out to visit somebody and left the dog in the van.
Luckily as the story goes because they had a phantom tracking system the van and dog were found within 90 mins.
Well that's all right then? is it hell. they went out and left the dog in the van! no regard for the dogs safety if you are a dog lover, or their camping neighbours if the dog barks none stop because it has been left alone!
We have meet these type of people a couple of summers ago at Walton on the naze, leaving there dog in the awning on an extremely hot day whining and barking,for 3 hours, so that people like me had to open the awning up and give it water and sit just outside the awning to sort of make the dog feel less left alone!
Of course when they came back!!!! it was the old "didn't know this that or the other, and their dog never barks"!
"Dog hater"? No but if I had a dog I would be very responsible,and considerate to others,and whilst I am sure the crowd on here are also or more so considerate,i am sorry but i seem to run into the ones that aren't.
I am lucky that way!

 

[suzanne404]

Foxes dump and i have seen them do it and cleared it in the morning but no one thanks you for that

 

[suzanne404]

I have to say i am quite shocked at the anti dog remarks. I wouldn't want to be segregated, i hate it when just because we don't have children some sites wont to put us in the quiet nothing happening part of the site lol
My pitch is always left as i found it ,my dog doesn't leave her food all over the pitch lol

and she is never left in the van.
I do understand some people don't want dogs on site so they should go to a site with no dogs.Simple

But getting back to my original beef. Any site owners on this forum or could Practical Caravan ask some site owners ,why they are charging so much for dogs.
Brought my dog her shower hat and towel ready just encase

Oh and she is big. Shes a Great Dane and everywhere we go people love to come and talk to us and stroke Lola

 

[SpudDog57]

We would leave our dogs in our house, so why shouldn't we leave them in our caravan?
Would guess that leisure camping came about after shepherds and goat and cattle herdsman camped out with dogs that rounded up flocks, acted as guard dogs and good companions.
Man has a long history of living and working with dogs and also sharing dwellings and leisure and work time.
Never heard of a cattle station camp out without the cattle dogs.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

My pitch is always left as i found it ,my dog doesn't leave her food all over the pitch lol

and she is never left in the van.

Neither does ours. Simply because they feed in the caravan. They also sleep in the van and we have been known to shower their feet when dirty. After reading some posts I'm glad we do wash their feet because I'd hate to leave any dirt on the chippings incase Jonnyboy used the pitch after us

So far we haven't been able to train them to use the bog because their legs are too short although I'm thinking of making a plinth so they can reach to do their dumps. Your dog shouldn't have any trouble reaching gazza

 

[Damian]

Quote " so why shouldn't we leave them in our caravan?"
Because, certainly on Caravan Club and Camping and Caravanning Club sites it is not permitted to leave dogs unattended in caravans.
Also in summer the heat can build to levels which will kill a dog.

 

[SpudDog57]

We don't belong to any clubs.
Caravanned back home for thirty plus years and never lost a dog yet in a caravan. We've also noticed that the UK and Europe don't get as hot as Australia. Your modern caravans must have cooling fans or aircon and opening rooflights and windows.

 

[Surfer]

Hello, surfer. I think I can safely claim to be a pensioner on an extremely small pension!
No, I hope I don't discriminate, but someone needs to speak up for those who don't appreciate so many dogs on sites. That's not discriminating - it's just raising an issue. Last year, I was on a CL where the dogs actually outnumbered the campers! Let's be reasonable. Allow some dogs, but 2 or 3 or 4 in one unit?? Come on!! And, why shouldn't dog owners pay towards the cost of cleaning up after their pets. Despite the squeals of denial - we all know it happens. But, yes - £5 seems excessive.

We have two small Yorkshire terriers and between them their waste is not as much as one medium size dog. Many people use CLs because of unfriendly main sites, i.e. no dog walks etc. We always clean up after our dogs and flush their waste down our toilet in the caravan. We can live with a £1 charge if facilities are provide for dog waste etc but some sites will chareg you £2.50 or more and still have no facilities at all.
As for leaving the dogs in the caravan, sometimes it is cooler for them as you can have the blown air fan running, extractor fan on plus all the windows open. Also lots of water for them. During the day itt is very rare for us to leave them in the caravan, however towards evening time we will leave them in the caravan while we pop out for drink or a meal but by then it is a lot cooler.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

We've only left ours alone in the van once and that was at night at Slimbridge when we went to the onsite pub.
Blinds down, lights and radio on and there was no problem. I wouldn't go and leave them in the daytime though especially if it's warm despite using two fans when it's hot.
Last year at one site a couple left their dogs in the awning. The warden walked by and the dogs started barking. It was obvious they had gone away so the warden had a word in their ears when they returned. It didn't happen again.

 

[LisaandSteve]

If you ever get round to designing a plinth please can you let me know. We also have a schnauzer and he is a mini so no way is he getting on the loo. Has to be said though rabbits produce more mess than he ever could!! in the dump department an I dont see anyone cleaning up after them in the morning. He also feeds in the caravan and what he dosnt get in his mouth sticks in his beard for later anyway.
The dog would be the least of your worries if you end up next door to us, we have five children, a huge car and our next break we will be taking along some newly hatched chicks as our timing has not been the best and they cant be left. ( I must add we are all very well behaved and I do not tolerate excessive noise, mess blah blah)

The dog is the only one who uses the shower in the van. Despite paying for him on every holiday I havnt come across a site yet that has a bath for him and he loves to roll in the fox maybe badger scat that is found on sites that dog owners probably wrongly get blamed for.

You are so lucky to have dogs that only get thier feet dirty ha, our little terror is always plastered in something, mind you, usually whatever the babies have thrown over him.
Sorry i am going off course a little. I wonder what separate pitch we would end up on. Dog/Kids/chicks, blimey I think we may get a whole acre to ourselves

 

[Surfer]

Any one been on a site where they have ducks, geese or swans wanderinga round. Those birds make more mess than most dogs! Invariably they also do it where you have to walk!

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

Any one been on a site where they have ducks, geese or swans wanderinga round. Those birds make more mess than most dogs! Invariably they also do it where you have to walk!

Yes and our dogs do their best to help clear it up

 

[Philspadders]

i find swan pooh, and rabbit droppings much less offensive than the steaming stinking piles left behind by meat eating doggies . I also find the quacks of ducks much less annoying than dogs barking when their owners have gone out and left them behind only for the owners to deny that theor dog(s) bark.
When i visit some sites with a heavy dog presence you can actually smell the urine and pooh, I have seen pitches where the gras has died back in patches due to dogs urinating all over the pitch, so dog only pitches sounds like a good idea.
As for charging for dogs, whats is the problem ?
These sites and their owners are running a business, they are not charitable organisations, or funded by the public purse soley for your pleasure because you have a dog(s).
And dont forget , that many dog friendly sites have set aside a field or other area for dog walking and have to pay rates or rent for that piece of land. The owners may have to cut back grass and weeds , that has a cost attached to it. There are fences to erect and maintain, dog pooh bins to erect, maintain and empty, some provide bags for the turds.These things are not free.

If you dont like what the site charges for your dog then dont go, chose another site, there are others.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

As for charging for dogs, whats is the problem ?

You obviously haven't read the OP. It was of excessive charges not whether there should be a charge.
Since then there has been various comments of some who refuse to pay anything to those who don't mind paying 50p to a quid per dog per night.
What everyone is in agreement about, dog owners that is, if the fee is excessive don't use it.

 

[Philspadders]

Who decides a fee is excessive. You dont know what the operational costs of the site are. Perhaps they are actually trying to discourage campers with dogs .

I read posts about caravaners spending £15k on a caravan then upgrading to new car for another £20k, then complaining about paying a few pounds for a dog.