'AITA for refusing to pay to have my friend's house cleaned?'
"AITA for refusing to pay to have my friend's house cleaned?"
I had to quickly come down to the city where I grew up due to the death of a close family member. It was a pretty spur-of-the-moment occurrence and I had to drop things rather quickly. I informed one of my friends and they offered to put me up for a few days.
I said that would be great, but told them I'd have my dogs with me so totally understood if they wouldn't be able to. The friend said it would be fine and they were more than happy to host me.
For context, my dogs are not badly trained by any standard, but they are both large breed dogs (a lab and a German Shepherd) so of course can be a bit "much" for many non-dog owners. I am aware of this and that's why I usually don't bring them to peoples houses.
I made the 5 hour drive down and my friend came out to greet me. When unpacking the car I let the dogs out and immediately they went off to toilet (since it was a long trip).
My lab went into the bushes to pee but the GSD began to pee in the middle of the front porch (don't ask me why, but she much prefers peeing on hard surfaces) and my friend immediately freaked out. I was a bit confused and apologized but it's outside so didn't get why she was so freaked out.
The dogs were fine the entire stay. They are non-eventful inside. They let me know when they need out and I clean up the poo straight away. I keep them under good supervision.
At the end of the trip, my friend sent me a text saying "Hey, as you'd know the house is quite messy because of the dogs, and I'm going to hire a cleaner. Would you mind paying me for that?" I was a bit taken aback. The dogs had zero accidents inside. Didn't break anything. I asked what she meant, and she explained that there was dog hair everywhere.
The thing is, they are shedding dogs. I know that. If she'd asked me to vacuum up after them I would have. But she didn't. I also don't think a deep clean would be necessary.
A quick vacuum of the carpets, couch, bed, etc. would be more than enough to remove any trace. I don't know what to do. I didn't ask to stay with her - she offered. I told her about my dogs, and she was fine with that.
Here's what people had to say to OP:
Creighton2023 said:
She’s not used to pet hair. You saved money by staying with her instead of a hotel and dog boarding. Paying for a cleaning will still have saved you money.
UsernameUnremarkable said:
YTA. Just pay to clean the place already. Your dogs, your mess, your cost.
mydogisnala said:
YTA. You didn’t clean up after your dogs?
jamkey2222 said:
YTA. Yes, she knew your dogs shed, but may have underestimated how bad it would be. Also, just because the front porch is outside, does not make it ok for your dog to have peed there. Your standards are different from hers as far as how much messiness is acceptable.
She shouldn't have had to ask you to vacuum, you should've just done it. Whether you agree with it or not, your dogs left your friend's house in a bad state, one that is not up to her standards. You should make things right and pay for the cleaner.
merishore25 said:
YTA. She accepted you and your dogs. She could have said no. You should have vacuumed before you left.
rmg418 said:
So you know that your large dogs shed a lot and you didn’t offer to vacuum before you left? Why should she have to ask you to clean up their hair, especially when she did you a favor by letting you and your dogs stay with her while you’re dealing with the death of a family member?
I know you said “I didn’t ask, she offered to let me stay with her” but that’s what good friends do. So if you want to be a good friend as well I think you should pay her for the cleaning. YTA.
ImaginaryPlenty8258 said:
YTA. BIG TIME. You didn't clean up after yourself or your dogs before you left. That is bare minimum decency as a guest with our without pets.
Appropriate_Sky_6571 said:
YTA. You know your dogs shed. She shouldn’t have to ask you to vacuum. You should have vacuumed regardless. I believe it’s common courtesy to leave a place cleaner than you left it, especially if you’re staying for free. Also, as soon as your dog peed on the porch, you should have hosed it off.