‘My petty heart giggled with glee’: Entitled hotel guest tries to skirt her way out of a $25 pet fee by saying her dog is ESA, employee calls her out

Author image for Elna McHilderson
Elna McHilderson • Managing Editor
Jan 25, 2025 9:00 AM EST

If you didn't already know, an emotional support animal or ESA is not the same as a service animal. This means that the laws that apply to service animals do NOT also apply to an ESA. Service animals have a much higher standard of training than ESA. Service animals are trained to do a very specific task to help aid their owner and they are trained to be calm in many different situations, especially around other dogs. ESA are basically just pets that therapists provide a piece of paper suggesting that their owners keep their pet with them for mental health reasons. The are only require basic training like house training and behaving on a leash. If you pretend like your ESA is a service animal, and then your untrained pet decides to get rowdy with a trained service animal, that could cause the service animal to be retired (that just means they're demoted, or maybe promoted, to pet) and thus taken away a very important medical device to that individual—it's not easy getting a service animal. 

 

That is why, ESAs do not get the same kinds of laws as service animals. So when this Karen guest tried to smuggle her ESA dog into a hotel, the employee was ready with the facts. 

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  • It's ridiculous what some Karens decide to throw a tantrum over. This time, it was a $25 fee. Like… What is the point? Do you just enjoy making innocent employee's shifts miserable? Whatever the reason, this Karen really was fighting having to pay a $25 pet fee for her ESA. She truly believe that it was illegal to charge her for her animal. She was SO sure that she said she could prove it, so the employee asked her to please, proceed and do so. You can see where this is going right? Instead of proving it, she made a fool or herself. 

  • Cheezburger Image 10458218240
    via Unsplash+ (and FLOUFFY)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • People arguing about their ESAs are the pinnacle of entitlement, and I take great joy in putting entitled people in their place. I can recite the ADA laws regarding service animals word for word. I know them like the back of my hand. And I know that there's no law about hotels having to accept ESAS without charging for them. We don't even have to accept ESAs if we don't want to. But we do. The owners just have to pay the $25 pet fee like everyone else.
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • In fact, in bold and underlined text at the top of our pet policy contract, it says that Service Animals are exempt from the fee but the ADA does not consider ESAS to be service animals, therefore they are not exempt from the fee.
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • So Karen comes in and says she has her dog with her. Okay. I hand her a pet policy to read and fill out while I start inputting her information to check her in. She stops and says, "My dog is an ESA, so it's exempt from the fee."
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • I don't even look up from what I'm doing because I hear that way too often. I say, "it is not. ESAs are not considered service animals and are therefore not exempt from the fee." And that apparently annoys her because she puts on her Official Karen Voice and says, "Yes they are, it's illegal to charge me a fee."
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • "Mmm, I don't think so. Read the bold text at the top of the paper." "I KNOW it's not a service animal, but you literally can't charge me a fee. You're literally breaking the law, and I CAN PROVE IT." So I pull up my chair and sit down and say, "okay" and then look at her expectantly.
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • She says, "okay to WHAT." "Okay, you can show me the law." "Excuse me?" "Go ahead." And it might sound like I was being really sarcastic since it's in text now, but I made this sound really genuine Imao.
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • She looked at me for another second before huffing and saying, "fine," and looking stuff up on her phone. Eventually she sets her phone down on the desk and said, "there. Read it."
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • Cheezburger Image 10458226432
    via Unsplash+ (and Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • Ladies and gentlemen. Do you know what she pulled up? The Fair Housing Act Imfaoooo. I skim it (I'm already familiar with the FHA because it's come up in my past research regarding laws about ESAs) before leaning back, looking at her, and calmly saying, "This only applies to landlords."
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • Karen snatches her phone back and says, "it applies to hotels too!" "It does not." "Fine, then cancel my reservation."
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • Here's something that made my petty heart giggle with glee. She booked a prepaid, nonrefundable, noncancelable reservation with a third party Imfao.
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • "Unfortunately you booked a noncancelable nonrefundable reservation through a third party, so I'm unable to do that for you." As if she'd be able to stay anywhere else. We're the only hotel in the area that takes pets. "Ugh! Then I want your manager's name!" "No problem, here's her business card."
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • And then she continued to fill out the pet policy, but she wrote a note at the top that read: "I do not consent to this charge. I am traveling with a certified emotional support animal and, as such, I am exempt from pet fees"
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • Cheezburger Image 10458227200
    via Unsplash+ (and Nahima Aparicio)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • And then she signed her name under that. And then proceeded to sign her name at the bottom where it says, "I understand and accept the terms of this contract." made sure I manually posted the pet fee from her credit card and that it went through before I even gave her the keys. You ain't exempt from sh, and I'll be damned if you're shutting your card off later so we can't charge you.
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • Then I texted my manager to give her a heads up about a possible call from Karen. She said, "ohhh I cannot WAIT to talk to her" lol. Unfortunately, Karen never called to complain. Sigh.
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • My headcanon is that she went to her room, did some googling, and found out that she's not exempt from the fee... and then she just hid in her room and didn't follow through out of shame. Unlikely, I know, but a woman can dream, right?
    via Other-Cantaloupe4765
  • grtaa The best is when people start pulling out certificates and licenses and all those things they got off totallylegitserviceanimal.co - m sorry bud, you wasted $175 on worthless items and you're still gonna pay the pet fee.
    via grtaa
  • Time_Bookkeeper2960 I had a guy claim his dog was a service dog but the 3 different documents he gave (unasked for, mind you) clearly stated his PET was being recommended as an ESA for emotional support and companionship. I had to show him in the letter where it clearly says it is a pet and ESA - (it was a letter for landlords and travel by plane.) and I showed him the ADA website where it says ESA aren't service so dogs
    via Time_Bookkeeper2960
  • Cheezburger Image 10458241024
    via Unsplash+ (and FLOUFFY)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • He had just got the dog after staying a month. The dog is sweet, but is not trained for anything. The guy is otherwise an ok guest and I feel bad he was told by the therapist that would couldn't charge him. He argued that landlords had to accept it. I pointed out it is a motel, not a rental that would fall under fair housing guidelines. He is paying the pet fee.
    via Time_Bookkeeper2960
  • westendgonzo I'm finding this post particularly enjoyable. I had a woman with an ESA on the weekend drop the ADA on me along with a paid online "certification" card tell me that I was breaking the ADA and I was going to be in a lot of trouble. First I wasn't, and second, and this may be the most important part, I'm in Canada.
    via westendgonzo
  • roquelaire62 I had someone argue that the ADA covered ESA. I said "Yes, their website specifically states ESAS are not SAs." More arguing. I just looked at them and said "I am beginning to see why you were told to get an ESA, but I don't think it is working right now. You will be charged the Pet Fee" Kinda ride but sometimes I need an Emotional Support Unicorn to hug because of the FD trauma
    via roquelaire62
  • lianavan We were going on a semi group holiday once and I booked a different hotel that was pet friendly, but also slightly more expensive as it was on the dog friendly beach. An acquaintence laughed and said she would just tell the cheaper hotel her badly socialized little terror was an ESA. I was so happy my hotel was fully booked as theirs didn't accept her dog or her bs claims. She couldn't share as I didn't know her well well my dog and knew
    via lianavan
  • would not tolerate her or her holy terror. It makes me happy when entitled people get corrected. My dog wasn't an ESA even though she was my angel and was sweet as a button...to me. She did not like people and avoided them, but because she was so cute and people couldn't read her vest I just avoided crowds and made sure my nervous gorgeous enjoyed the few years left to her.
    via lianavan

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