Research papers on dog friendly hospitality, certification methodology, and industry performance.
Independent analysis of dog friendly hospitality across 2,000+ hotels in 56 countries. This research examines pet policy, access provisions, amenities, and guest experience using a standardised evaluation framework, and forms the empirical basis of the Dog Friendly Standard and certification methodology.
All research is conducted independently using a standardised evaluation framework.
Published research from Roch Dog on dog friendly hospitality. Covers industry performance data and portfolio level benchmarks, certification methodology and assessment criteria, and case studies of how hotel brands perform across the evaluation framework.
A 2026 industry diagnostic on how hotel pet fees work, why the current model is failing consumers, regulators, and hotels at the same time, and what workable reform looks like. Documents the FTC Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees, the Texas Attorney General settlements with Hyatt, Marriott, and Hilton, and the state transparency statutes in California, Virginia, Colorado, Oregon, Connecticut, Minnesota, and Massachusetts. Closes with an invitation to a voluntary Pet Fee Transparency Framework.
Analysis of major pet friendly hotel award schemes including TripAdvisor and USA Today. Evaluates award winners against a structured 31 criteria framework. TripAdvisor's 2025 number one ranked pet friendly hotel enforces a 5kg weight limit. More than half of the top 20 winners publish no pet policy. Introduces verified dog friendly certification as a new category.
Analysis of how "pet friendly" is applied across hotel classifications worldwide. Evaluates scoring distribution, policy variation, and the gap between marketing labels and guest experience across 2,000+ properties in 56 countries.
Assessment of dog friendly performance across 30 InterContinental Hotels and Resorts properties under RDFS-02. Documents the 57 point scoring spread within a single luxury brand, with 61% of properties rated D or F. Estimates unrealised revenue at $2.3M per property.
A 20 language analysis of how hotels write, translate, and deploy dog friendly policy language across 56 countries. Identifies a universal three tier pattern in every language studied and documents what the gap between marketing language and operational reality costs the industry.
Economic analysis of dog friendly hospitality as a revenue strategy. Models incremental revenue of $2.3 million per property from structured dog friendly programmes, with an 8 to 16 day payback period. Draws on assessment data from 2,000+ hotels and a controlled case study of 30 InterContinental properties.
A data driven investigation into hotel pet fees across 2,000+ hotels in 56 countries. Finds that 87% of hotels charge a pet fee with no consistent relationship between fee amount and service quality. Includes housekeeper survey data, damage cost analysis, and regional fee comparisons.