It is truly a shame IMO that people allow their pets to dictate their lives and vacation decisions. I also find most pet owners these days think its their privilege and entitlement to have a dog where humans are, as if everyone is supposed to like and enjoy their pet...
I love dogs, but I don't expect others to like my dog, and have to tolerate the dog.
I've seen people with dogs in stores and libraries and I suspect they don't really need to have them accompany them for the brief time they are in the place. I found this:
"Emotional support animals, comfort animals, and therapy dogs are not service animals under Title II and Title III of the ADA. Other species of animals, whether wild or domestic, trained or untrained, are not considered service animals either. ... A doctor's letter does not turn an animal into a service animal."
Apparently, one cannot legally ask if an animal is a service animal or not.
Do you happen to know if the BLM lands have cabins on site we may be able to rent?
Oh, no, that's not the sort of thing the BLM does. Your best bet is to either camp out or find lodging in nearby towns. BLM websites have never been great and have gotten noticably less user-friendly for recreational users in the last year or so. Its almost as if their mission has shifted...I guess I'll leave that right there. Anyway. You kinda need to know what you're looking for, that's where guidebooks come in more handy than web searches. There are a number of terrific archaeological sites on BLM lands, largely near and within Bear's Ear's National Monument. Nothing with developed tours and whatnot like Mesa Verde, but excellent sites nonetheless. Some National Monuments are more pet-friendly than NPs. For example, Hovenweap National Monument is near Mesa Verde, and pets are allowed throughout the park.
The La Quinta hotels chain is very pet-friendly and generally nicer than the Motel 6 option. If your dog has good elimination control and doesn't bark loudly, their pet rules allow the dog to stay in the guest room while the human guests are out
https://www.lq.com/en
https://www.lq.com/en/landing/pet-policy
While they don't have the footprint of Hilton or Marriott, they do have properties in Moab, Durango (a reasonable enough drive from Mesa Verde) and some other more popular national park/outdoors areas.
Hi hermosajoe,
Thanks for your reply. Yes, nature is more our thing than cities. As for our itinerary... we're doing a loop: NJ via all sorts of places, Mt Rushmore, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Glacier, Seattle, then down to Sacramento and San Rafael, then work our way back via NC to NJ. We chose the northern route because it will be cooler and we hope the elevation will help as well, but we don't want to drive back the same route. The BLM and NF locations sound good, I'll just go and put my time in researching those ares. Salt Lake City.. why... well, when I entered the locations we were going to visit (San Rafael -> Arches) , Salt Lake is on the way. I'm ok with camping, however, we did it once in Austria, with our dog and it gets really hot in the tent and also we can't leave her in the tent to get breakfast or something, that's why we thought of Motel 6 and La Quintas. I'm going to check out Moab, dinosaur NM and Vernal, thanks! Any more help is always welcome!
yes, mrmoto, good to hear you love your dog. Not sure how this answers any of our questions.
Hello QuiviraTrail2. Thank you for your reply. However, my dog is not a service dog or a ESA. I do not wish to impose any inconveniences on other people. I do not wish to abuse a system meant for people who are in need of support or a service dog/animal.
Hi Beachmouse,
thanks! I'm going to look into it. My dog is certainly not a saint but she doesn't bark at all (last time I heard her bark was probably last year; she can whine though but that's under control). So, I think we're good in terms of those things. I don't want to be a bother to other guests of course. I know motel 6 from experience, but I've never tried La Quintas, so that will be a first. Again, thanks for the help!