Best Western Hotel Refuses to Let Family Stay with Service Dog

A North Carolina family was forced to change their vacation plans after a hotel cancelled their reservations because they have a service dog.

Karen Vaughn's son, Beau, suffers from epilepsy, so he has a golden retriever named Chip that can detect when he is about to have a seizure, WAFB reports.

According to law, all service dogs must be allowed in all facilities, but the owner of a Best Western in Baton Rouge refused to let the animal stay at the hotel.

The Vaughn's received an email that said that their reservation at the Siegen Inn has cancelled, leaving Karen Vaughn in shock. With the help of an attorney, Vaughn demanded an explanation from the hotel and she was simply told that the hotel was not pet friendly.

However Chip isn't just a pet. He is trained to alert the family when 13-year-old Beau, who suffers from Landau-Kleffner Syndrome, is about to have a seizure. Beau usually never has a problem when the dog accompanies him on vacations or even in restaurants.

"He's been at the hospital with Beau when Beau had to have surgery. He was in the pre-operative room," Vaughn told WAFB.

Part of the American with Disabilities Act states that service animals should be welcome at any public place, without having to give prior notice. However the Vaughn's say that they always call beforehand out of courtesy to let the hotels and staff know that an animal will be traveling with them.

However when she called Best Western in Baton Rouge that she would be bringing an animal, to hotel responded that they could no longer honor her booking.

"We got an email saying due to unforeseen circumstances, they will not be able to honor our reservations," she said.

A receptionist told WAFB that even though they're aware of the law, the staff cannot go against what the hotel owner decides.

Best Western's corporate office later reached out to the Vaughn's and offered to let them stay at the hotel, but Vaughn turned down the offer.
"I've already booked with another hotel that's understanding and happy to follow the law. I don't want to go to a hotel where I have to force them to follow the law," she said.