Let me present a different perspective.

If Marriott gets a reputation of being "pet-unfriendly", I figure its all the more reason to go out of my way to stay at Marriott properties. I know, your dog doesn't bark and your dog is clean and your dog doesn't get hair in the bed and your dog doesnt' take a crap outside and then wipe his ... on the floor - but everybody elses dog does! And its friggin' nasty!

I never really gave much thought to pets in hotel rooms until I started traveling with a baby. We generally stay in Townplace or Residence Inn when we're traveling with the little one so she can have a private area for taking her naps. I think the extended-stay nature of these properties increases the pet traffic, so I've see a lot of dogs. Trust me, they may not bark when you're there, but they bark when you're away. I've had a number of dogs that I've heard barking on-and-off all day while the owner was away - but they shut right up when the owner comes home.

Hotel rooms have enough nasty crap in them on the comforter, TV remote, phone, etc. Why encourage folks to add to the nasty crap be welcoming pets with open arms? I know some (errrrrrr most) people are bigger pet lovers than me, so I think its appropriate to make allowances for people who desire to travel with pets - but I don't have a problem with chargin for it. Of course, they should also charge extra to in-room smokers who add just as much, or more, to the nastiness of hotel rooms. (Actually, an idea that just hit me would be to handle it like smoking: Have pet rooms and non-pet rooms - then I'd never have to worry about stepping in your dog's doo doo.)

As far as the State Law that was mentioned in one of the postings: Somewhere along the lines there was some miscommunication or misinterpretation - possibly on the hotel GM's part. There are some states that have a state law that says that hotels must accept pets. The same state law "restricts" the amount of extra charges you can add for pets. In Pennsylvania, the maximum charge allowed under the law is $200 per stay, plus $20/night (so $220 for one night, $340 for 7 nights). That's likely the law he was referring to - but obviously didn't understand (or communicate) what the law actually says.