I’ve joined the “why are there dogs everywhere” Club

Yes, our John Lewis is an out of town one (so it's not a "passing-by so nipped in" situation) and there are always dogs in there. I can't understand what the dog gets out of going to a retail park. There's a JL, Hobbycraft, Currys, Dunelm, Home Sense, and an M&S Simply Food (I don't think dogs are allowed in the M&S), all around a massive chaotic car park.
I assume these dogs would rather be anywhere else other than buying wool, looking at reduced coffee syrups, or browsing candles.

It's selfish to other shoppers, but it's plain awful for the dogs too be dragged around shops.

The weirdest one I've gone across is Oliver Bonas. The clothes hang at dog height, and there's lots of breakable vases etc, all on low shelves by narrow aisles. Utterly bizarre.

Went school shoe shopping and the shop was rammed, a lady brought her dog in with her… just why?? Whatever happened to tying your dog up outside? That just somehow collectively ended in the last few years it seems. She had a pushchair as well, it would have been comical if not so disruptive!

Dogs in Legoland though! Why???

I went to a lovely outdoor cafe that has tables and chairs out the front ,.and next door (quite rural) were some lovely flowerbeds
We were sat at a table next to the boundary, so near the flowerbeds, and a family arrived at the restaurant and decided that they would pop their bag of dog poo in the flowerbed next to our table. They seemed astonished when I explained to them it was not acceptable to put the dog poo bag in someone else's flowerbeds and nor was it ok to leave it next to where someone else was eating. Genuinely they seemed taken aback at the idea. Maybe their dog poops rose petals but I wasn't going to take the chance

The cinema?
Dogs in the cinema ?! On the seats ??!

😖

Noooo - that is too much! You eat there! Put your hands on the seat maybe and then touch the food ! Ugh.

I like dogs, I'm generally quite fond of them even but not in shops, shopping centres or city centre streets and definitely not when it's crowded.

It's not fair on the animals either.

Love dogs but its gone too far they dont belong in shops it is not a suitable environment for them and people are bringing them our on hot days dragging them around shops i popped to the shops today kids were screaming (seriously SCREAMING) dogs were barking (at the screaming kids) its fucking sainsburys not a local park 😑 I forgot what I needed and left without

Was a dog next to us whilst we waited in clarks the other day! No one batted an eyelid but I’m sure dogs are banned in shops

I don't think dogs belong in shops. Trailing around a shopping centre with slippery floors, bright lights and strong smells is far more stressful for a dog than being left at home to quietly snooze in the kitchen for a couple of hours while the owner goes shopping. Taking them to the cinema is tantamount to cruelty!
I hate this fur baby thing. It's really not emotionally healthy for dogs to be treated like children.

I have a big dog and I view all this from her perspective. She's happiest going for country walks and playing in the garden.

I'm fairly certain most dogs would prefer to be snoozing on their sofa at home than dragged round the shops, I know mine would! I'm happy seeing dogs in cafes at the beach and Country pubs but can't understand why dogs are in B&Q (I didn't even want to be there on a busy Sunday!)

Yanbu.. I love dogs and have a dog I love dearly but I doubt he would enjoy a trip to John Lewis anymore than people would enjoy having him there

Yes... we were pretty surprised in Leholand people had their dogs with them, the dogs all looked miserable, they weren't service dogs and all of them were pretty much glued to their owners legs / being carried. This was the middle of summer, it was busy, it was noisy, it was hot... why anyone who loves their dog would think this was a good idea baffles me.

Newsenmum so does our cinema so I no longer go. If I sit in a seat where there has been a dog I will get runny eyes and sneezing fits.

The more dogs are allowed, the more restrictive it is for people with allergies.

I am not a dog lover and am mildly allergic to them. I have stopped using a couple of local independent shops because I don't want to be stepping round them, or having to avoid them. Hard to do in a small shop with narrow aisles. I have emailed both shops to tell them why. One did not reply, one was apologetic but had no solution.

So from spending quite a lot of money in those shops I now buy online.

I once saw a dog pee on clothing in M&S, the owner was oblivious.

A friend of mine has two working dogs. They don't even go in the main house, and I'm sure they have never been in a shop. Proper dogs with a good life.

Many dog people are so entitled. I’m sick of hearing them barking constantly, sick of dog shit in my streets. Every time I want to sit outside a cafe or restaurant I’ll always have to put up with dogs barking. They mostly just seem quite irritating to own. And yes everyone does seem to have one now

They should totally leave the furbastards at home

My local independent cinema now does screenings for dogs.

To be honest…good! The more entitled dog owners start to annoy everyone, including other dog owners, hopefully the pendulum might swing back. I kneeled next to someone’s bloody dog at the communion rail at church today. That’s when you know it’s gone too far too far.

Dog lover and dog owner. This is absolutely ridiculous, should have left the dog at home. BTW - my dog loves John Lewis (as loves people) but I would never take dog on a weekend or if dog didn’t like being ‘crowded’.

People seem to be forgetting dogs are animals…..

Totally with you. It’s actually really put me off dogs (sorry to say). I used to be a big dog lover but Ive had so many incidents since covid and now Ive got young kids Im done with it.
obviously Im still very nice to dogs when I see them !

A couple had a St Bernard the size of a small pony in our local Costa today (it was enormous! - I think bigger than St Bs normally are?). Lovely dog, but its not exactly a big Costa....

Also could the whole "my dog / cat is my child" thing just stop now? No it isn't.

I can’t stand it.

Though tbh I am not a dog lover and am allergic to them…

It just seems like you can’t go anywhere anymore without dogs bloody everywhere.

It’s the “fur baby” trend, which ignores animals’ needs in favour of owners’ wants. I come from a family of pragmatic working dog owners and breeders, and can’t identify with the “I love my dog and my dog must come everywhere with me because they’re family” attitude, because it just isn’t kind or loving. I saw a FB reel a while back about how dogs are now allowed in Selfridges and how wonderful that is, and just found that bonkers.

I find going to Selfridges stressful: the smells of the perfume concessions are overwhelming, it’s overfull of people milling about, there are strange staff constantly approaching out of nowhere to offer help, it’s about three shades of electric light brighter than I ever want, and almost every time I end up there I feel a rising sense of panic. I can’t imagine how it must feel if you’re a dog with no idea what’s going on, your face is barely a foot off the ground, you’re constantly seeing kicking feet flying towards you from people who can’t see you, and your olfactory senses are completely broken by everything you can smell. Why on earth anyone thinks it’s a good idea, let alone “wonderful” for their dog to go shopping with them, is a complete mystery.