Should dogs be allowed in the office?

[TheRodent]

I rent office space for my freelance work. It is relatively cheap as it is a space that I share with two other people. My three children came to look at the office space when I first started renting and they just popped in for five minutes and then left. One of my so called colleagues reported me for bringing them into work, I never found out who. The trouble is that one of the people who shares my office has started bringing her dog in. He barks most of the time and has taken a dislike to me. He growls and bares his teeth and jumps up at me whenever I come in. The other day he had to be restrained as he wouldn't let me go out of the door. His owner implies that it is all my fault as I smell of cats, I have one, well groomed cat. She also says that I have no right to complain as I brought my children in. Apart from the fact my children only made one short visit and dog comes in every day, none of my children barks non stop, growls and bares their teeth at people and they don't jump up at them either. People from other offices in the building have complained about the barking but the people running the offices have taken no action. I have not been back to office since this took place and I am trying to work from home again in the meantime. This is not a dogs Vs cats rant. Any advice?

For me it is as much about the human - they sound like a horrible person. Go somewhere else, life is too short to be around someone like that.

Yes, but that's the dog owner's issue to deal with.
Not co-workers.
Lots of things "might work for some people", but they're not necessarily conducive to a good working atmosphere.

No issues with well behaved dogs or children but this dog is not!

It's definitely about the human. It's not the poor dog's fault. It gets no choice.

@Portakalkedi, how right you are, the world has indeed gone mad - dog owner entitlement is reaching new heights and I think back with fondness to the halcyon, heady days when many, many places, especially those serving or selling food only allowed assistance dogs. Now there are very few places one can go which are dog free, even my local beaches have lifted restrictions. There is no safe haven for those of us who are not swept up in this modern day trend of having to have dogs everywhere - perhaps I should start demanding that my chickens be allowed to come with me, wherever I go, because they 'need' me or are part of the family?

I have a dog and love dogs but draw a line at bringing my dog in. It’s ridiculous and imo boring for and unfair on the dog.

Tell them to keep the dog at home! It's obviously not suited to the environment.
Keep complaining & challenging this person.

And that is coming from someone who takes their dog to the office... but mine has been taught to stay in his basket or under my desk.
He only comes out for lunchtime walks and his snack time... just a few biscuits from colleges who want to interact with him... he's clever and knows the score!
Oh and he loves the postman!

I like dogs and have 3 of my own but ffs. No.

I have a colleague who 'has' to bring their lockdown dog to the office because it has separation anxiety. Another colleague has allergies to dog hair- granted only relatively mild- but they have to take an antihistamine that then makes them groggy. Our management is quite legendary for being weak as water and they prefer to tiptoe around the most difficult person rather than stand up for the person getting ill.

My older DS had a teacher who brought her dog into the school very often as apparently it settled the children and they loved it. All well and good until it bit one of them (stressed due to children pawing at the dog all day).

We have dogs in the offices at work, but any barking and the boss will ask you not to bring the dog in again, and if they don't behave they get put on a lead at the owners desk.

It can look like doggy daycare 1st thing in the morning but they all soon settle down.

Genuinely, @happinessischocolate , how has this happened? Are the dogs anxious, or do people not want to pay for daycare or do all the staff just like having dogs around?

I have no right to complain as I brought my children in

I hope your response was ‘Don’t be ridiculous. the one time I brought my children in for 5 minutes, they neither barked or jumped at you, and they certainly didn’t need to be restrained so you could leave’.

Contact the person you rent from. Do they even know there is a dog being brought in?

Refer to your contract. Contact landlord - what you say depends on the contract but even if not prohibited you can complain and state the position is untenable. Allow reasonable time for issue to be resolved. If not resolved to your satisfaction, terminate contract.

I know, that's what I said, lol.

But if everyone is in agreement (and yes, I know that's not the case with OP) then I really can't see the issue.

No, whatever the dog’s behaviour.

True, lol

Do I think you're asking the wrong question - not should they be allowed but are they allowed in your office? Then, is this particular situation acceptable?

Also ultimately, your disagreement is with the landlord, not with the person making the workspace unworkable. You presumably don't have a contract with that person.

No. Dogs should not be in offices. And if it was left to me they wouldn’t be in cafes, restaurants, busy tourist spots, shops, beaches and pubs either.

Personally I’d always like having a friendly, well behaved dog in the office. But the dog the OP describes is evidently neither - it should stay at home.

It was in Oman, where I shared an office with (British seconded) army officers, one of whom always brought his German Shepherd, called Simba (lion) to work. His behaviour was impeccable - he never actually asked for a biscuit, when he saw me opening the drawer where he knew I kept them - he’d just sit there looking the picture of good manners and hope. 😂

Urgh I dislike dogs so no. Barking in the office, what have things come to? I can smell a dog if it comes near me, and I can smell it on the clothes if some dog ppl not all, sickening.

Allergies to dogs too, why should they put up with it.

If you think you actually do smell of cats then that’s pretty rank too.

Allergic or asthmatic ppl ought to find another job and take the employer to a tribunal for compensation. They should not have to put up with this. And why are dogs special, why can’t we have tarantulas crawling in the desk, they do not bark, smell or have fleas - they sure do bite though but not as bad as a dog bite….

@TheRodent if anyone were allergic to dogs for that reason alone it wouldn’t work for them. But I bet the office isn’t insured for pets either (or kids - although your colleague is wrong to compare you bringing your kids in with a dog). What does rental contract say? Can you report to the building owner anonymously? Edited because I went back and re-read your post properly - you taking kids to see your new office is nothing like bringing a dog in everyday. People that run the office space may not be the owners.

No. It is a workplace.

I'd raise this with building management or whoever oversees the space you rent from. It's one thing bringing a well behaved, placid dog I to an office when everyone agrees it's ok. But bringing an aggressive dog into a site where you are quite honestly at risk from a bite is completely unacceptable. You have every right to complain as the scenarios are completely different.

My old manager used to bring her dog into work occasionally and I didn't mind until she started farting... I was nearly sick at my desk once. She did stop bringing her in after that.

Your children popping in for a quick 5 minute visit is not at all comparable to this dog. I like dogs, but I’d be very unhappy about one who behaved liked this being in my work space. As others have said, check your contract and keep reporting the dog. You should be safe in your place of work and it’s ridiculous that you’re renting office space but not using it because of the dog. The dog needs to go.

Do not be bullied by this woman.

Your single incident of bringing your children is over, has been reported and is no longer relevant.

If your contract permits dogs without any requirement for the dog to be under control or well behaved, you can raise it to the office service provider, asking their guidance and perhaps suggesting that the current conditions do not meet your expectations and if they do not agree, you would like to give notice on your rental.

If the contact is silent on the topic of dogs... raise the issue,,report the incident of you being prevented from leaving by the dog's aggression and the repeated growling, barking etc. Request that they clarify their posiition on the subject and let them know that this is not a suitable working environment for you.