Do you think there will ever come a time when business need to take account of the needs of those of us allergic to dogs?

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OK, so I don't want this to turn into one of the many threads where huge rows erupt about the number of dogs around. I accept that this seems to be the way of the world - for now anyway - but some recent experiences have made me question the implications.

I'm in the process of booking a UK touring holiday and have spent the last few weeks trying to book some medium range hotels in various places. Mainly countryside locations which might be part of the issue.

I am allergic to dogs and prone to fairly serious reactions, including asthma attacks if exposed for a prolonged period.

The problem is that I'm coming across so many places I like only to read that they are pet friendly. This is often accompanied by photos showing dogs running around the hotel interior, sitting on the beds and couches in rooms etc. If I were to stay in this room after a dog had been there it's highly likely I'd be quite poorly. When I've rung these hotels to ask if they have any designated pet free rooms, they have replied that no, they are 'pet friendly', as if this somehow makes them morally superior and those of us who have allergies are some sort of animal hater!

Given the legislation on dietary labelling that came in following some tragic incidents, I do wonder if we're going to end up in a situation where someone is likely to come to harm through inadvertent exposure. This is probably more likely to be a child as grown adults will be able to spot early warning signs.

I'm just interested in views on this as it's increasingly feeling like I'm being denied access to a service in a way that would not be acceptable in other situations.

We are finding it harder and harder to find dog free accommodation. When we've inadvertently stayed in a couple of places that allow dogs, the accommodation smells of dog. We are not allergic, but its unpleasant. We've had to stop going to certain holiday rentals, as they now allow dogs. Hopefully, one day, the world will even out and people without dogs will be given consideration again.

Me too!

I'm fed up of tripping over smelly slobbering dogs in our local cafes. And this weekend the couple at the next table in a very chic patisserie brought their dog in after a visit to the vets with an open wound 🤮

good practice is to wash hands before eating- I wash hands.

If a chef had been playing with a dog - you’d expect them to wash their hands - same as a waiter/waitress. Having a dog on your lap whilst eating is vile

If you see upthread my search in the Lake District ( random place suggested by another poster as having very little ) had
190 hotels of which
96 allowed dogs
so
it’s fairly equal at the moment

Part of the problem is that people don’t give a toss about the rules anyway. Our local beach has one side dog-friendly and the other side of the pier is dog-free. Seems fair? Apparently not, the amount of dogs running about, shitting in the sand and invading people’s picnics is ridiculous. I love dogs but I want DC to be able to dig and play in the sand without piles of poo everywhere, getting knocked down and having food snatched out of their hands.

The rise of fake service dogs doesn’t help either. People seem very smug to announce that their “dog can go anywhere now and no one can say a word” since they bought a vest from eBay .

Err
All those human hands touching food is disgusting
but dogs are a H&S issue and not allowed in commercial kitchens so that wouldn’t be my first thought
It’s human dead skin and wee

I'm a dog owner and dog lover myself and I find the current attitude to dogs in the UK fucking annoying. People treating them like children, not training them and bringing them absolutely everywhere is stupid and childish. I hate sitting in a cafe and having a strange dog suddenly at my feet while I'm trying to eat.

We recently had a dog run at my toddler, knock him down and run around frantic in circles around him and the owner kept shouting and shouting and the dog was not listening. It was actually quite scary. Guess where we were? A children's playground. Did my toddler do anything? No, absolutely nothing. We got to the park, I took him out the pram and the dog saw us and ran towards him. The fucking owner didn't even have a child, there was no reason for them to be there.

I put a lot of money and time into training our dog. And more money into dogsitters so I don't have to take him everywhere. Dogs cost money and time, but most people don't want to hear it.

I don't want to stay in a room that stinks of dog, thank you.

I also won't eat or drink in a room with a dog.

It's bad enough in my own kitchen, with my cat leaning over my shoulder eyeing up a piece of chicken on my plate...😺

My "will always be free of dogs bar verified guide dogs" hotel room on Saturday night.

Huge comfy beds with feather pillows (changeable for allergy sufferers) Coffee machine on tap. Quiet room.

I love Wetherspoons policy of no dogs in our properties, including beer gardens. I'd say they're doing pretty well banning dogs.

Because in many cases, the dog doesn't sit under the table. I've lost count of the amount of times I found myself sitting in a cafe and suddenly have a stranger's dog at my feet.

More places aren't dog-friendly than are, hence the still significant rates of actual discrimination against people with disabilities that require an assistance dog.

I'm sick of dogs everywhere also for many reasons, mainly the ignorant cuntish dickhead owners than the dogs themselves, but there are many options for places that don't allow dogs.

On a visit to Cornwall to my parents, there was a beach local with just that. Once side dog friendly, the other banned. Set of rocks naturally split the two.

My dog, upon arrival peed, not on but near a childs bucket. (poop I would pick up but tbh, he never poop there as beach walk was his 3rd walk of the day and already been).
I was mortified and was trying, through the screaming in my face parents to say sorry, I will go get another new one from the shop on the beach front. I literally couldn't get a word in. In the end I told em to f-off and go on the side where dogs are not allowed and walked off. Not caring about the rules is all people imo!

I don't understand where everyone who posts on these threads live. I have a dog and in my local village ONE of the pubs allows dogs in ONE room (through a separate entrance), and of the 25+ cafes, two allow dogs inside. I don't think I've ever tried to take her into a shop but to my knowledge, the vast majority of shops don't allow dogs (the only one I can think of is The Range). There seems to be this other world out there where dogs are welcomed here, there and everywhere but it's certainly not the one I live in. Maybe it's different here in NI than in England?

That said, I much prefer the way my world is than the one illustrated on these threads. Absolutely no reason for dogs to be allowed in shops and restaurants. It's nice to have a dog-friendly option for a pub and cafe, but it definitely shouldn't be the norm. When we got our dog we accepted that it would mean that while we were training her to be okay being left alone, some places would be inaccessible to us. That's just part of the deal.

I doubt a third of humanity is allergic to dogs or cats. Allergies seem to have increased in Western societies, perhaps because of an obsession with cleanliness around small children. Who knows.

I've seen, multiple times, owners allowing their dogs to shit right at play parks, on playparks, on the pavement outsidea people's actual gates and any other number of ridiculous places, without picking up after them. I know the furtive 'can I get away with it' look anywhere. Cunts.

There's another active thread at the mo by a woman who intends to take her dog to a 'dog-free' caravan! I really feel for you and agree this should be taken into consideration more than it is.

Most Airbnbs don't allow dogs...once you add dogs into the search it leaves a very limited choice.

I don’t think it’s the way of the world OP.
It’s the way of the UK.
It’s not like that here in Ireland. You would have a bit of difficulty finding a hotel that allowed pets and even then it’s a only a few designated rooms that do.
A friend lives in the UK and sends photos of her and her dog staying in various hotels and at first I was quite shocked and bewildered to see the dog lying in her room.
It’s really not normal everywhere!

ETA I’ve never been in a cafe here that allowed dogs either unless they had an outside terrace accessed separately (assistance dogs excepted).

Well I’m in my 50s and was brought up in the 70s playing like kids did then, so I don’t know where it’s come from.

By your logic we shouldn’t have any adaptations for people with disabilities.

barriers to participation are discrimination- theirs is why we have lifts and ramps and rules about assistance dogs.

We have a much adored dog, but I am with you. If I don't want to share my hotel/holiday with other peoples pets, it should be possible. However increasingly I see dogs been taken everywhere, shopping, cinema, restaurants...just why? What does the poor animal get out of it? Hard to blame venues for jumping on the bandwagon, but people need to give their heads a wobble and put their pets in kennels or use a sitter..as we do.

I agree with you OP. When I was growing up dogs were left tied up outside shops whilst people went in. Now dogs are taken everywhere - in shops, in cafes, in restaurants, in leisure facilities - everywhere! I'm not allergic but used to have a colleague who was very allergic. The modern world must be a nightmare for people allergic to dogs.

I find the dog cinema showings really bizarre - my dogs would be so stressed out. I don’t take them to restaurants either because it’s not fair on them to be stuck on the floor and all the delicious smells.

i think dog friendly cafes are fine - in my area the only one that didn’t allow dogs (some only allow you in with a dog if taking away) closed down. Same with the local pubs - all dog friendly.

An allergy isn’t a disability.

I was born in 63. Nowhere was clean like now.Its actually nearer to 25% so 1 in 4. Even if you ‘doubt’ it.