Dogs in Restaurants

[IDontGetOutMuch]

Took my mum out to lunch today. It was a nice enough place-£25 per head.
Have expectations changed with regard to dogs in restaurants? There were four other tables in our section and three had a dog with them.
Two of them barked at least three times during the meal. One jumped up at a waitress carrying puddings to another table, paws on her apron. One jumped up at the table wanting to be fed. One was petted by another waitress who then went straight to a table to take orders without washing hands. One was lying in the way so that I had to ask the owner to move it to allow my mother to get through with her Walker.
We had a dog when I was a child. He never went to a restaurant. What about people with allergies?
Is it okay that they do? Do I need to get over myself? I tried to compare to children. I expect my children to cause no disturbance to others at a restaurant and to stay at the table. We expected this even when they were little and actually rarely went to restaurants anyway.

@PattyPan lot's of places coming up on Google as dog friendly in Reading. Like literally loads! Looks like we'll be ok to come for a visit after all

@lST I can’t think of any that do. Most of them are quite small so dogs would be in the way. Maybe I’ve just been lucky and not come across any.

[quote PattyPan]@ForeverAintEnough3 I’m concerned that people will start trying to bring their dogs into our local Specsavers there has been an increase in dog ownership all over the country and I don’t like the general cultural shift towards dogs being everywhere and everyone having a dog so I guess that is what I am protesting.[/quote]
Unfortunately if a dog owner asks a restaurant if dogs are allowed you will have to just take your custom elsewhere. It’s not the fault of dog owners if they like going to a restaurant with their dog and the restaurant owners welcome them there and it’s not the responsibility of either to ensure all restaurants adhere to your personal preferences. You will have to just ensure that where you go to eat is dog free.

I'm allergic to dogs so this would annoy me because their dander is the allergy which gets into the air and settles on surfaces. If it was a dog friendly place then I'd avoid inside or wouldn't go at all. If I wasn't expecting a dog I'd have to sit outside until my antihistamine kicked in although I have walked into someone's living room before and had a severe reaction within minutes so taking the antihistamine is too late for my reaction to reverse.

@ForeverAintEnough3 I guess so. Not sure it makes much business sense though since the dog isn’t buying anything!

Some dog owners are so entitled and selfish.

[quote PattyPan]@ForeverAintEnough3 I guess so. Not sure it makes much business sense though since the dog isn’t buying anything![/quote]
Well they'd lose the custom of more dog owners than people who don't want dogs there

There is no such thing as a dog-free venue, as all places must allow guide dogs by law. So your best bet is not to go out at all

Sadly i rarely see a blind dog out and about in our local pubs and of course Dogs for the Blind are, generally speaking, extremely well behaved.
So as well intentioned and non bitchy your advice is, i will have to ignore it.

@LST

www.doggiepubs.org.uk/the_pubs.php?searchtown=reading&lat=51.4528837&long=-0.9739059999999427&view=list

There quite a few dog friendly pubs in Reading. Patty Pan must think that never having been in any means they don't exist.

[quote TheFoundations]@LST

www.doggiepubs.org.uk/the_pubs.php?searchtown=reading&lat=51.4528837&long=-0.9739059999999427&view=list

There quite a few dog friendly pubs in Reading. Patty Pan must think that never having been in any means they don't exist.[/quote]
Loads aren't there. Just because there isn't a dog in there at the exact time people are there doesn't mean they aren't dog friendly!

@LST I’ve been in some of those places but not seen dogs in them at the time. Thanks for the list, now I know not to avoid them in future DP suggested booking one of them that we haven’t been to before for this weekend but that policy has just lost them a 6 person table.

Sorry, meant to tag @TheFoundations

[quote PattyPan]@LST I’ve been in some of those places but not seen dogs in them at the time. Thanks for the list, now I know not to avoid them in future DP suggested booking one of them that we haven’t been to before for this weekend but that policy has just lost them a 6 person table.[/quote]
They may have 2 6 people tables who don't mind dogs instead.

If they do, good for them. There are more non-dog owners than dog owners though. I wanted to support the hospitality industry but not enough to outweigh my desire to not eat around animals.

@PattyPan

If they do, good for them. There are more non-dog owners than dog owners though. I wanted to support the hospitality industry but not enough to outweigh my desire to not eat around animals.

There may be more none dog owners but most of them don't mind dogs

@PattyPan

If they do, good for them. There are more non-dog owners than dog owners though. I wanted to support the hospitality industry but not enough to outweigh my desire to not eat around animals.

I doubt restaurants etc forgo profits to facilitate dog owners. So I wouldn’t worry about them. Surely you can support non dog friendly establishments and dog owners can support dog friendly establishments! Win win

I wonder if anyone's done a survey.

Can't say I've ever been asked. A lot of people put up with situations on a temporary basis but would rather they were different, in many areas of life.

[quote ForeverAintEnough3]@JediGnot do you now ring up and check a place has no dogs before going? As that would really make life easier for you![/quote]
I am actually going to start doing that now that one has to book. If one is having to plan ahead anyway, then it is little trouble to make certain that you're not supporting a business that has policies you strongly disagree with, and get reassurance that the meal isn't going to be ruined by some filthy ill-trained inbred mutt chewing on my foot as I try to eat.

In my experience around me I haven't ever had an issue of dogs in restaurants. Dogs in pubs are definitely an issue, but then again most pubs I visit are close enough to countryside and nice outside space that I understand why the publican might want dog walkers in... and you don't have quite the same expectation of peace and quiet in a pub than you do a restaurant.

But yeah, if I have to book ahead then there is no way on earth I am booking a dog friendly place.

There are way more places which do not allow dogs then there are places which do (guide dogs being the exception for all).

Just pick a place which doesn't allow them if you don't want to be around them it's not difficult 🤷‍♂️

Personally we are the opposite and book places which do allow dogs and my dog is a lot quieter and easier to control than my 2 year old! 😂

I have a dog and I love a dog-friendly restaurant. Any holiday and/relocation is assessed against availability of dog friendly places.
I will, however, go out of my way to avoid eateries with lots of kids. The noise, the chaos... No thanks.

LST

"There may be more none dog owners but most of them don't mind dogs"

It is attitudes like yours that make me determined to challenge dog owners at every opportunity - you lot have no idea how much I detest being reminded that dogs exist, let alone being within 50 metres of them

Your dog causes issues - I am less likely to spend money in that place because your dog is there
No she doesn't. They might lose your business but gain mine. If it was hurting the business, they would allow dogs in the first place.

I do not know your dog so I'm am expecting it to attack me and / or annoy me at any time. I am on edge, ready to kick your dog as hard as I can in the head when it attacks me
And that's your problem. Dogs are a normal.part of her culture whether you like it or not. If you hate them or fear them so much, it's your responsibility to a Los a situation that would make you uncomfortable to leading you to harm a dog.

It is attitudes like yours that make me determined to challenge dog owners at every opportunity - you lot have no idea how much I detest being reminded that dogs exist, let alone being within 50 metres of them
Yep, your problem to deal with.

It’s always difficult to quantify counterfactuals though isn’t it? Maybe if they went from no dogs to dog friendly they can measure change in profits but if they have been dog friendly for a long time it’s difficult to know how much more they would make if they were no dogs. I guess I could email the place we were going to go to but that would be a bit weird.

@ForeverAintEnough3 yes, I am now going to look for a new place that will be animal free. Fortunately I found out with enough time to book somewhere else rather than having to turn around once we got there