Dogs in cafes etc

[Dogscanteatonions]

I love dogs but I'm utterly fed up of them being cafes pubs restaurants shops etc, partly because I am allergic and partly because so many are poory behaved

However in the last week I've seen:

A man at the bar in a pub with his dog on the bar stool next to him with its paws up on the actual bar

A photo on the Facebook account of a favourite bar/ restaurant of a big hairy dog lying on one of the sofas - I'd have an allergic reaction if I sat on furniture right after a dog had been in it.

And to top it off yesterday I was in a cafe and the table next to me had a puppy which peed on the floor profusely which they halfheartedly mopped up with just a tissue from a pocket and didn't even tell staff so they could properly clean it. This was right next to serving counter.

I know a huge amount of people on Mumsnet are crazy pro dogs but I defy anyone to defend this. How do people think this is ok??

Aibu to think you should keep your dogs off furniture in these places and that you have an obligation to ensure its cleaned up properly if your 3 dog messes?

Posted this above

I can tell you why I bring my dog with me.

It's mostly a matter of practicality. If I'm off on a dog walk for a few hours, then it's helpful to either have a meal at the start or end. Lots of people take dogs out for the day. If im walking round a big country park type thing then I already have my dog with me when looking for coffee and cake etc. Its the same with people walking their dogs on seafronts, near towns etc . The reality is that in an area with dog walkers, then they are unlikely to drive home to drop dog off then come back, places know that so want to catch people as they are already there. If I walk past a non dogfriendly shop of a walk then I'm not going in. If you're a small shop you probably rely on that passing trade

I don't obviously need to eat in such circumstances and could cope without but places are doing everything they can to increase passing trade because they need it.

People no longer leave dogs in cars or tie dogs up outside due to the risk of theft. I remember as a kid seeing dogs tied up outside shops and pubs. We also are better aware of leaving dogs for long periods alone, I can't for example leave mine while I'm at work, then come home and leave again to go to the pub. Mostly it means I don't go out weeknights where the dogs been left, but on the rare occasion I do then they come with.

It's a big deal on holidays. Most accommodation like hotels doesn't allow you to leave your dogs unaccompanied there (probably rightly so as there's a risk of disruption via barking or damage) , or isn't suitable eg people camping or people just done

When I'm on holiday the likelihood for people like me, If it doesn't accept dogs then we aren't coming which means establishments and attractions miss out on a huge portion of UK holiday makers.

I don't hold anything against such establishments but its not practical to go to them a lot of the time. Its probably similar for non kid friendly places for parents, of course you'll go for a special occasion but most of the time it's not practical on days where you've got kids with you.

Ooh, what would they prepare for us? Mine would definitely do some tasty venison sausage type arrangement.

Boring .

Go to places that aren't dog friendly

We bring our dog with us when we go on day trips because its unfair to leave him alone at home and he enjoys it as we do lots of walking. We really appreciate there being places we can go for lunch or dinner in so we don't need to leave him in the boot of the car where he'd get cold in winter and lonely and especially in summer when this would be unsafe with heat. He's very well trained and would never pee somewhere (I'd be mortified if he did) and we didn't bring him out until we knew he was fully toilet trained. He doesn't get up on any furniture, he lies quietly under the table on a tight leash so he can't trip anyone walking past. I will say that exposure is the best form of training, we had to correct him a few times when we first started bringing him with us because a new environment is always exciting and they need to learn how to behave but it's the owner that sets the rules and they should be considerate of other people. I'm not sure where you're based but I'd say many more places here don't allow dogs than do allow dogs, we'd always need to ring ahead to check if we can bring him in first and we tend to go back to the same places because we know they're dog friendly.

What a ridiculous comment! Dogs are animals & should be treated as such & not like the babies most people treat them like!! Dogs should be Outside of places & on the floor.

Boring! You've missed the point!! There are hardly any dog free friendly places to go!!

'Honestly, none of those scenarios would bother me.'

Unless you had an allergy or were scared of dogs.

Surely it depends on what your passing trade is?

If you're inside an out of town shopping center then it probably makes little difference

If you someone that relies on footfall and your passing trade is people with dogs. For example if your shop is on a seafront, or a dog walking route eg. Places in the lake district then people will have dogs and not allowing those people in will decrease your trade.

For example on holiday the dog typically comes everywhere with us.

If we pass a not dog friendly shop when the dog is with us I'm likely to walk straight past it, if I saw something I like in the window then I'd have to go home, and drive back. On holiday, that's not possible and in general I'm unlikely to remember to come back.
If there happens to be both me and dp there, one of us stands outside the shop with the dog. The person in the shop is then rushing, and unlikely to make the same purchases as if we are together.

If we can both go in then we will browse slowly, talk about big ticket things together, and will look beyond just the window stuff.

All that stuff is essential if you are a nick nak shop or a shop that relies on impulse buys in a dog area. I rarely plan to take the dog to the shop with me

In the past week I chose going to wicks (dog friendly) over b and q because I was on the way back from a dog walk and didn't have time to drop the dog back before Sunday closing and wouldn't leave him in the car due to dog thefts.

Again I completely get why it's not ideal to have dogs in shops, and why the majority don't allow them. It's the same if shops didn't allow kids, of course you could drop the kids back with their other parent, but your unlikely to do that just to browse

Shops in places who's passing traffic is a high level of dog walkers might need those customers

I also think some dog owners can't understand or are oblivious to the fact that some people are scared of dogs. Patting the dog or feeding it biscuits as "look it's friendly" isn't going to cure a genuine fear. It is acceptable to fear Spiders, snakes and have other fears, but dogs seems to be not allowed.

It's a tricky one, I think that there perhaps should be certain cafes and pubs that allow them but not all so that those with allergies can go somewhere safely. Personally for me I'd choose the dog friendly ones. We often walk to the local village pubs with our dog and wouldn't like to stop doing it.

It's an animal! I don't want any animals near me whilst I'm eating. I don't understand why anyone wouldn't understand that.

I totally agree & couldn't have put it better myself.

There should be dog parks and 'some' cafes that are clear that they're dog friendly.

Can't the little princes/princesses stay at home alone for a few hours?
My dog is a breed that doesn't cope well at all if left alone for some time. Hard to believe for some but they are actually very clever, probably as much as a 2 year old.

They do stay alone when they have to, when I go to the supermarket, the gym, the hairdresser. However, they love coming to a cafe with me. They live to see my friends, they love the stimulation of looking at what's around, and live the attention of those who do want to give it to them. They are very well behaved and my friends always ask for me to bring them.

No, I don't think of people who are allergic to dogs, nor do I wonder if the person next to me in the theatre might be allergic to peanuts when I eat M&Ms. Does anyone do?

I also think some dog owners can't understand or are oblivious to the fact that some people are scared of dogs
I totally understand. This is my best friend, so get it, although she managed to get my very small, cute and totally not frightening dog to sit on her lap.

However, I don't understand why you'd go to a cafe that accepts dogs. The responsibility is then in you to avoid them.

It's an animal! I don't want any animals near me whilst I'm eating. I don't understand why anyone wouldn't understand that.

I understand that. It's the implication thats it's unhygienic that I was querying.

Plenty of places don't allow dogs, so it should be too hard to get the distance you want.

The point being it's hard to go anywhere to avoid them, all the local cafes, shops, pubs, Starbucks, costa even the big shopping outlet I live near has them in, it's becoming very hard to go out if your scared of them. My local park is a complete no go which I don't because there's tons of them all of leads, Shane when I have children & can't take them. There should be dog only part of the parks too.

That's kind of the pint of the post, it's getting increasingly difficult to find somewhere that doesn't allow them.

Your reply doesn’t match my comment.

I didn’t mention dogs being treated like humans…I said children were more unhygienic.

@vivainsomnia I digressed and was meaning it just generally while on the topic of dogs, and not specific to 'certain cafes.' On topic and relating to the cafe, imo it should just be certain ones, and of course the cafe needs to clearly stipulate it is dog friendly.

@Silverbook how are children more unhygienic in comparison to dogs? Can you elaborate?

To be fair, my friend has a toddler who is incapable of catching his coughs.
I'd rather any dog sit at my feet when I eat than sit next to him! 🤣🤣

The point being it's hard to go anywhere to avoid them, all the local cafes, shops, pubs, Starbucks, costa even the big shopping outlet I live near has them in, it's becoming very hard to go out if your scared of them
This is the issue with most people with fears. The world can't revolve around everyone fears. The onus is on people with the fear to manage it.

Yes, I can imagine how frustrating and restrictive it must be, I really do but expecting dog owners to hide because of a very few number of people scared of dogs is not reasonable.

A restaurant near me lets dogs in, and I have no problem with that if they stay on the floor. After I saw a family sit their dogs on the chairs though, I haven't been back. It's gross.

We take our dog most places with us - but we worked up to it super slowly and did “pub training” to make sure she was comfortable, well behaved and not causing a bother to anyone else. I take a small blanket in my handbag that I put on any furniture she’s on / the floor. We didn’t take her to inside places until we knew she could be trusted not to have any toileting accidents. Now she’ll just curl up and go to sleep most places we take her. I have no issues with dogs anywhere really, but just think owners need to be responsible.