AIBU to want cafes to be dog free after grandchild was bitten?

[OhSoTrue]

What to do? Took my 12 year old gc into a cafe for lunch today, and a dog
snapped her ankle as we walked by. It drew blood. No idea why it picked on her.
She did nothing beyond walking in the door.

The dog owner 'fled the scene' as it were. Made a hasty exit while he had the chance and everyone was looking at the injury.

Wouldn't it just be better if we kept dogs out of what really should be an exclusively human area?

The argument that "they are allowed here so suck it up" is wearing thin.
We are all very fed up of your dogs in human spaces. The vast majority of us would prefer a dog free space.

Yesterday I went on a long dog walk with my two, my family, and their dog (8 people- 3 dogs). We specifically chose a dog friendly cafe halfway, and phoned in advance to check the dog/person ratio was ok.

The cafe had at least 5 other dogs in. They advertise as dog friendly. There are several signs outside too.

I heard another customer complaining to her husband about the amount of dogs in the cafe.

If you don’t want to be around dogs, surely the answer is to not pick a dog friendly cafe?

I was out in a shopping area yesterday and the number of dogs on long leads was staggering. It’s so dangerous. Anyone could trip over.

Oh the support dog may well help her a lot! Personally I wouldn’t get a dog myself, her home is her safe space and until she’s comfortable I wouldn’t try that.

Honestly, my friends DS would run off the beach if a dog came into view, even if it was a long way away, after the “therapy” (not sure what to call it) he was great.

There are places where they are not allowed how about you check first

Oh I really have no problem with that. I'm not an unreasonable person.

Dogs that attack should be put down, along with their owners as it would stop them from getting another dog.

Dogs are not allowed at the cafe at my work people have to regularly be told not to bring the dog in.

I don't want to eat my lunch next to someone dog. That's not unreasonable particularly in places that serve food.

I hope your granddaughter is okay! I completely agree with you and I think the tide will start to turn in the next couple of years just like it has for women’s spaces. The world went a bit nuts during Covid and the entitlement of people coming out of it is shameful. Dogs are not equal to humans, never have been, never will.

In my opinion dogs should not be allowed in places that sell or serve food. Only if they have an outside eating area so they can stay out there. I also don’t think they should be able to be out in public without being on a lead. I love dogs, had them my whole life, but I am getting sick and tired of people’s untrained dogs running up to my 5 year old and baby when I am out walking around. There was a retriever the other day which came bounding up to my 5 year old - face was level with his, it scared my little boy as he thought he was going to get knocked over, and then came right up to my buggy with my 6 month old baby in, again face level. Owner was shouting its name, the thing had no recall, so I had to grab it by the collar to keep it away from my kids and march it back to its lazy owner.

I don’t want dogs in clothes shops either. No one will ever convince me that a dog has a nice time getting dragged round the local town centre and I am getting sick of picking up things (M&S I’m looking at you) and it’s covered in dog hair because the dogs have been brushing up against everything.

Mumsnet is full of unhinged dog owners so I know I’m about to get metaphorically lynched for this comment, but one day all this crap will be a thing of the past and dogs will have to stay at home where they belong (unless walking nicely on a lead), so I suggest you start getting your trained for when it happens.

Edited to add: I would be looking at sueing the cafe this happened in. They should have the appropriate insurance in place and they have a duty to ensure the people on its premises are safe. Clearly they haven’t done this is the dog has bitten before. You won’t be the only person that knows about this owner and dog.

Dogs that attack should be put down, along with their owners as it would stop them from getting another dog.

I hope that's a joke (albeit in bad taste) because I would be concerned about your mental stability if you really believed in Capital Punishment in that situation.

And dog owners are called unhinged….

That will be why they left.

It shouldn’t have nipped, and the man shouldn’t have the dog in an enclosed public space if he knows it does.

But a dog does not need to be euthanised if it has nipped. It isn’t going to kill anyone. It perhaps needs a muzzle on in that kind of environment though.

I hope your granddaughter is ok. I was nipped by a Jack Russell at that age, and needed a tetanus in my backside.

Completely agree with the OP, every cafe I go in now is ruined by dogs barking or people who think you want to interact with their dog, can’t stand it.

Before you call people thick, I’d read the first line of the OP, it says 12 not 2!

Mumsnet is full of unhinged dog owners

How do you know that?

My local cafe love my new dog so much they bring him out a free sausage chopped into little bits when we go. He loves visiting the cafe after a walk. 😁

Love dogs but hate them being in cafes and similar. I went into a small branch of Costa the other week and there were 4 dogs in there (different owners) tripping people up and barking.

...and humourless too!

Costa has a policy of being 'dog friendly' that has been well-advertised, so why not pick another cafe?

(IMO the coffee is crap there anyway 🙄)

If you can find one, im sure it would be rammed, but unfortunately they are far and few between now. My local town centre is dog friendly, literally cannot go in a single shop/bank/cafe/restaurant without a dog being there. Even in the bloody toilets there are dogs, can’t even go for a piss in peace. I remember one time (to be much information coming), I was on my period, went into the ladies loo to use the toilet. Came out the cubicle and had a dog literally put its whole face in my crotch and then subsequently up my arse as I was washing my hands. Could clearly smell I was on my period, I have never been so mortified in my life!

People will say avoid the town centre, I could well do, but why should I have to travel 45 minutes to the next one so I can go for a wee in public without a dog being there. The next town along also doesn’t a branch of my bank there, it doesn’t have a post office, it does have a M&S that I like looking in.

There’s been a huge rise in lazy and selfish dog owners since Covid. There are too many poorly trained dogs in public places like cafes and shops. If cafes want to be dog friendly, I think they should clean more, but they don’t seem to. My DD used to love dogs until a massive one knocked her over in the park when she was 3. She’s been wary of them ever since.

Have you contacted the cafe to complain? They could ban dogs from their premises if they wanted. Lots of cafes and restaurants don’t allow dogs, why did you choose to go to a dog- friendly one? If you think dogs would be banned contact the cafe owner, if they think the number of customers who don’t like dogs outweighs the numbers who want to bring them then they will ban them. In the meantime stop frequenting cafes that allow dogs, if everyone who doesn’t like dogs votes with their feet and cafe owners who let in dogs lose business they will change their policies. You don’t need to call for a widespread ban, just target the cafes in your local area and they will do what is most profitable, if everyone hates dogs as you say then obviously that will be banning them.

I hate dogs in cafes etc. smelly, slobbery, being ‘friendly’. I avoid these places like the plague 🤢

Where do you live? I need to move there. It’s sounds like absolute bliss that you can go about your day without being surrounded by dogs.

People should not have to ‘check first’ before going shopping or to a cafe or restaurant. It seems to be the case that dogs are taking priority over humans and restricting the choices of people who don’t want to be around them.

I agree OP. I’m a dog owner and lover but they don’t need to be in cafes.
An outdoor space designed for dogs is fine, but not indoors.