Is it ok to bring dogs into stores?

[Nolder]

I had an...incident the other day and I want to see what people think about this subject.

I'll tell my story, then explain the law as I understand it and then I'd like you guys to take the poll and/or give your thoughts about this. 

 

Ok so the other day I went to Target. Actually let me back up and explain that I have been seeing dogs in stores for a few years now. Dogs that are not obviously service animals. They look like pets. People have them on leashes and walk them around or put them in a shopping cart. I don't know if this is happening everywhere or if it's just a Los Angeles thing but it seems to be happening more and more lately. I think it's because a lot of people here live in apartments and they aren't supposed to have dogs but they have them anyway and they can't leave them home alone in case they bark so they take them into stores with them.

 

Anyway I'm getting off track so ok I went to Target and as I'm standing in line the woman ahead of me is checking out and she has this ugly dog on a leash but it's got a lot of slack and can go wherever it wants. So I'm watching it and it goes over to these bags of cheetos and starts licking the bags and the woman notices and like pulls the dog away. And so it wanders around to the other check out lane where a guy with ANOTHER dog is checking out. To be fair this dog at least was well behaved and just sitting there on a tight leash. For whatever that's worth. So the dog starts sniffing the other dog and I'm thinking these two dogs could start fighting or humping right here in the store and no one besides me seems to care. My last straw was when the lady working the register in my line asked the girl with the dog what kind of dog it was and told her how cute it was. If everyone else was going to ignore the dogs I guess I could too but when I saw this lady take direct notice of the dog I couldn't take it anymore.

 

So I walk forward a little bit and very calmly say "Excuse me, I wasn't going to say anything but I feel like I have to. Do you think it's ok to just bring your dog into the store like this?" I wont litigate the conversation word for word (mainly because it led to me cussing up a storm) but I'll give you the gist of what happened. So the girl says no it's fine and I'm like how do you think this is ok? And she starts giving the excuse these types of people always do saying it's a service dog and do I want to talk to her doctor. I flat out told her no, I don't care about her doctor, I don't believe it's a service dog. So I turned and asked the Target employee what she thought and asked her if she wasn't supposed to do something about dogs being in the store. She gave me this blank stare and then said she wasn't going to do anything and that she thought it was fine. I want to emphasize that at this point I was not yelling or cussing. 

 

For whatever reason the guy with the behaved dog decided to get involved and said something that really ticked me off. I don't know if he felt mutually attacked because he also had a dog in the store or if he was trying to white knight for M'lady but regardless he jumped in and gave basically the same spiel. Wanna talk to my doctor blah blah blah. At this point I'm dropping f bombs and yelling at these morons and a Target employee is asking me to leave (I was with a friend who was checking out the stuff) so I'm like fine ok whatever I'm leaving. As I'm walking out the guy with the behaved dog says something like "yeah you better walk away" and I go from just mad to raging volcano status telling the guy to come over and try something if he's so tough. Of course he didn't. Meanwhile the Target employee is reaching out to like grab my arm and telling me to leave and they're lucky they didn't because I would have knocked their ass to the floor if they had touched me I was so mad at the time. I say this because anyone who knows me IRL would know I'm USUALLY the most passive easy going guy you'll meet (my friends in the mafia forum may disagree but they only know how I act online). I'm not trying to be an internet tough guy here, this was an unusual situation for me.

 

SO, I leave the store and I'm standing outside waiting for my friend just cooling down and the lady with the dog who was licking the cheetos drives up and starts bugging me from her car. She said something like don't you know anything about PTSD and I was in the military were you and her doctor blah blah blah. I was ignoring her because I had said my piece and didn't want to get into it further but she just kept yelling at me from her car so I finally turn around to confront the dummy and as soon as I do she speeds off like I'm going to attack her or whatever. JFC! Over stupid dogs in a stupid store!

 

OK so I went home and looked up what I believe is the actual letter of the law as it stands now. There are THREE types of "service dogs". There is a service dog that helps blind people basically. There is a service dog that helps disabled people (like fetching their mail and stuff like that). And there are so called Emotional Support Animals which are supposed to idk make you feel better if you're sad or have PTSD. These dogs MUST be licensed but they do NOT have to wear an identifying vest. They are allowed into basically any public space including grocery markets and restaurants. By law you cannot harass or interfere with the dogs or impede their ability to perform their tasks. You (actually not YOU but employees of a business) may ASK two questions. "Is it a Service Animal?" and "What services does it provide?". By law you (again employees, YOU cannot ask these people anything otherwise you're technically harassing them) may NOT ask them to show the dogs license/credential as a service animal nor can you ask them to make their dog perform a task as an example to prove it is a service animal. You may also not ask the person what their medical disability is. So basically if you have any doubts that an animal is actually a service animal and you want to verify you can just **** right off because the law is not on your side and there is no way to verify without stepping on these peoples supposed rights.

 

Last thing I want to say is MY position. First of all I am perfectly fine with dogs helping the blind or physically crippled. Those types of dogs are usually very well trained and behaved and to be honest they aren't ugly mutt dogs like what I have been seeing in stores lately they are usually Golden Retrievers or similar. If someone legitimately has PTSD or they are idk mentally ill or whatever I am fine with them having a so called "Emotional Support Dog" but I am not ok with them bringing it in a store. You don't need emotional support for the 10-20 minutes you're in a store and if you do you are so bad you probably shouldn't be in public at all. Meanwhile there are, I believe, a LOT of people abusing this Emotional Support Dog thing to bring their pets into stores just because they feel like it. I'm not even sure if these people are even bothering getting them licensed. They might I guess, I don't know. If they don't though it's not like it matters since legally no one can verify it anyway. On top of it most of the dogs I see being brought into stores are, like I said, ugly mutt dogs that people are getting from shelters. Maybe that doesn't matter to a lot of you but it matters to me. They LOOK dirty and mangy. It's not like a pure bred Dachshund or Labrador or whatever it's these little sh*ts like this. What is going is not ok in my opinion. These people are bringing their pets into a public space and it's very rude, to put it mildly.

 

So please, tell me what you all think about this topic and if you've had any similar experiences to mine.

Vote in the poll and let's see where everyone is at.

Maybe I'm in the minority here I don't know.

[Nolder]

P.S. I also think the law needs to change. If a Service Dog is licensed they should give out some sort of collar or vest to identify them that 1. you can only get through registration like a handicap plate and 2. Is a big fine to counterfeit or use fraudulently. There needs to be a verifiable way of identifying service dogs from pets because this is out of control, at least where I live.

[14 in Green]

You're preaching to the choir. I've broken up with women just because they own a dog, lol. 

Very few things annoy me more than people who just assume everyone loves their dog as much as they do.

It's funny, I never have a problem on Long Island with these idiots, but when I'm down south, it seems like I'm always bobbing and weaving from someone's lil Fido. Its like everyone here has a dog, and they bring them everywhere. I don't do much more than give the owner a dirty look, but I get your reaction in that store 100%.

BTW Emotional Support dogs? Honestly, I've never even heard of that before. What a crock of s**t 

[Nolder]

7 minutes ago, 14 in Green said:

I don't do much more than give the owner a dirty look, but I get your reaction in that store 100%.

Well this is something I've been holding in for literally years. I have seen these people in Lowes, Home Depot, Target, Wal Mart, Ralphs (Kroger), Costco, etc, etc, etc not to mention restaurants every once in awhile. This was just the straw that broke the camels back for me. It was when the Target employee was talking about how cute the lady's dog was I just couldn't hold it inside anymore.

 

9 minutes ago, 14 in Green said:

BTW Emotional Support dogs? Honestly, I've never even heard of that before. What a crock of s**t

Yeah, supposedly people with PTSD and mental illness benefit from having a dog around to like be their friend and comfort them. And like, yeah I know how a dog can be your buddy and make you feel better if you're feeling down but I still say if you can't go to the store WITHOUT the dog you need more help than just a dog. A lot more.

[southparkcpa]

6 hours ago, 14 in Green said:

You're preaching to the choir. I've broken up with women just because they own a dog, lol. 

Very few things annoy me more than people who just assume everyone loves their dog as much as they do.

It's funny, I never have a problem on Long Island with these idiots, but when I'm down south, it seems like I'm always bobbing and weaving from someone's lil Fido. Its like everyone here has a dog, and they bring them everywhere. I don't do much more than give the owner a dirty look, but I get your reaction in that store 100%.

BTW Emotional Support dogs? Honestly, I've never even heard of that before. What a crock of s**t 

Fukkin A!    Walk into Lowes and a guy our age is walking his poodle. I want to slap him.  Go to a micro brew in town  and the average age is 30 and they all have their dog with them.  Ridiculous.

[joewilly12]

See this all the time..Home Depot,Lowes,Costco (small c) and Wegman's.

In Wegman's the little runt poodle dog was in a stroller I complained to the manager.

My opinion is grocery/open food store  no dogs unless its a service dog for a blind person. 

Problem is most store employees/managers won't touch the situation out of fear of losing their jobs and getting sued. 

Society is nuts and out of control with everything, the the world we live in is rapidly changing and not for the better. 

[nyjunc]

We went out to eat about a week and a half ago and people bright a dog into the restaurant.  We know the owners and they wanted to kick them out but were told it was a "service dog".  Unless it's a seeing eye dog they shouldn't be allowed anywhere indoors in a public place.

 

By the way, the damn dog was barking throughout the time it was there.

[Barry McCockinner]

I don't know about dogs but I bring my emotional support peacock with me everywhere.

[Dunnie]

Let me start by saying I am a dog lover. I've had Golden retrievers Labradors etc etc. I will say that they do provide some level of comfort but I agree that if you need to bring your dog with you into a supermarket for 15 minutes you probably should be not going into that supermarket alone. I further agree that dogs anywhere near open food is not a good idea. They're not the most hygienic of all animals. I also wonder if allowing this kind of behavior prevents the individual from healing themselves ... Basically forcing them to become dependent on their companion instead of healing and becoming adjusted. I don't know. PTSD is a real thing and I know A couple people that have suffered from it.I just feel like if they're going to allow it they need to provide better oversight on the matter. Perhaps having dog-friendly stores would be an option and then the rest of us could just go to the regular supermarkets?

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

[Irish Jet]

Safer than humans at the minute.

[Nolder]

3 hours ago, joewilly12 said:

 

In Wegman's the little runt poodle dog was in a stroller I complained to the manager.

What happened? Did they ask the person with the dog to leave?

[Nolder]

2 hours ago, Barry McCockinner said:

I don't know about dogs but I bring my emotional support peacock with me everywhere.

I've never seen this yet but I have read about people bringing weird sh*t onto airplanes with them. I'm surprised because the hills up in Chatsworth have a bunch of wild peacocks running around right where a bunch of methheads live. I could totally see this happening at some point.

[Nolder]

2 hours ago, Dunnie said:

Let me start by saying I am a dog lover. I've had Golden retrievers Labradors etc etc. I will say that they do provide some level of comfort but I agree that if you need to bring your dog with you into a supermarket for 15 minutes you probably should be not going into that supermarket alone. I further agree that dogs anywhere near open food is not a good idea. They're not the most hygienic of all animals. I also wonder if allowing this kind of behavior prevents the individual from healing themselves ... Basically forcing them to become dependent on their companion instead of healing and becoming adjusted. I don't know. PTSD is a real thing and I know A couple people that have suffered from it.I just feel like if they're going to allow it they need to provide better oversight on the matter. Perhaps having dog-friendly stores would be an option and then the rest of us could just go to the regular supermarkets?

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
 

Someone described that idea to me as "segregation" and then accused me of being ableist when I suggested it to them.

[JustEndTheSuffering]

I love dogs and I currently own an old English bulldog but I would never bring my dog into a store. Just because you’re having a bad day or something stupid doesn’t mean you can bring your dog wherever the hell you want. I am fine with a service dog with a vest that helps a blind or physically disabled person complete tasks they wouldn’t be able to. Also service dogs are always so well behaved and I’ve never seen them bark or bother anyone. And those laws about the emotional support dog are basically begging for people to abuse that system. 

[T0mShane]

9 hours ago, 14 in Green said:

Very few things annoy me more than people who just assume everyone loves their dog as much as they do.

Same. Dogs are generally disgusting. A chick I was dating adopted a retired military dog and the thing was terrifying. It’s the same breed Halle Berry owned in John Wick 3 that runs up walls and can chew your esophagus out in under three seconds. Prior to that, she had a bulldog with a bad hip that would limp around with piss and poop literally draining out of its body as it ambled. Whole house reeked of sh*t. 

[T0mShane]

As for the OP, I’m a relatively relaxed, non-confrontational dude. When I see a dog in a store, I just ignore it, like I do when people have out of control children with them. Dog lovers are absurd people anyway, so I limit my interactions with them in any case. I sympathize with your frustration at Target, but if the store employees aren’t going to do anything about it, you’re just going to get worked up over nothing. Only lose your sh*t if you think it’ll change a behavior, and even though only if it’s a behavioral response that you need to draw out of someone (like, getting a prostitute to leave your house before your wife gets home). Otherwise, the one who loses it loses the whole thing. 

[joewilly12]

48 minutes ago, Nolder said:

What happened? Did they ask the person with the dog to leave?

Nothing..... they did nothing. 

[Nolder]

15 minutes ago, joewilly12 said:

Nothing..... they did nothing. 

We are living in crazy times.

The last generation would not have put up with this.

[Jetsfan80]

4 hours ago, Barry McCockinner said:

I don't know about dogs but I bring my emotional support peacock with me everywhere.

@JiF?

[Jetsfan80]

1 hour ago, T0mShane said:

Only lose your sh*t if you think it’ll change a behavior, and even though only if it’s a behavioral response that you need to draw out of someone (like, getting a prostitute to leave your house before your wife gets home).

Solution:  File a missing person report on the hooker/one night stand the day of the event then call in an "anonymous tip" on the location of the missing person the next morning.

Police will come by and just take her away, possibly with no questions asked.

[T0mShane]

2 minutes ago, Jetsfan80 said:

Solution:  File a missing person report on the hooker/one night stand the day of the event then call in an "anonymous tip" on the location of the missing person the next morning.

Police will come by and just take her away, possibly with no questions asked.

Remind me to call you the next 11 times I’m in that pickle 

[JustInFudge]

3 minutes ago, Jetsfan80 said:

@JiF?

You want my opinion on his emotional peacock or my opinion on the subject?  lol  I'm confused by your tag.

I have 2 Dobermans.  I love them with all my heart.  If they're in the car for some reason and I have to make a stop at a hardware or pet store, then I find it acceptable.  Otherwise, I dont.  Any place that sells found of any kind, packed or prepared or whatever,  should not allow dogs, emotional support or otherwise. 

That's my take.  My dogs are a lot of work so taking them to public places isnt typically fun to begin with, so I'm not a big take my dogs everywhere type of guy.  Plus, I dont trust people and when they see 2 big dobermans, a lot of people get scared.  In general, I trust my dogs more than people.  lol

 

[Jetsfan80]

2 minutes ago, JiF said:

You want my opinion on his emotional peacock or my opinion on the subject?  lol  I'm confused by your tag.

I was inferring that you were the peacock he brought along for emotional support, lol.

[JustInFudge]

6 minutes ago, Jetsfan80 said:

I was inferring that you were the peacock he brought along for emotional support, lol.

[SAM SAM HE'S OUR MAN]

If you bring a dog into a supermarket right now , it might end up in the meat aisle ...

[freestater]

When I had my shepherd/rottie mix, she used to go to my neighborhood hood bar with me. One drunk assh*le kicked her as he walked by her once muttering something about a goddamned dog. She yelped and I flipped the **** out. Dude was threatening to call the cops after I leveled him. That wasn't you, was it?

[The Crimson King]

To me there are three levels of dogs:

1. Animals who want to protect their pack from you. There are either scary dangerous or yipper annoying. Neither type should be near anyone outside the family and leashed at all times outside the house. These dogs should not be brought into any commercial establishment and they should not near brought near people ... ever.    

2. Animals who are indifferent. Personality of squids. Keep them out of stores and away from other humans. Might as well drag around a doorstop.

3. Animals who want to welcome you to their pack. The most delightful living beings in the planet. Keep them leashed because some folks are afraid of dogs but bring them to me for an expert ear and neck scratch. It would be the highlight of my day. Don't, however, bring them into food stores. They are dogs. It's not fair to them and could be an issue as noted by the OP.

The Mrs. has significant caninian experience (even corrects Ceasar Milan when she watches his show) . She says that dogs aren't the problem, owners are. In her opinion Nolder was right here and the owner irresponsible. 

 

 

[ljr]

I need you to describe how hot "face/t*ts/*$$/legs" the girl in the check-out line, in front of you,  was before I can make my decision on how to respond here

[Nolder]

11 hours ago, T0mShane said:

As for the OP, I’m a relatively relaxed, non-confrontational dude. When I see a dog in a store, I just ignore it, like I do when people have out of control children with them. Dog lovers are absurd people anyway, so I limit my interactions with them in any case. I sympathize with your frustration at Target, but if the store employees aren’t going to do anything about it, you’re just going to get worked up over nothing. Only lose your sh*t if you think it’ll change a behavior, and even though only if it’s a behavioral response that you need to draw out of someone (like, getting a prostitute to leave your house before your wife gets home). Otherwise, the one who loses it loses the whole thing. 

Missed this before. Yeah you're right. I honestly thought that if I just brought it up the person would feel, you know, some shame or something and realize they shouldn't bring the dog in the store. I didn't actually expect them to defend what I see as such an obviously rude action let alone for the store employees to do the same.

[Nolder]

10 hours ago, JiF said:

You want my opinion on his emotional peacock or my opinion on the subject?  lol  I'm confused by your tag.

I have 2 Dobermans.  I love them with all my heart.  If they're in the car for some reason and I have to make a stop at a hardware or pet store, then I find it acceptable.  Otherwise, I dont.  Any place that sells found of any kind, packed or prepared or whatever,  should not allow dogs, emotional support or otherwise. 

That's my take.  My dogs are a lot of work so taking them to public places isnt typically fun to begin with, so I'm not a big take my dogs everywhere type of guy.  Plus, I dont trust people and when they see 2 big dobermans, a lot of people get scared.  In general, I trust my dogs more than people.  lol

 

I mean yeah a hardware store is...fine...I guess. Would you ever take them into a super market though?

[Nolder]

2 hours ago, freestater said:

When I had my shepherd/rottie mix, she used to go to my neighborhood hood bar with me. One drunk assh*le kicked her as he walked by her once muttering something about a goddamned dog. She yelped and I flipped the **** out. Dude was threatening to call the cops after I leveled him. That wasn't you, was it?

Nah man I would never kick a dog unless it was attacking me first. That guy sounds like a real a$$hole I hope you gave him what he deserved tbh.

[Nolder]

1 hour ago, The Crimson King said:

To me there are three levels of dogs:

1. Animals who want to protect their pack from you. There are either scary dangerous or yipper annoying. Neither type should be near anyone outside the family and leashed at all times outside the house. These dogs should not be brought into any commercial establishment and they should not near brought near people ... ever.    

2. Animals who are indifferent. Personality of squids. Keep them out of stores and away from other humans. Might as well drag around a doorstop.

3. Animals who want to welcome you to their pack. The most delightful living beings in the planet. Keep them leashed because some folks are afraid of dogs but bring them to me for an expert ear and neck scratch. It would be the highlight of my day. Don't, however, bring them into food stores. They are dogs. It's not fair to them and could be an issue as noted by the OP.

The Mrs. has significant caninian experience (even corrects Ceasar Milan when she watches his show) . She says that dogs aren't the problem, owners are. In her opinion Nolder was right here and the owner irresponsible. 

 

 

Thanks. I shouldn't have lost my cool like Tom said but I have no regrets in confronting the woman.

1 hour ago, ljr said:

I need you to describe how hot "face/t*ts/*$$/legs" the girl in the check-out line, in front of you,  was before I can make my decision on how to respond here

medium/short length sandy blonde hair, butterface with big chin, B or C sized t!ts, never even looked at her legs but she was in normal jeans and I got the impression there wasn't really anything to look at.

 

This wasn't some hot babe that could talk her way out of a speeding ticket with a little cleavage and a smile let me tell you that.

[The Crusher]

I would be proud if my Dogs bit each and everyone one of you. I don’t bring them to stores because that’s kinda dumb. I bring them to the park and walking in the watershed. I like when solicitors come to my door unwanted and my sweet babies want to tear them to shreds.  I talk extra slow to the solicitors as they slowly back up for fear of their life. F stores, please come to my door. It’s fun. I don’t even take my dogs to Petsmart and other stupid places you are allowed to. I keep them home rested  so they can threatened to bite people and bark at them ferociously. Sweet sweet babies. 

[The Crimson King]

6 minutes ago, The Crusher said:

I would be proud if my Dogs bit each and everyone one of you. I don’t bring them to stores because that’s kinda dumb. I bring them to the park and walking in the watershed. I like when solicitors come to my door unwanted and my sweet babies want to tear them to shreds.  I talk extra slow to the solicitors as they slowly back up for fear of their life. F stores, please come to my door. It’s fun. I don’t even take my dogs to Petsmart and other stupid places you are allowed to. I keep them home rested  so they can threatened to bite people and bark at them ferociously. Sweet sweet babies. 

you guys need to add a "shivering in one's boots" or "soiling pants" icon to respond to this

maybe "whimpering and coiled in a fetal position" ? 

[freestater]

15 minutes ago, Nolder said:

Nah man I would never kick a dog unless it was attacking me first. That guy sounds like a real a$$hole I hope you gave him what he deserved tbh.

? I got yanked off pretty quick. My friends look out. Especially with this girl, she was the sweetest thing. Unless you were a squirrel or a kitty.