California dog owners, amirite?

It is not limited to California, I assure you.

<venting>
Last week I was walking down the street with my kids, and some loose dog comes running at my youngest. I'm holding both kids' hands, so I kicked at the dog to keep it away without actually hitting the dog.
All of a sudden, its absentee owner comes out of the woodwork to threaten "if you kick my dog I'll kick you!" I just hung on to my kids and kept on walking. I would rather get kicked than let his dog do whatever it was going to do to my kid. I'm not going to stop and get in a fight with this idiot, but it was simply astounding that he expected random people on the street to care more about his dog than he does.
</venting>
- I love dogs but fully support you on this one.
- No you're right. You don't know that dog's temperment. Your kids are more important than a loose dog.
- You made the right call. That person was definitely a dangerous idiot.

Op, did your leg get humped by a dog in a store?

If you think that bad dog owner entitlement is an exclusively Californian issue then I regret to inform you that I have terrible news about the rest of the country.

I worked a retail gig in the Bay Area. I was the only one who tried to enforce the no-dog policy. That was 20 years ago. I wouldn't bother now.

Tbh I love it when customers bring their dogs to my work (as long as the dog is friendly).
Give some something cute to look at and pet during an otherwise bland day
- Work dogs are the best part of my day

I'm not a dog person, even the one dog I did have in my household is a shiba inu, which is way more cat-like than anything. I don't have a problem with dogs in stores as long as they're well behaved...
BUT
Don't take your dog to a venue or bar with loud live music. Just because you're comfortable with loud music doesn't mean your dog is. I imagine it's pretty hard on their much more sensitive hearing and our vet confirmed this to me.
Thats my 2¢

Amazon has faux emotional support certs. Harnesses, and badges. Do with that information as you will.

ESAs complicate the whole thing
- Not really. I actually like this meme because it specifies the dog is misbehaving. There is no protection for a misbehaving dog.

I love dogs. I love looking at them. I love playing with them. Dogs are the best.
But don't fucking bring your dog...
People are scared of dogs. People are allergic to dogs.
I know you love your dog, I probably love your dog too but I don't think I should bring my dog anywhere indoors and/or crowded and neither should you.
Obviously!!!! If your dog is a service dog, I am not talking about you and your dog. You just make me sad because I can't play with your dog :( even tho they are such a good boy/girl...
- You can ask people with service dogs if it's ok to pet and most times they are fine with that, the issue is with people running up and petting the dog without asking. Service dogs are very well behaved and usually love a good head pat
  
  Then it's likely not a service dog, but an emotional support animal. There is a MASSIVE difference, and people treat them like they are the same.
  Eta: so I may not be entirely right. In my experience, I was always told if they're dressed for service they shouldn't be touched by anyone else.

Animals don't belong in places that sell food. Animals don't belong in office supply stores. Animals don't belong in post offices. Animals don't belong in any business other than a vet's office or pet supply store that specifically allows them.
If you can't train your animal to be home alone long enough for you to run some errands, then you shouldn't own a pet.
- Animals don’t belong in post offices
  Then how do you mail the animal?
- Animals make your food. Shocking I know. At least they wash their hands. All my service dog does is lay under the table, and bother me if she needs to alert.
- What about service dogs?
  
  Those should be an exception, obviously. But in CA we have a big problem with service animal fraud. It's bad for people with disabilities because
  the ones who actually need animals get undue criticism, and
  people with severe dog allergies have elevated exposure.
  I think a good solution would be if the service harnesses had a QR code that linked to a state govt website with the animal's picture.
- Not to be pedantic but we fall under the classification of Animals. And anywhere they allow children 5 and under I'm bringing my pet to. Children are 100 times worse than the worst behaved pet
- There are some stores, like Home Depot, Home Goods, and Michael's (in the US), that are historically pet friendly. Leashed and good manners only of course, but it's great for socializing a pet and making an employee's day with cute puppies to break up the retail monotony.
  A store that explicitly states service animals only, or has no sign, is not appropriate.
  
  These policies work out for the business as well, especially when the store shares a plaza with a pet supply place.
  People bringing their dogs to store A might see store B and want to shop there, too. If store B bans pets, that means people either have to bring their dogs home and come back (which is a pain, and people might not return at all), or leave the dogs in their car (which is dangerous or even illegal.) Smart business people don't want people leaving without shopping, and people with any sense of decency don't want dogs left in cars.
  So when store B explicitly permits people to bring their pets, people can go straight there from Store A without worry. Customers are happy, dogs are happy, business people are happy, and no pets have to suffer in a locked vehicle.
- These rules seem arbitrary and capricious. If the dog is well-trained, the owner is able to meet its needs on the go, and nobody else is explicitly being bothered, there's no compelling reason to block it from any of these establishments.
  All of the above hold true for therapy animals, for instance. This isn't about the animal being well-trained, it is about both the pet and the person to be comfortable and happy, without impinging on the comfort and happiness of others. Locking well-behaved pets out of all of the above establishments does nothing to improve your comfort or happiness. It only serves to inconvenience others.
  
  Well no, the intent is not to inconvenience others, but to not inconvenience yourself.
  I love animals. Dogs, cats, rabbits, whatever. Love them all. I'm highly allergic to most of them though.
  As a customer of an establishment, why do I need to deal with the animal that belongs to another customer of the establishment? And I'm not being a jerk. I'm not complaining or making a fuss, but if I'm trying to buy toilet paper I shouldn't need to worry about hair, dander, or if somebody's dog is well behaved or not. I am the one being inconvenienced, and there doesn't seem to be a good reason for it.
  That goes to the point of the comment you replied to. And to your point, if nobody else is being bothered... Are they checking if others are being bothered? Usually not. That's a generalization but I can say in my experience it's true more often than not (and I notice when it is). I'm not saying to ban pets in stores, but it should not be the norm and expect others to just deal with it.
  
  Barring animals from places that sell food is not arbitrary and capricious, it's a safety issue.

This is so stupid. Grow up.
If you don't want your leg humped, then stop dressing so provocatively.

This is an all states thing not just CA. Your dog does not belong at the grocery store

I genuinely adore dogs and love seeing them anywhere I am! But places that sell and prepare food should be off-limits (except for service animals, of course. Their accessibility outweighs these concerns). Some people have super sensitive allergies, just pet dander/hairs floating through the air can be irritating or worse. Some people have a crippling fear of dogs, maybe for a reason? Pets may be fine 99% of the time around family/friends, but they're still animals. Unlike service animals, they haven't been tested or screened for emergency situations or stress-tested. They can and do snap, and there's no way to know if it will happen. When it does, it's lose/lose/lose: pain & suffering, lawsuits, and almost certainly a loving pet being euthanized.
- The stress test is dropping a book on the floor.
  
  Yep. Service animals, drug-snuffing dogs, etc are usually just crowded into a room where a book is dropped. Then they're good to go!
- Fully agree. It's just not sanitary either, and I know everyone will assume I mean their dog is dirty. I mean that any animal brings unknown elements into a place that makes food. One good shake of a wet dog and you have dirt and debris flying around people eating, and you're exactly right things like that may affect others way more even if it doesn't affect you.
  I'm okay with dogs in places like breweries, it's still a risk but as long as there is plenty of space it's probably fine. Food though adds a whole other element that I don't think they belong in.
  
  I work in hospitality and while all your points are valid I do wish there was a solution that allowed a little wiggle room accounting for good communication and personal responsibility.
  There area where I live has dozens of small bars and pubs and my issue with every single place accommodating every possible allergic reaction and preference is that they can kind of end up samey. I'm not saying it's realistic but I don't think it'd be a bad thing for Pub A to say Dogs are fine but no kids please as long as Pub B says Kids are great but no dogs and Pub C can say No kids or dogs but weird sex shit is fine. A man can dream!
- There is the canine good citizen test that many people do with their dogs.
  
  Which means nothing when it comes to places that serve and sell food as the issue is the fecal bacterial cultures that spread when dogs lick their butts and then lick their feet as well as any allergy concerns.
  Your dog could be the best behaved dog in the world and they still can’t get around biological realities.
  
  many
  And what about all the rest? How can anyone know that human is a good human and that human is a bad human?
  Edit: spelling

The only problem I've had with other dog owners in California or anywhere else, is owners who don't pick up their dog's shit. I see people bring dogs into stores all the time, they're always fine, I never see problems with that.
Now when I step 6-inches off a popular trail to take a picture of a popular view and step in piles of dog feces that people don't bother to clean because it's technically not someone's yard, that's when I start to wonder if domestication was a good idea. (Of humans that is.)

Should come to Texas where they'll bring in dogs to the grocery store and they act like it's everyone's fault but their own when someone gets upset at dogshit in the aisle.

I am glad the grocery store across the street is adamant about no animals allowed, unless they are genuinely needed for service (like a seeing eye dog, not an emotional support animal). And I am a dog owner. The only store I would ever even considered bringing them into, is the pet store where it's generally okay to bring them (especially since they do grooming and vaxx services).
Hate going to Walmart and seeing actual shit on the floor because some Karen wanted to bring her fucking designer Chihuahua into the store and doesn't clean up after it.
- Maybe burnings as well

Here in colombia pretty much all stores allow pets. I’ve never seen someone’s leg humped though. The worst i’ve seen peoples dogs act is barking at each other.

I love dogs. All dogs. Love them to death.
My fucking mom just lets her little dog go wherever it wants and she almost never has it on a leash. I keep telling her that something is going to go wrong and it will be her fault because she wasn't on a leash, it my mom doesn't seem concerned because she has her dog trained fairly well. And to be fair she does come and stay on command, but I still just find it irresponsible to have a dog in public without a leash.
- Your mom is a problem dog owner. When something inevitably happens, she'll blame everyone but herself, because she sees the dog as an extension of herself and her "freedom," instead of being responsible for a living thing, in a society.
  Trash human trait.
  
  Even though she's my mother I tend to agree. It's selfish and stupid. Thankfully it's pretty much the only thing she's bad about. So I guess it could be much worse. Still. Bothers me greatly and time we are out and about with her dog.
- One of the places I grew up people would do this with their tiny dogs. Every family had a story of the time a hawk/eagle would make off with one of their tiny dogs. Still didn't use leashes or watch their dogs tho 🤷‍♀️
  Edit: just remembered we lived near a canyon too with a trail along the top edge. People's unleashed dogs would chase after something and go flying off the cliff. Rescue helicopters would train for people by rescuing (or usually just retrieving the body of) all the dogs
  
  Basically they're feeding the local raptor population with their dogs, like that story about coyotes and rescue cats.
- My brother’s dog Frankie was like that. Coming when called by name didn’t stop the car that hit Frankie when he darted into the road. RIP
  
  This is probably what will happen and when it does I don't know how I'm gonna keep my mouth shut.
- I had my dog off lease in an empty place, a random old lady come up and gets scared shitless, starts screaming. Startled my dog who immediately went up to check up on her.
  Chaos ensued. In every case it's always the dog owners fault, why can't we blame the kids like other humans do.
  
  You just described a story where you were being irresponsible, just so you know!

Stupid sexy legs

Pets are the new babies, plants are the new pets and airfryers are the new plants
Babies ate the new "moving to california to become an actres"
- Damn i haven't watered my airfryer once since i got it, poor thing
  
  Remember that it doesn't take the water in liquid form, pellets only.
  
  It's a desert plant: you water it, it dies. It evolved to pull the water from the air.
- Babies ate the new "moving to california to become an actres"
  Those monsters!

It's interesting to see that the dog situation is getting out of control in other places. I thought it was only my country where people have been becoming crazier and crazier about dogs.

I just returned to Canada after spending some months in Belgium. The first couple of times I saw dogs in restaurants and cafés, I was slightly weirded out. But after seeing it happen repeatedly with nobody ever even batting an eye I realized it was totally normal there. And not once did I ever see a dog cause a problem or make any excessive noise. In the Netherlands as well.
Not a dog owner myself.
- A lot of Europe is like this and I think part of the difference is social expectation with dogs. Because it's more normal for dogs to go places, and less normal to have private yards at your home for your dog to spend time in, people in Europe tend to spend more time training their dogs to be good members of society because they basically have to. If you have to walk your dog multiple times a day for potty instead of letting it into the back yard, you're probably more likely to make sure your dog is leash trained properly.
  I also think the USA (and Canada to some extent as you've kind of adopted many of our values, for good or ill) are more individualistic than many European countries. In America we train our pets because WE want them trained, not because of societal expectations about dog ownership. It's truly telling when you walk a dog that is properly leash trained and get compliments about how well trained your dog is. That a dog can walk on leash without pulling is the exception, not the norm. (This happened yesterday to me, just walking around a park path.) It's depressing. American individualism insists, "I don't need to train my dog, he's perfect being the cute little terrorist that he is, and if you don't like it, that's your problem." As a result, dogs aren't allowed most places in the US because entitled dog owners are the norm, not the minority. I love dogs, and I love taking my dog places, but if I owned a business of any kind I wouldn't allow dogs because it's not worth the headache here.

I don't live in Cali, but I was at a diner yesterday and some woman had her dog in one of the booths. Clearly not a service animal, no vest or anything. You know what ruins a pretty quick? Dog hair in your food... Especially if it's not your dog.
- I can top that. I saw a dog at a Korean barbecue restaurant. The ones that serve raw meat for you to cook at your table. Except this restaurant did it buffet style. I never went back.
  
  I saw a dog at a Korean barbeque restaurant.

I got a dog to spend time with it. It sleeps with me, it goes to work with me, it goes to bars with me. Don't like it? Not my problem.
- Your dog bites someone and it becomes a big YOU problem.
- Freedom goes both ways you ding dong. A store owner has every right to ban non-service dogs from their store. Don’t like it? Not the store owner’s problem.
  
  Who says they have a problem with the store owner's not allowing them though? They both can have no problem. Lmao.
- Can i come with my pet snake to your workplace? Can i come with a girafe? How about a donkey? A hippo? aAgoat? A duck? Where is the line?
  
  I would be 100% thrilled if a giraffe showed up at my corporate office, and I can't imagine feeling anything else.
  
  Working retail I never enforced the no dogs policy. We actually did have a lady bring in her bearded dragon. She let me hold it. Ironiclly the only animal I wish I could have kicked out was a legally blind woman's service dog. It's a loud and vicious chihuahua. That little guy is such an asshole. It barks at anyone who walks past it.
  
  Probably where the animal interfere with the work? Imo doesn't matter what kind of animal you bring as long as it's not a nuisance. The line isn't drawn by species but behaviour
  I.e got a chill duck that just hangs around that's fine. Hyper puppy that chews on cables and pisses on all the plants, not so much. As for a hippo you would have to check the buildings structural integrity.
- There it is!
  You can always assume what kind of person brings dogs into establishments.
  "I'm a paying customer, fuck you!! I'll do what I fucking want!!", is their mantra.
- You trained it too though, right?
  Right?!?

But this dog? It's tiny dog! Hardly even a dog!

Get humped by a dog.
Whine like a bitch.
- You'd think bitches would like getting humped by dogs.

I'll take a dog over a kid screeching in a store.
- They should simply send their servants to get the food, or decide to have neurotypical children only.
  
  Neurotypical children are loud as fuck too. Children in general are.

as annoying as it is, i honestly dont see too many problems here in socal
the dogs are pretty chill and they don't seem to cause any issues. i just don't know why i'd expend the energy if things are generally fine.

Plot twist. He’s wrong because he was down with it.