More Pets Allowed in Stores

The next time you travel away from home, whether it is to the book store down the street or on your vacation across the country, you may be able to bring Fido along. Many Americans falsely assume that their pets are not permitted into stores, but a growing number of retail chains are granting pets access in order to better serve their customers’ interests. With 74.8 million dog owners in the US, businesses are trying to win their customers over by allowing their pets into the store. And it’s not just the high-end stores, a growing number of non-exclusive retail chains in cities such as New York are opening their arms to your pets.

In Manhattan there are many options for you and your dog to spend time together outside of your home. For example, your dog can sit beside you while you read in any Barnes & Noble in Manhattan. He can even help you look for that new suit or dress at Bloomingdale's. Retail chains such as Duane Reade leave their dog policies up to the manager’s discretion. And, while dogs are not allowed inside restaurants because of health reasons, most cafes or restaurants with outdoor seating would be more than happy to seat you and your pet outside.

However, just because pets are allowed in a store doesn’t mean the stores are advertising this perk. In fact, you should always ask because the majority of stores that allow pets inside do not openly publicize this inclusion. For example, if you go onto the Barnes & Noble website and search for a policy about pets being allowed into certain stores, your efforts will probably turn up fruitless like mine did. While Barnes & Noble does allow pets inside their Manhattan store, the last thing that managers want to do is to turn their stores into a dog run.

Another thing you may not know is that in many cities dogs are allowed on public transportation. I stopped a young couple who were walking their dog through Manhattan’s Penn Station. Their response:

“When I first brought my dog on the Long Island Rail Road, I could not believe how many people asked, “Are you allowed to bring dogs on the train?” It seems like most people thought this was against the rules and so they either didn’t bother with bringing dogs or they tried to hide them in designer purses and carriers, not realizing that dogs in carriers and crates are actually allowed on the LIRR and NYC Subways”

It’s important to check out the rules of your public transport, and if there are no explicit rules you should call and ask. Some places, like the Boston subways and the Metro North line in NY allow well behaved dogs on a leash. Also, even though your dog must be in a carrier on the train, this does not mean he needs to be in one on your journey to the train, in speaking with the above couple they said:

“Getting to the train at Penn Station was a nightmare with a 45 pound dog. Then an MTA employee told us that we were allowed to walk with our dog off leash through Penn Station. While we’re still not sure what the exact rules are in Penn Station, we walk with our dog on the leash very often, passing dozens of police officers who never seem to mind.”

So, while retail companies and other public areas are not likely to go out of their way to get you to bring your pet in, a simple question about whether dogs are allowed may result in a very favorable answer. Also, don’t just think that because one store in a chain doesn’t allow dogs means that it is company policy. Often the same stores may differ their policies depending upon geographic location. Stores often allow pets into their urban stores but will not allow pets into their other rural or suburban based stores.

Some Tips:

Remember, unless you have a service dog, there are no laws requiring that pets be allowed into stores. Therefore the owner can ask you to leave at anytime. However, if a store has a policy that allows dogs into the store, they will not ask you to leave if your dog is behaving.

1. Make sure that your dog is well trained. This includes knowing not to go to the bathroom indoors. When you first begin to bring your dog into stores, even if he is potty trained, try and get him to go before entering the store. There are a lot of new things going on in stores that dogs are not used to. If your dog becomes excited or nervous he or she may have an accident inside.

1. Make sure your dog is well behaved around other dogs. People will not think your dog is so cute if he’s barking at the dog across the room.

1. Don’t allow your dog close to other customers unless they clearly wish to pet your dog. While store owners want to get pet owner’s business, they do not want to lose the business of the people who do not want to be bothered by dogs while they shop.

1. Finally, do not allow your dog off leash at any time, even if the store allows it. Your dog can damage merchandise, bother customers, and worst of all, escape through an open door!

While this is not an exhaustive list, it highlights some of the most important things to be aware of when bringing your dog indoors away from home. Basically, use common sense and you should be alright. Remember that your dog’s behavior reflects upon all of the other dogs around. And since most pet owners would like the opportunity to for their pets to be allowed into stores, we should make sure we treat the welcoming of our dogs as a privilege, and not a right. Many store owners are on the fence about this practice, and by exhibiting good behavior, we will show them that they have nothing to worry about. So let’s keep your dogs behaving and out of the dog house when you and your pet travel away from home.