Human domesticated the dog in such prehistoric times that we sometimes do not distinguish dogs from members of our families, and dogs reciprocate people’s feelings. Consider, for example, the stories of Balto, Hachiko or, say, this incredible wolf-dog named Mazel, who lived for many years in the family whose story we once told you on Bored Panda.
But sometimes dog owners are so imbued with love for their furry friends that they are ready to neglect the established rules for the sake of it. Or are they simply disrespectful to other people, thus being lazy pet owners? But this is exactly what we have to find out with you by understanding this story from the user u/DogGroceryStoreThrow in the AITA Reddit community.
The author of the post is, as she herself says, a proud owner of a Yorkshire terrier named Peanut
Image credits: Vitalii Khodzinskyj (not the actual photo)
Recently the woman took Peanut to the dog park and then decided to go to the local grocery store
Image credits: u/DogGroceryStoreThrow
There was a 'No Pets' notice but the woman decided to take Peanut with her since there was too hot outside for just leaving him in the car
Image credits: Lee Cannon (not the actual photo)
Image credits: u/DogGroceryStoreThrow
In the store, the woman ran into a random guy who called her out for bringing the dog there
Image credits: Hobi industri (not the actual photo)
Image credits: u/DogGroceryStoreThrow
So the woman took it online just to complain and seek support from netizens
It's actually quite simple. The original poster (OP) is, in her own words, the proud owner of Peanut, her Yorkshire terrier. They are cute little doggos, so it's not surprising that people often carry them in their arms - even when the dog doesn't mind going for a run on its own. But that’s not really what we’re talking about now.
The heroine of our story took Peanut for a walk to the dog park and Petsmart recently, and by coincidence it turned out that there was a grocery store in the same complex. And the author of the post wanted to go there and do some shopping. Literally for ten minutes, no more. But the question remained - what to do with the dog?
This suggests a completely logical decision to leave the dog in the car - especially since something serious is unlikely to happen in ten minutes. But according to the OP’s own words, it was very hot that day, and she was afraid for Peanut’s health. Or, in fact, a visit to the grocery store could have taken more than ten minutes. Who actually knows?
In any case, the OP entered the store with the dog on a leash, despite the notice hanging at the entrance strictly prohibiting this. And, as often happens, she ran into an angry buyer who reasonably pointed out the ban on bringing dogs. The author, according to herself, tried to politely explain why she did this, but the guy snapped that she was just a lazy pet owner, and then stormed off, leaving our heroine completely confused - although she was sincerely sure that she did the right thing.
Image credits: Darrell Fraser (not the actual photo)
Well, despite the fact that all over the world there are many retail chains and individual stores that allow the presence of dogs, there is still one immutable rule - no pets in the groceries or food aisles. In the end, no matter how well-mannered and calm your pet is, there is always an issue of possible allergies for other visitors. The only exception may be service animals.
Another confirmation - Wilko’s, a houseware’s chain in the UK, in February 2022 officially allowed pets to be present in all 248 of its locations across the country - with the exception, of course, of food aisles. That post on the company's Facebook page collected more than 17K likes and many enthusiastic comments - and still there were dissatisfied people. Most of the commenters’ dissatisfaction was related to allergy issues, and this is completely justified.
The original poster's message received slightly less upvotes on Reddit - approximately 14.1K, however, unlike Wilko's post, there were practically no positive comments. Some of the commenters, who themselves work at groceries, directly wrote that, firstly, there is no place for pets there, and secondly, the Yorkshire terrier is in no way a service dog, so there can be no exceptions here.
And many people in the comments completely agree with that angry guy who called out the OP. At the same time, commenters write that they also adore dogs, cats and whatnot, but rules are rules. “No pets doesn’t mean ‘no pets unless it’s inconvenient to follow the rules’ or ‘no pets except for a few minutes’,” someone aptly stated. In general, if the author of the post took it online in seek of support, she definitely slipped up. And by the way, have you or someone you knew ever also brought a pet to a store, bypassing the rules, just “for a minute?”
However, people unanimously criticized the hapless pet owner heavily and sided with the angry guy who told her off
