Well, if the host has a dog, and the hypothetical guest knows this, then I’m not really seeing why there would be a need to advertise the presence of another dog at the party. If the guest has allergies, or a dog phobia, the presence of the host’s dog will already set that off. And if the guest doesn’t have either of those issues, then one more dog shouldn’t be an issue. Unless, I suppose, the guest is a breed-hater, in which case no one with any sense gives a damn what she thinks anyway. Guests who don’t know you have pets (which, really, who knows a pet-owner long enough to get invited to their parties and doesn’t know about the critters?) should certainly be informed about their presence prior to coming over so they can pre-dose on allergy meds or express any concerns.
Actually, assuming reasonable behavior from the beast babies, I think there’s a little more onus to warn someone about your kitties than your mutts–cat allergies are far, far more common than dog allergies ime, and cats will fly in from out of state to rub all over someone who pings their allergy radar. Even the anti-social ones who hide under the bed the second they hear a car in the driveway. It’s uncanny.
Exactly. If the dog is being a nuisance - even if the owners think it’s being “cute” - they should at least offer to leash it or otherwise confine it. Especially if it’s a big dog. A well-behaved dog shouldn’t be jumping up on people anyway, if it’s told not to.
On the other hand, some people are just irrational about their fears. I have a cat that is the friendliest cat ever. We had a couple over for dinner (boyfriend’s mate and his new girlfriend) and the girl acted like my cat had rabies. Even the cat walking past her totally freaked her out. I understand not wanting to pet a cat but I almost expected the girl to pull out a cross or start throwing salt around.
I dunno, I’ll grant that I’m quite comfortable with dogs, but demanding someone leash their dog (if its just sitting there), when I’m at someone else’s party? People would talk about it.
The issue here (as detailed in previous posts) is with the hypothetical situation, IMO. For starters, I’d definitely consider it rude to bring your dog to a barbecue…although, hmm, I’m picturing this as a barbecue at my house. So, heh, ok: its rude to bring a dog to someones house, fair enough?
Beyond that, I think I’d be <rolleyes>-ing about someone who freaked out because of urban legends regarding Pit Bull Terriers. And no, I don’t have a dog in this fi–er, I don’t have any stake in this battle (the “ARE PIT BULLS EVIL?” thing).
Generally speaking, I feel that, given the circums <breaks down>
OK, OK! HOW CAN I CONVINCE YOU THAT A PIT BULL IS NOT AS DANGEROUS AS THE CURRENT SCARE HAS LED YOU TO BELIEVE?! YOU MUST LOVE PIT BULLS!!
I don’t think any pit bull advocate is insisting that everyone must love pit bulls. We are, however, resisting “feel-good” legislative action like breed-specific legislation and breed bans, because those kill our family members.
And on the Straight Dope, we should all be fighting ignorance and prejudice, right? And there’s a historically-supported, factual case to be made here; this isn’t one of those things where each side has equal credibility and the truth is unclear.
Right. Similar to the argument I was trying to make up thread. One side is arguing from experience and one side is arguing from unfamiliarity. It’s rational that the arguments from people who understand pitbulls should outweigh the arguments from people who aren’t familiar with them.
ps - Sailboat, I think I know you. Are you the Sailboat from AB? My handle there is kylwhch.
I wouldn’t know a Pit Bull if it bit me (ha!) but I really don’t like unleashed dogs at parties. In the OP’s situation, however, if I wasn’t eating anything, I’d extend my hand for the dog to sniff, and then pet it, once or twice. If I was eating something, then the dog would be ignored.
However, the second the dog is a nuisance, I feel it should be leashed. Dogs should not be sniffing your food or jumping on you or horrors, begging. I hate anything that begs. And they should listen to simple commands. If your dog comes over and puts his jowly drooly head on my lap, and I don’t want it, I should be able to say “Down!” And the dog should lay down. To be honest, the owner should already be saying, “Just tell him to lie down if he’s a bother.”
I love going to my coworker’s house even though she has three dogs and a varying number of cats. Why? Every single pet is well-behaved and well-trained. No one is allowed to beg. And they are utterly cute because of this.
If he can’t follow simple commands, he doesn’t belong in company. If he can, bring him on! He’ll add color.
