# Stranger in store threatened to call cops because of my dog **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 21, 2018, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311 "2018-07-21T02:11:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2018, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/121 "2018-07-24T21:49:55Z")
I accept the charge of obtuseness, but it wasn’t deliberate. Given the topic of the thread, which was about someone acting in a manner _consistent_ with believing that it was actually dangerous to leave a dog in a car for a brief period, I don’t think it was unreasonable of me to misread your comment as agreeing with that frame of mind. Apologies for that misreading, but I don’t think it supports an accusation of arguing in bad faith. And I’d honestly appreciate an apology for such. Couldn’t you just have said that it was an expression when I first responded? I floated the idea myself in an earlier response “Was that just hyperbole?” You could just have said yes. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2018, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/122 "2018-07-24T23:14:46Z")
I have no interest in continuing this line of discussion and shall not reply to you any further in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Whatever4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@Whatever4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whatever4)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2018, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/123 "2018-07-25T00:22:13Z")
> [@MarvinKitFox](#): > > Sooooo… > The dog FREAK OUT if you leave her in a room, but is FINE with being locked in a car while you walk away? > Wow, that sure is one highly specific separation anxiety she has. Please reread the original post and the one farther down in which I edited in a few words left out in the original. If that’s too difficult, try this: When she can’t **see** me, at home, in the yard, in the car, she freaks. That’s why I have used a car sign notifying overzealous do-gooders that she does have separation anxiety and doesn’t need rescuing. Thank goodness there’s nobody close enough to my house to hear her barking, or likely I’d come home to find fire & rescue searching for a VERY upset little dog’s happy place. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2018, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/124 "2018-07-25T00:35:05Z")
Last time I took Trixie dog for a ride to the store, I stopped for gas (I leave it running, sue me), she stepped on the door lock button and locked me out! Windows were all up. I tried to get her to walk back and forth and hit the button again (they all do this with depressing regularity with the hazard light switch, right next to it). No Dice! Shit! What to do? I figured it was just a matter of time before some nut-case came over and freaked the fuck out. Then I remembered I got one back window taped in the closed position since a stupid little plastic keeper broke. In Like Flynn! 😃 I’ll always roll one window down now with a beast in that car. ---
**Author:** ![Whatever4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@Whatever4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whatever4)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2018, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/125 "2018-07-25T00:47:25Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Last time I took Trixie dog for a ride to the store, I stopped for gas (I leave it running, sue me), she stepped on the door lock button and locked me out! Windows were all up. I tried to get her to walk back and forth and hit the button again (they all do this with depressing regularity with the hazard light switch, right next to it). No Dice! > > Shit! What to do? I figured it was just a matter of time before some nut-case came over and freaked the fuck out. > > Then I remembered I got one back window taped in the closed position since a stupid little plastic keeper broke. > > In Like Flynn! 😃 > > I’ll always roll one window down now with a beast in that car. good one:D ---
**Author:** ![Whatever4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@Whatever4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whatever4)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2018, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/126 "2018-07-25T01:03:19Z")
Funny, I originally asked for help in dealing with a doggie do-gooder who accosted me in a store and threatened me with calling the police. Maybe it’s time to stop beating this dead Milkbone? ---
**Author:** ![MarvinKitFox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@MarvinKitFox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarvinKitFox)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2018, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/127 "2018-07-25T07:03:02Z")
> [@Whatever4](#): > > When she can’t **see** me, at home, in the yard, in the car, she freaks. That’s why I have used a car sign notifying overzealous do-gooders that she does have separation anxiety and doesn’t need rescuing. Thank goodness there’s nobody close enough to my house to hear her barking, or likely I’d come home to find fire & rescue searching for a VERY upset little dog’s happy place. So, your dog freaks out when she cannot see you. That is why you took her along in your car when you went shopping. So that the dog would not freak out at home, where she would be safe. So that she WOULD freak out in the car at the shop. Where she would not only also freak out, but be potentially at risk of getting cooked, if you delay for whatever reason. (such as being accosted because you left your freaking dog in the car) . You did not take the dog along to the shop for the dog’s sake, but for your own **convenience**. Thus your story has nothing, NOTHING!! to do with you dog’s separation anxiety, it ONLY has to do with you leaving a dog locked in a car, and a concerned lady’s over-aggressive confrontation with you about this. . Was she wrong to confront you? No. Was she wrong to do so in an aggressive approach? Yes. Were you wrong for escalating the confrontation with her? Yes. (your text does not indicate this explicitly, but your tone HERE clearly shows you to be the type to bitch back at her, stand your ground, invent irrelevant extraneous ‘facts’, make up excuses, and generally up the tension because how ‘dare’ she criticize you) . Were you wrong to leave your dog in the car? HELL yes. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2018, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/128 "2018-07-25T12:38:35Z")
> [@Macca26](#): > > It’s almost always a case of some little forgetful mistake snowballing into a horrible death. People are confident that they will never forget little Timmy or Rover in the backseat, and yet they do, and they die by the dozens every year. I mean, objectively speaking, versus the number of people who do leave children or animals in the car, “dozens” is hardly statistically significant. For most people, it’s like worrying about a terrorist attack any time they go out in public. But then again, there are some people who truly do… ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2018, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/129 "2018-07-26T01:47:32Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Last time I took Trixie dog for a ride to the store, I stopped for gas (I leave it running, sue me), she stepped on the door lock button and locked me out! Windows were all up. I tried to get her to walk back and forth and hit the button again (they all do this with depressing regularity with the hazard light switch, right next to it). No Dice! > > Shit! What to do? I figured it was just a matter of time before some nut-case came over and freaked the fuck out. > > Then I remembered I got one back window taped in the closed position since a stupid little plastic keeper broke. > > In Like Flynn! 😃 > > I’ll always roll one window down now with a beast in that car. Mine is very good at locking doors. I make it a point to check to make sure I have a key in my pocket before walking away, even when I’m on jobsites I wouldn’t normally lock the doors on. The fun of waiting in the cold for AAA while my dogs in the nice warm running truck… ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2018, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/130 "2018-07-26T02:38:02Z")
> [@Balthisar](#): > > I mean, objectively speaking, versus the number of people who do leave children or animals in the car, “dozens” is hardly statistically significant. For most people, it’s like worrying about a terrorist attack any time they go out in public. But then again, there are some people who truly do… Not so sure how many people do. I don’t think the n is as big as you think. There are also other reasons of course for not leaving _a child_ unsupervised in a car. As for pets, it’s enough so that the default _general_ rule is best to not do it. Many people really do under-predict how long they might be and under-appreciate how quickly a car can heat up, even on a moderate day. But if it _really_ is only 70 and you really are just going to be 5 to 10 minutes max (like parking in front of the dry cleaners for a pick up or drop off) then it really is no serious hazard. (Cloudy or in the shade is not enough … clouds break up unexpectedly and shade moves). ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2018, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/131 "2018-07-26T11:13:16Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > But if it _really_ is only 70 and you really are just going to be 5 to 10 minutes max (like parking in front of the dry cleaners for a pick up or drop off) then it really is no serious hazard. (Cloudy or in the shade is not enough … clouds break up unexpectedly and shade moves). Honestly, at 70F outside in the sun, 10 minutes would result in a furnace inside my car. I don’t know why I didn’t learn that black interiors suck that _last three_ times I had black interiors. ---
**Author:** ![katgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6de8d8/32.png) [@katgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/katgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2018, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/132 "2018-07-27T01:03:02Z")
I actually called animal control on someone who left a boxer in their car in Georgia during the summer. I wasn’t about to track the dummy down. He was walking to his car just as animal control pulled up. I knew the lady, too, from the hospital when one of my cats bit me. She was big, meaty and intimidating. I’m sure it sucked to be him, I left. Your lady sounds rather rude. You could have said “Gertrude, the restraining order says you need to stay at least 100 feet away from me. I’ve told you I’m married and I’m not interested. What’s your pathetic excuse _this_ time”? ---
**Author:** ![Whatever4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@Whatever4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whatever4)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2018, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311/133 "2018-07-27T16:33:47Z")
> [@katgirl](#): > > Your lady sounds rather rude. You could have said “Gertrude, the restraining order says you need to stay at least 100 feet away from me. I’ve told you I’m married and I’m not interested. What’s your pathetic excuse _this_ time”? For the win.🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stranger-in-store-threatened-to-call-cops-because-of-my-dog/818311.md?page=6)