FDA Is Allowing Dogs in Outdoor Dining Spaces, Salty Dog Cafe Reacts

• The United States is enabling animal dogs to join their owners at outside dining areas.
• A spokesperson from South Carolina’s popular Salty Dog Café said they attempted that — and later on withdrawed it.
• Dogs kept barking, battling, and taking hot dogs off of kids’ plates, so the coffee shop went humans-only.

While some dog owners are delighted with the concept of taking their dogs with them to dining establishments, the famous Salty Dog Café has a word of care: Hold onto your hot dogs. 

The FDA is enabling animal dogs to join their human beings in outside dining areas at dining establishments that allow it, a policy already embraced by almost half of US states, The Associated Press reported. 

The renowned Salty Dog Café in Hilton Head, South Carolina already attempted having a dog-friendly dining space outdoors in 1987. But the policy just lasted 2 years after dogs kept taking hot dogs off of youngsters’ plates, Tim Stearns, the Salty Dog’s primary running officer, informed the AP. 

“We are all dog fans at Salty Dog, however we stay a restaurant for human beings,” Stearns informed the outlet. The coffee shop preserves a dog-friendly deck where restaurants can purchase take-out from the restaurant.

The restaurant’s website has a prolonged post about its no-pets-allowed policy, which “reaches all animals, consisting of pythons, cockatoos, and monkeys, all of which have actually accompanied their owners to The Salty Dog Cafe.” 

“We rapidly discovered that if you enable numerous dogs of any range in close distance to each other, include kids with cheeseburgers, include a margarita for the dog owners, then the issues can take place,” the website specified. “Dogs consumed off of forks and out of our plates. Some dogs barked almost constantly. Others pled for food and took hot dogs from youngsters.”

The coffee shop put blame on dog owners, who it said “stopped working to manage their animals” by enabling dogs to obstruct sidewalks or enter battles with other dogs. 

“We do not feel that it is our duty to police the dog scenario or to tidy up after dogs. Or to referee dog battles and the mayhem happens when 2 dogs all of a sudden choose to assault each other in a congested environment such as The Salty Dog Cafe,” the website continued. 

Salty Dog likewise noted its “duty to offer our clients with a tidy, serene, and safe location to dine.” In New York City, where dining establishments have actually been allowed to enable animal dogs since 2015, the Department of Health has actually provided guidance that clarifies the messier truths of dog-friendly dining areas, which staffers are accountable for. 

“Staff need to tidy up after dogs in outside dining locations,” the assistance said. “Restaurant employees who do not prepare or serve food should tidy up dog urine, feces, vomit, and any other fluids or solids, and need to sterilize the locations right now.” 

Julie Denzin, a restaurant server from Milwaukee, informed the AP that she’s seen dogs drool and ease themselves on outside patio areas while serving clients who might be allergic or scared of dogs. 

“It’s not a matter of taste or disliking dogs,” Denzin informed the AP, noting she does not believe they ought to be prohibited. “The point is, no matter what the owner may state — no matter how ideal and loyal they insist their dog is — there’s no other way to guarantee the safety and convenience of other visitors.”