 Barked: Tue Feb 7, '12 12:45pm PST |
 | |  | | It is DEFINITELY regional. I live is Seattle. Dogs reign supreme here in general. Many/most businesses provide water bowls by their door, and you generally can't stand outside without seeing at least one dog. I also usually can't go into a store without seeing at least one dog. That's a slight exaggeration, but not much.
There are about a half-dozen SDs in my neighborhood that I know of.
Here, nobody pays any attention to it. SDs are a VERY common sight. Businesses are well-educated, as a rule, and people have a generally permissive attitude anyway.
I travel quite a bit with Zoe, though, and I've found that attitudes vary considerably. Smaller towns and rural areas tend to look more (since they don't see it as often), but don't, as a rule, ask questions.
The south tends to be either less educated on the law, less used to seeing SDs, or just more likely ask a bunch of questions. I've never really been challenged there, but I do get a lot of inappropriate questions from people.
SDs seem to be MUCH more common on the west coast than the east coast, and comparatively non-existent in the Midwest. So, attitudes vary accordingly. There seem to be more clashes between businesses and SD handlers on the west coast because there are more opportunities for issues to arise. But, still, they seem to be generally more accepting.
Canada is a little weird. The attitudes there seem to be hit-and-miss, and of course, the laws are different.
Planes and trains are never a problem, but since they are full of people from all over, passenger responses are extremely varied.
Ironically, I live in a neighborhood with a high Muslim population. If you don't know, many Muslims interpret the Quran in a way that they avoid dogs at all costs. I frequently have people whom I see almost every day, run away or otherwise panic when they see Zoe.
So yes, attitudes vary. |  |  | |  |
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I once had someone mistake Bruno for a SDIT because he was wearing a harness and I was working on his public manners in a dog-friendly feed store. I told them he wasn't, of course.
