WTF!! NYC: No dogs in bars

[Pernicious]

http://static.fjcdn.com/comments/You+mean+like+this+one+_76754214fbb9620b4a787fced8 42cef4.jpg
Dina, a puppy hound, often used to spend happy hour at owner Gabriel's favorite local watering hole: The Gate, on 5th Avenue in Park Slope, one of many New York City bars that allow and even encourage dogs to come inside.
But now the dog days are over. The Department of Health has begun cracking down on bars like the Gate for violating a health code that bans live animals from being in a food service establishment.
Despite the fact that the gate doesn't serve any food, the DOH said in a statement: "Per the health code, the definition of food includes beverages that are used for human consumption, so bars are currently considered food service establishments."
But now a passionate group of dog owners is trying to change that. Allison Hanson, editor of a neighborhood blog called Park Slope for Pets, said she and others decided to start collecting signatures for a petition to urge the DOH to revise its code to exempt from the no-pet rule those establishments that don't serve food. So far, the petition has more than 400 signatures.
Many people in the neighborhood seem to support keeping dogs at the bar, though at least one person told us he thinks it is unsafe for the pets.

http://www.myfoxny.com/story/27261086/nyc-no-dogs-in-bars

[DLT]

http://static.fjcdn.com/comments/You+mean+like+this+one+_76754214fbb9620b4a787fced8 42cef4.jpg
Dina, a puppy hound, often used to spend happy hour at owner Gabriel's favorite local watering hole: The Gate, on 5th Avenue in Park Slope, one of many New York City bars that allow and even encourage dogs to come inside.
But now the dog days are over. The Department of Health has begun cracking down on bars like the Gate for violating a health code that bans live animals from being in a food service establishment.
Despite the fact that the gate doesn't serve any food, the DOH said in a statement: "Per the health code, the definition of food includes beverages that are used for human consumption, so bars are currently considered food service establishments."
But now a passionate group of dog owners is trying to change that. Allison Hanson, editor of a neighborhood blog called Park Slope for Pets, said she and others decided to start collecting signatures for a petition to urge the DOH to revise its code to exempt from the no-pet rule those establishments that don't serve food. So far, the petition has more than 400 signatures.
Many people in the neighborhood seem to support keeping dogs at the bar, though at least one person told us he thinks it is unsafe for the pets.

http://www.myfoxny.com/story/27261086/nyc-no-dogs-in-bars

I don't know. I love dogs, but much like having to deal with other people's screaming kids in a restaurant, I love MY dogs, not theirs. And knowing how some folks do not care for their dogs properly, I wouldn't want to be sitting next to someone with their dog at a restaurant. It might have fleas or some other malady.

Just think how bad the establishment would become if everyone insisted on bringing their dogs. That said, they can do what they want to with their own business, as far as I'm concerned. I don't care. If I don't like it, I'll go elsewhere (and let them know why, probably).

I do think it's ironic that these same folks pushing for admittance to bars for their dogs are probably against anyone smoking in those bars. It's always all about them and what they want.