Posted By Alistair Kelman Right now this is a plea from the heart... I live in on the edge of the New Forest and regularly take our dog out to dinner with us at various pubs which serve food. She sits under the table and everyone is perfectly happy. In France she comes everywhere with us, into all the fancy restaurants etc. Last autumn I had to go to Stafford. When up there I asked in a local pub whether I could bring my dog in to join me for dinner. I was told no and that this was no longer permitted for UK Health and Safety reasons. Experience has told me when travelling around the UK that there are more and more pubs which are no longer allowing people with dogs in to dine with them on the grounds of Health and Safety. Essex is a no-go area and the number of pubs serving food in London which allow you to bring in your dog can be counted on the fingers of a slighly mutilated hand. So what is the true position? Does Health and Safety legislation ban us bringing dogs into pubs that serve food. Where is the guidance on this topic - the specific legislation etc. If Health and Safety legislation does not ban us bringing dogs into pubs that serve food then maybe the Health and Safety profession is being defamed by landlords putting the blame on us. Otherwise Jeremy Clarkson might have a point regarding his portrayal of the Health and Safety mafia.

Posted By William would the current health and safety act apply to dogs?? or would they be exempt?? and would it be the environmental health or the dog warden who they would report any violations to?

Posted By Mark Simpson Are dogs in scottish pubs going to be exempt from the smoking ban if used for medical research. Despite what any legislation may say, landlords are free to deny entry arent they.

Posted By Stuart C Clearly there is nothing the HSW or the Regs under it that would prohibit dogs. I dont know what the line would be under food hygeine standards. They could perhaps argue that they have done a risk assessment and found that dogs under the table pse a sifnificant risk - in which case i'd ask them if they had access to competent advice!

Posted By Robert K Lewis Dave Follow this link http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2006/20060014.htm These are the new regs for England, there are other equivalents. It is about food handling and storage with a few extras but ignores as far as I can tell animals in the restaurant areas. In the preparation/retail area "yes" but the requirements are vague and it seems that there is a need for a positive result for an offence to occur!!! Bob

Posted By Jonathan Hall Surely the simple answer is one of risk assessment. Each pub assesses the risks of dogs being allowed in - not necessarily under H&S legislation, but risks to their image, of their takings going down (or up), for food safety, the hygiene levels, etc. If there is no definitive advice or guidance on dogs in pubs, each pub would make their assessment according to their knowledge and (probably) previous experience, and come up with rules accordingly. They may get it wrong (in your/my opinion) due a worry over litigation, or not understanding the rules, or not knowing about legislation, or from poor estimates on quantifying the risks, but they should each have the responsibility to make their own decisions.

Posted By Alistair Kelman Thank you for all your input. Yes the right approach should be a health and safety risk analysis. I never want to see dangerous dogs in pubs or dogs which have not been socialised. And some owners can take matters to extremes. I have given up on travelling to Birmingham and the West Midlands since the entire area is very dog unfriendly - even though the NEC has Crufts every year. It would be interesting to see whether there is an economic impact of dog unfriendly policies in an area. I know that dogs and teleworking are very compatible. Today in the New Forest area the real engine of commerce are professionals teleworking over the Internet in the rural New Forest area (in areas like Hythe Marina, Lymington etc) rather than the proles living and working in the city of Southampton. Keeping a dog properly costs about the same as buying and running a fancy BMW motor car. It is not something for poor people anymore.

Posted By RobAnybody I'm in agreement with gham & TBC on the hygiene issue but I think you will find that the Pub Managers" & "Supervisors" are actually being led by a litigation averse employer. They tend to be the one who use "elfensaftyinnit" as a big stick with which to stop us enjoying life. Rob

Posted By J Knight Smiff, Note, it's keeping a dog 'properly' that costs the same as a Beemer; this equates to Vet's bills, regular jabs, rib-eye steak every night, covering fees (if a bitch), buying off bittenn neighbours, gold dog food bowl, ermine sheets etc etc; it's a dog's life. Oh, and rather tragically, it also seems to mean little santa claus outfits and so on; dressing dogs up? Wot's that about? John

Posted By Philby' Come to Otley...in Yorkhire, not the Suffolk one...dogs allowed in all but 2 of the 21 pubs...including those that serve grub! Mines a Guinness and so is the bitches, (the dog not the wife)

Posted By J Knight One of my partner's colleagues has a dog that she dresses up as a reindeer, with little antlers. This is a very long way from draping a bit of tinsel around its neck; I mean, if she wanted a reindeer she should have got one. Mind you, they take up a lot of room in the Snug. You should see the White Horse in Beverley (aka Nellies). Its gas-lit, has no central heating, no juke box and no nuffin. Not for a pose, but because it was never modernised. Its also officially dog friendly, John

Posted By Merv Newman Was the xmas gift of tinsel to one of your workers declared to the Inland Revenue ? And why can't that blame it on "Food Hygiene" regs. Or do dog owners take more umbrage about their animals being refused as "possibly dirty" than they do at being refused as "possibly dangerous" ? Or maybe waiters are tired of having to discard food that has been dropped on the floor ?

Posted By J Knight Don't know for sure but the sign on the door just mentions dogs and says nothing about the owners; I'll check next time I'm in, John