Poll: Dogs at house parties

REOM

What do you think about dogs running around at house parties?
[Poll]

DandelionMom

When we have a party I confine all the pets because I don't want them accidentally let out or fed something dangerous.  And because Suzy is naughty (likes stealing snacks). 

People know we have 2 dogs and 3 cats so they take their allergy meds before coming over. 

Jodi&Joe

Hhmmm...if I was going to a house party, and I knew the owner's had a dog, I would expect the dog to be out and about while I was there.

Sunflower777

That's a tough one. If the dog is well-trained, then I would say it's fine to let it loose when you have visitors. 

Our lab is overly excitable and will plow into people wanting to be petted. I know not everyone wants gobs of dog hair on themselves, so most of the time we put her in our bedroom with guests other than family.  

ali2005jason

For me, I think it would depend on how many people were coming and who was coming. My dog can act a bit nutso when new people come over so I'd put him away but if it's just a few of our closest friends who already know what a nut Magic is, then I'd leave him out.

ghm

It really depends on who is at the party. The dogs go to my bedroom to sleep while there is food being served/eaten. If there is someone there afraid of dogs, the dogs go to my bedroom for the whole party. I haven't encountered the allergy, but if I knew someone was going to our house that was allergic to dogs, I'd have the dogs probably go to my mom's house for the day, or I'd put them in my bedroom a couple hours before the party and make sure I swept/cleaned obsessively.

We have friends whose kids are afraid of dogs and I keep the dogs up the whole time but honestly I find it to be kind of annoying. I guess I think people should generally try to expose their kids to dogs. These kids have never been around dogs. My dogs are older and do let out a few barks when the doorbell rings (I take care of this by having them in the bedroom or outside until everyone is in the house so the barking really never occurs) and then lay down the whole time. I do put them in the bedroom sometimes for their own sanity because a lot of kids just aren't respectful toward them and it stresses them out.

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JOEBunny

I think it depends on the dog.  If the dog is a nuisance, then it is rude.  If you constantly need to intercede or say "he is friendly", he should go to daycare or be in another part of the house.  If the dog isn't jumpy, licky, or a growling biter, than it is fine.  My neighbor always has her dog loose in her house and I won't go over there with the kids.  The dog is aggressive.  She tried to tell me the dog was just being friendly when he went nuts barking and growling at my son the other day, even while outside on a leash.  No, you dog is rude and it is not ok for him to bark and growl at my two year old.  No matter the "reason".

AZ_Erica

to me it depends on the dog and the party.  We have a very friendly lab.  At our house, we let our dog wander.  But I know everyone there and no one is afraid or allergic.  When we had my dog at my sisters house for my nieces party he was locked up.  I didn't know all their guests and didn't want to intrude.  When the kids start having parties where I don't know all of the guests really well we will probably play it by ear, but most likely lock up our dog.

august06mom

Depends on the dog. Our first dog was easily exciteable, so we contained him. Our current dog is uber-mellow, so we let him roam free. He usually just hangs out under a table and sleeps.

KrisBriMcBunny

it depends on who's gonna be at my house party.  Normally I put them in my bedroom because Kasey is a HUGE AW & likes to jump & lick....Nikki tends to get stressed out when there's alot of people in the house....the more she stresses the more she drools and that is just down right gross lol

Kapalua

I said other...depends on the dog and depends on the company.  I most often confine mine b/c while I might find their enthusiasm endearing...I know most people don't! (actually, I don't either. )

jettagurl

I think it depends.  We have a dog that is 8, and anyone that is coming to the party knows him by now.  He's a well-mannered dog (and is a dander-free terrier). 

That said, we do put him outside or gate him upstairs at least while anyone is eating.  If the group is outside, we have him out there.  He's not one to jump/lick anyone and he's only about 16 lbs.  

When I go to someone else's house and they have a dog, I assume he will be around the crowd.   

kada626

I voted other. I think it depends on the temperment of the dog and who your guests are. We have always let our dog room around at parties we had. She was very mild and stayed out of the way. I sure most people didn't even notice her.

Two of my friends have very hyper dogs that jump on us or knock down the girls.  They jump on/off the furniture and race thru the house too. I avoid going to their houses because of this.  I think if your dog is a asshat it would be nice to put him/her in another room while entertaining.  

angiepangie

I voted other.

If the dog is extremely well behaved, then I'm fine with it roaming free. But if the dog is uncomfortable with the crowd or overly friendly then it should be put somewhere comfortable for the duration of the party.

kelly&paul

jettagurl:

I think it depends.  We have a dog that is 8, and anyone that is coming to the party knows him by now.  He's a well-mannered dog (and is a dander-free terrier). 

That said, we do put him outside or gate him upstairs at least while anyone is eating.  If the group is outside, we have him out there.  He's not one to jump/lick anyone and he's only about 16 lbs.  

When I go to someone else's house and they have a dog, I assume he will be around the crowd.   

this, but our dog is bigger than 16 lbs!

wellfleet04

I usually put my dog upstairs when we have people over for her own comfort--kids aren't always nice to her and she gets stressed. BUT, I wouldn't think it was rude of ne to leave her out. Anyone with allergies would be allergic to my house--my golden sheds like mad--and if kids are scared the moms can always ask me to put her up and I would. But I don't think people should HAVE to. The dog lives here. I love her. I expect other people to respect her and me in our house. I'm happy to put her up, but I don't think it's required by ettiquette. People's dog fears are kind of their own issue, not mine, IMO. I'm happy to work around it, but I don't assume my dog is unwelcome at a gathering at my house.

grja

I have dogs. When its a kids birthday party, i put the dogs in the playroom for a few hours. When its just friends coming over, i let them roam. We have invisible fence so if they get outside its a non-issue. And most of our friends/family that come over and have kids are used to our dogs. When its a party, i'm not super close with everyone so i just keep them away.

Starr57

It really depends on who is going to be there. Small gathering of friends that my dog knows will see the dog. If I'm having people over the dogs don't know, they will be put in the guest room. My dogs are skittish, so they would be barking like maniacs the entire time.

Cbidt's girl

DandelionMom:

When we have a party I confine all the pets because I don't want them accidentally let out or fed something dangerous.  And because Suzy is naughty (likes stealing snacks). 

People know we have 2 dogs and 3 cats so they take their allergy meds before coming over. 

no amount of allergy meds would save me at your house!

Angela814

Cbidt's girl:

DandelionMom:

When we have a party I confine all the pets because I don't want them accidentally let out or fed something dangerous.  And because Suzy is naughty (likes stealing snacks). 

People know we have 2 dogs and 3 cats so they take their allergy meds before coming over. 

no amount of allergy meds would save me at your house!

Same here. Even with my daily allergy meds, I can only last 15 minutes in my sister's house. She has 1 dog and 1 cat. After that I need my inhaler and could probably handle a bottle of benadryl if it didn't knock me out.

hikerbeth

Depends on the dog and the occasion.

I have 12 year old dogs that basically spend the day holding the floor down.  All our friends (and their kids) know them and know that after a first sniff, they'll lie down and stay out of our way for the party.

At DD's birthday party, I penned them in the master bedroom because there were a ton of kids there, some who didn't know them and people coming in and out of the house a lot and I didn't want them to get out or get stepped on.

Rebekah1021

My dog is getting old and a baby. She basically hides under the dining room table.

She has always been laid back dog, so we have always leave her out. 

jlw2505

I voted other as I really think it depends on the dog and who all is at the party.  My dog who passed away this winter was a big gentle giant and once he said hi to everyone, he would find a spot to lay down and really not move again.  I have no issue with dogs like that but I have a friend whose dog is just really hyper and they always keep him in his kennel or a closed off room when people are over as he is just  hard to control with a group of people.  I also think if you have a really large group over with a lot kids, it is best to keep the dog away but a small group it can be OK.