Scottee25

Be thankful most of those dogs are small dogs. I have a 120lb Great Dane. Imagine having him slobbering around you while you try to eat

Jumbo

Screw that Veronica - just because you want to live with your animals doesn't mean the rest of the world wants to. I don't want some slobbering flea infested animal sleeping in any bed that I am or near any food that I am going to eat.

All of you condescending posters on this board (American and European)that are so eager to criticize fellow Americans for living on a continent other than Europe are really getting tired. Give 'em hell ryan!

Bootman4U

Another pet/dog lover here..and get READY...not only will you see the "children" in restaurants but they also travel on the trains, the trams, the Metros, etc. Not only do they not smoke, they also usually don't stink, either. I think the "Rent-A-Dog" is a great idea especially for those here who are constantly worried about "blending in" and thinking that wearing capri pants is going to do that for them...
But..somebody has to stay here and mind the store while the rest of us are running around Europe enjoying everyone else's pets.

Bitter

cmeyer54: Please explain! (or did I miss your post about the chickens). Sounds bizarre.
I understand many of you hate to leave your pets for a long period of time, that would be difficult, but help me with this: Are any of you the kind of owner that can't go down the street to the store without packing "fluffy" (who inevitably sits in the owner's lap as s/he drives). Just wondering what is up with that? Is it the dog or the owner that can't be alone for a few minutes?

cmeyer54

Bitter - we were booked into a 4star hotel that is part of a worldwide chain in Munich; as it turned out, we were the only American/Christians on the floor. Many of the rooms had limited cooking facilities such as a hotplate and the smell was horrendous - we had to be moved to a higher floor and when we looked out the balcony, there were freshly butchered chickens hanging from the balconies on our previous floor dripping blood and whatever! the front desk was very understanding and all I had to do was mention the "odor" and she immediately moved us. I understand the need for specific religious beliefs regarding food preparation but this was too much.

jsmith

As an asthmatic whose problem is sometimes triggered by dogs and cats which has occasionally required me to start a 20+ day regimen of steroid therapy I fail to see the connection between liking animals and believing THEY should be banned from restaurants, etc.

Instead we get the suggestion that we who believe the latter should not visit Europe but go to Asia. I don't mind not visiting my brother-in-law in Wiltshire and his 3 h-u-g-e long haired whatevers but a whole continent?

I just watched the movie "About Schmidt" where Jack Nicholson's character adopts a child in Africa. Maybe everyone whose animal dies could ease their sorrow by making such an adoption.

travelhappy

Wow - what a can of worms. We just returned from Italy ourselves. Taking emotion out of the equation. I found that the dogs allowed in restaurants or hotels was not necessarily as disturbing to me as some other things. While I was surprised to see the dogs in the restaurants - they were well-behaved and sat directly under the tables and where usually outside. I was more surprised at how close the tables where food was served to the cars whizzing by along with food on buffets sitting out with flies. But we came home safe, sound and healthy. As for dogs in the hotels - we ran into a few -during our travels in Italy - with no problem - most of the floors were stone or wood - and linens cleaned daily. The streets of Rome, Florence, Tuscany and the Lakes were cleaner than some parks in the US. If it bothers you to such an extent - perhaps staying in large hotel which is a chain would be better for you. I didn't find it off-putting at all - it was rather charming and part of the tolerance of Italy - I love it!

Scottee25

If my dog was sitting in my lap, HE would be driving since I would not be able to see around him(let alone breathe). My dog is NOT allowed in the bed and while my wife does pamper him, I like to beat the hell out of him (A little good cop, bad cop). I will be in Europe for 2 weeks in August, I would NOT think about bringing my dog with me so we have someone sitting our house along with our 3 pets.

Now while I don't mind my dog being around me while I eat, I shoo him away if we have guests over. Likewise, I don't want to watch someones' dog lick itself for 30 minutes while I am trying to eat.