2022
With the launch of #LetsGuide recently, I thought about what my passions are and how I could share it with my community. I have a lot of passions, but as a new(ish) dog owner I thought why not explore one of my newest ones.
Tako is my adorable, albeit stubborn, Shiba Inu. He is 6 months old and needs constant attention and supervision. This makes it difficult to go out- as you can imagine!
What a lot of people don’t know is that you cannot leave your dog tied up outside to a bike rack or tree, no matter how well behaved they are, while you go into a restaurant for lunch. To the City Of Vancouver, this is considered “off-leash” and can get you a hefty fine of $250! You can see how this might make it challenging to go out with a puppy.
I work in a dog-friendly office which makes dog ownership manageable in Vancouver, but it doesn’t solve the problem of what to do when I want to go out and socialize.
I’ve discovered a few places that allow me to bring him inside. My favorite dog-friendly place is Luppolo Brewery in the Strathcona area. They won’t allow your dog to sit with you while you have your beer and snacks, but there is an area in the front of the shop with a cozy dog bed and water dish for them. They’ll also get lots of love and attention from anyone that comes in 🙂
Another place that has been very kind to Tako and me is Cartems Donuts on Main Street. Tako gets lots of tummy touches and I get to have my donut and coffee in their friendly shop!
Obviously dog parks are the most dog-friendly places! There are so many dog parks in Vancouver and many of them are fenced up in case you have a pooch that’s prone to taking off. Not only is it a great place for your dog to play and socialize, it’s a great place for the humans to socialize too!
What I did was join a Facebook group for Shiba Inu owners in Vancouver. Much like Local Guides Connect, we share things with each other. In this case, it's Shiba related. On the first Sunday of every month, there is a big Shiba Meet at David Gray Dog Park in Burnaby. Up to 20 Shiba Inu’s get together and play. Sometimes it gets a little wild and there’s some growling, but it’s generally a great time and it’s also a chance for the humans to socialize with each other.
There are tons of dog specific meet-ups in Vancouver that you can find by searching for groups on Facebook, but there are also just general dog meet-ups too. There is actually one coming up in the next few weeks at Trout Lake Off-leash Park if anyone wanted to check it out! I’m not the one hosting it, so all the info you need is at the link here - https://www.facebook.com/events/792714794243167/
Hope Tako and I will see you there! I’d also love to hear about where you go with your dog and what type of meet-ups you attend with them 🙂
Hi @JenneferB Thanks for sharing this educative article about #Letsguide dogs to Friendly places. As a proud Havanese Owner, I can tell you it has not been easy taking my dog to restaurants, offices and other fun place that I would love to go with her(Kira). Sadly In the country where I Iive in, there are no pet friendly places and most times you can't take your dog's to cafes and restaurants etc because you won't be allowed, not even in their premises. Thanks for sharing such a great post as this.
Here is a photo of Kira
