Doggie Dining is coming to Mississippi tomorrow. Yes, readers read that sentence correctly. Restaurants can start applying tomorrow to the Mississippi State Department of Health for a variance. The variance will permit dogs at outdoor patios of restaurants.
The Clarion-Ledger published a feel-good story in July reporting the local diners that were canine-friendly. However, unknown to the reporter, state regulations prohibited dogs from restaurant patios. The Mississippi State Department of Health read the story and notified the newspaper that although popular, dog-friendly patios are illegal and could result in a fine for the restaurant of up to $1,000 for a second violation. A warning is issued for the first violation.
The Mississippi State Department of Health will grant a variance to restaurants who wish to allow canines at outdoor patios. A restaurant or other establishment that gets a food facility permit will pay a permit fee of $165 ofr an additional inspection. The application will be on the department's website. Applicants can pay the fee online as well.
Senior Deputy Director Dr. Jim Craig said the department will try to inspect the facility within five days of application. A variance committee will review the application and report. He said the committee will at first meet on an ad hoc basis due to the initial demand and then settle on a fixed schedule.
As is standard practice in other states, the outdoor area must have it's own entrance. The dogs must be on a leash and are not allowed to enter the indoor section of the restaurant. Nothing can go back in the kitchen from the dog-friendly area. Waiters and waitresses are not allowed to touch the mutts. Only disposable utensils and dinnerware can be used in the patios approved for variances. That means no wine glasses, coffee mugs, silverware, or plates that have to be washed even if the diners have no dog.
The restaurant can limit dogs by weight, size, and yes, even breed. Dr. Craig said the new policy is a way for the department to be business-friendly.
54 comments:
Hooray. Rudd’s and entitled dog owners will now leave messes for waitstaff to cleanup.
Awesome. I hope you will provide an updated list on a regular basis so that I can avoid those nasty places.
Mississippi is finally catching up with NY and LA! Now I can take my sweet baby bullies with me to restaurants like a real mom!
Dog moms rule!
In a word...NONSENSE.
Great news! We will be sure to patronize these establishments.
@pitbull mom. If your pits come anywhere near my children they will be shot. I don’t care if you think they’re good dogs.
Los Angeles ... now there's a place we should really want to be like.
It'll all come to a screeching halt when somebody's dog bites someone and it lands them and the establishment where it happened in court.
When food is involved even the best trained dog gets serious. I can see it now. Two dogs tie up with one another under a table going after a "treat" someone tosses on the floor. Animals in a restaurant no matter the type or training they've had is a bad idea.
@12:43 you shoot my dog for simply coming near you or yours then expect the same to happen to you
Pitbull Mom, have you been to NY or LA lately? The streets are littered with human waste, needles and other trash; and they probably have ordinances regulating breeds such as your sweet baby bully which have been identified as unsafe and vicious.
And I'm with 12:43, if your dogs get anywhere near my children, they will find themselves in the next life bully. Since you're probably a lefty liberal and probably tout yourself as compassionate and tolerant, how about you have some manners and not force people to dine next your dog while she (your male dog probably identifies as female or gender fluid) licks her ball and ass, and pisses and shits all over the place.
I'm a dog owner. I will not be bringing my dog to eat with me. However, it doesn't bother me when people bring dogs to outdoor eating areas if they are well-behaved. Doesn't bother me one bit.
Other states figure it out yet we can't. Sounds about right.
Anonymous @ 1:13 What a bitter, angry human you are! I bet you a million soup bones you haven't been to LA or NY in decades, if ever. To hear you freak out about something that hasn't even happened is a window to your hyper-paranoid soul. Bless your heart.
A Texas woman is in the intensive care unit of an Austin hospital after a dog bit her and gave her a rare bacterial infection, forcing doctors to amputate her legs and fingers.
A young girl was attacked by a dog while eating with her family at Pizza Port in Carlsbad last week.
A woman sitting near the family asked if their two daughters would like to pet her dog. The owner walked off, leaving the dog with the girls.
The dog then bit four-year-old Lacey Burke on the face.
“My daughter was on her knees, petting the dog’s head like the owner had showed, and the dog went at her face,”Lacey’s mother, Taylor Burke, said.
She was rushed to the children’s hospital where she underwent surgery.
"We want to make awareness for people bringing their dogs into public places, especially crowded restaurants with food on the ground, lots of people, craziness going on, you just never know how the dog is going to react,” Ray Burke, Lacey’s father, told NBC 7. “They are animals at the end of the day."
hmmm... i surely do love some redfish anna on the patio at walkers on a nice night, nut not on a paper plate with a plastic fork. that's fine at newk's, but not somewhere nicer.
Dog friendly restaurants may make business sense for restaurant owners. Nonetheless, a dog friendly policy becomes questionable because in some instances it could compromise public safety. The degree of risk depends on the circumstances present in the restaurant and the temperament of the dog. Similar risks probably exist when dogs are allowed to sit next to their owner in outdoor cafes which often abut public sidewalks, or dogs in pet stores, or for that matter any indoor public environment where a dog could conceivably have a close encounter with an unfamiliar person or be exposed to frightening stimuli.
Looks like our curmudgeon up in Madison County who hates dog parks has appeared.
There sure are a lot of whiny bitches posting on this thread. People have dogs. Dogs are social animals. People with dogs like to be social. If you don’t like that restaurants are doing this, then don’t give them your business. If enough people affect the restaurant’s bottom line, well the business will have to change. If the business is not affected, then you’ll have to deal with it, or go somewhere else that supports your beliefs. It’s called a free market, and consumer demand dictates where it goes.
Not too long ago, you were allowed to smoke in a restaurant. And there’s people complaining here about a leashed dog on a patio?
Oh, and if you shoot my dog for looking at you funny, you obviously don’t understand the amount of hell I will inflict on you.
"@12:43 you shoot my dog for simply coming near you or yours then expect the same to happen to you"
Good luck with that argument in court, moron. Someone defending themselves of their child from an animal attack - well-established legal doctrine. Defending a dog's legal rights? Good luck finding a law establishing that.
We aint got long.....
Nothing like the sweet aroma of fresh dog shit to enhance a dining out experience.
My insurance is expensive already, how much of a rate increase is it going to be once I let dogs in?
@1:32... I have pets and I agree with you totally ... one time I was eating on the patio at Mcalisters and had my 2 Poodle’s on the car with the air on and the police told me I couldn’t leave them in the car... I said I’m right here sir and the air is on... he demanded I get in the car with the dogs so I just packed my food and left... I usually don’t go to restaurants when they are with me but I bumped into a friend while at Hollywood Feed and we went across the street to get a bite to eat and the sole reason for choosing this restaurant is to eat on the patio and leave them in the car with the air conditioner on... I was flummoxed by this officer
There's more than one curmudgeon/jackass/doomsday prophet here, KF.
I'm all for dining outdoors with dog family, but the plastic for everyone is ridiculous. That will discourage most restaurants from applying.
Who eats on a patio anyway in MS? Seriously there are only 2 seasons here, deer and summer
Yup. That rule is going to be a dealbreaker for many. Three owners told me they really want to allow it but the disposable requirements kill it for them. Not just nice restaurants, think of ceramic coffee mugs at starbucks.
"Looks like our curmudgeon up in Madison County who hates dog parks has appeared."
Try to pay attention, Kingfish...this ain't got shit to do with Dog Parks. If you want to eat your lunch with chihuahua's humping your ankles, then you need to brown-bag it at Pet Depot.
Scrooges allows dogs on the patio. I didn't see a problem with it.
Let the dogs eat off of disposable dishes, and give their owners a dog bowl.
Perfect.
We don’t even take our kids to some restaurants, and they’re human beings! Why, oh why do people feel the need to take their dogs to restaurants?
1:59; 1:13 here - out of necessity and for my business, I travel to NY and LA at least once a month; both cities have become filthy, lawless examples of how NOT to run a city. I used to look forward to these trips, now I dread them. When is the last time YOU went?
12:43 if you discharge your weapon in a public area I for 1 will be the first to call the police
go to another restaurant if you don’t like the dogs
12:48 California May be far from perfect but it has the 5th highest economy in the world
what is Mississippi
1:13 crass
I’d rather some people leave their snotty bratty loud kids at home
Well, the dog haters are out in force. Doom and gloom everywhere. An especially nice touch was posting the articles about dogs attacking people in restaurants. One could, if one wanted to, find numerous articles about people going to restaurants and getting attacked, shot and stabbed by other people. Surely people should be banned from restaurants, right? And let's not forget that people going to restaurants are often harmed by the food in restaurants (food poisoning). Doesn't it stand to reason that both food and people should be banned from restaurants? The logic is unassailable.
I happen to live in a city where dogs are not only allowed in bars and some restaurants, but actively welcomed. Bartenders have doggie treats behind the bar and dogs sit at bar stools and often roam around unleashed; I see this several times a week. They are regulars, everyone knows them, and not a single time - not once - have I ever witnessed a problem with the dogs. Dogs are welcome on any outside patio throughout the entire city and inside of some restaurants. It is so common as to be normal and again, I have never witnessed a single issue. Some people just hate dogs, and these are the most miserable, pathetic kind of people there are.
And to the person who said they would shoot a dog if it approached their child: well, aren't you a big tough guy, bringing a big gun to a restaurant with your child in tow just waiting to mow down anything that approaches your precious, snot-nosed little brat. Haha, just kidding. Not a single person believes your dumb sociopathic ass.
12:48 California May be far from perfect but it has the 5th highest economy in the world
what is Mississippi
Better economy and, by far, more people openly crapping on the ground than here in Mississippi.
1:13 and 7:09: You are flat out lying. I bet you have never been to New York City in your entire life. NYC has one of the lowest crime rates in the nation and is the 10th overall safest major city in the entire world. They just recorded their lowest number of homicides since the 1940's. If you have actually been to NYC, you are such a sheltered little baby-child that you are probably scared of your own shadow and almost certainly terrified of anyone that doesn't look exactly like you. You know what cities have higher rates of violent crime than NYC? Omaha, Neb., Des Moines, Iowa, Mobile, Alabama, and Orlando, FL. Gulfport, MS has over FOUR TIMES the murder rate of New York City. Meridian, MS has over SIX TIMES the murder rate of NYC.
You have absolutely no idea what the word "lawless" means. You're just spouting off conservative talking points about places you know nothing about.
Most restaurants in Austin allow dogs on leash at outdoor restaurants. I don’t think it works for fine dining. The majority were sandwich places like Newk’s, etc. never saw a problem. My little pooch has better manners than a lot of people. Some of who have posted here.
I happen to live in a city where dogs are not only allowed in bars and some restaurants, but actively welcomed.
What city? Put up.
My little pooch has better manners than a lot of people. Some of who have posted here.
Does your little pooch floss? How about flush after using the restroom?
Misery for the pet! Just like the miserable pets whose 'owners' drag them along on leash in many public outdoor venues (parks, walking trails, fairs, parades, car shows), with everybody asking, 'Oh, cute, can I pet him?' And the poor dog's feet are burning up and its tongue is hanging out from thirst.
10:22, I live in Mid City New Orleans. You can take your dog inside almost any bar in the city; I regularly take my dog to Cosimos, Harry's Corner, the Golden Lantern, the R Bar, the Erin Rose, Good Friends, Twelve Mile Limit, Markey's Bar, Vaughn's Lounge, etc. All of these bars have doggie treats behind the bar that they give to their dog customers. And I can't think of a single restaurant that has a patio where dogs aren't allowed. And there are hundreds of restaurants in town that have patios.
10:25
He does floss. Every morning he has a treat called Greenie which cleans his teeth and has a barest freshner. Hedoest flush however he has one spot in the corner of the yard that he uses. Unfortunately I see a lot of public toilets for humans where the user didn’t flush. I’m out
My brother's dog always eats on the patio.
My dog is a genius. His name is Einstein. He flies around on a spaceship with me and my friends, who are all bounty hunters. From time to time he will hack the interwebs with me. We stopped letting him eat mushrooms because one time he got reslly high.
1:00 - New Orleans is America's largest dungeon, den of inequity and shit-hole. And you've come on here to tell us how advanced they are in their dining venues?
Nothing like waking up early, walking outside the Roosevelt, onto the street (6:20 a.m.) and watching the water trucks spray down the streets, smelling the horse and dog urine and wondering how many dogs and humans shit in the streets last night. And many of them shit and pissed off and on so called 'restaurant patios'.
It might make things less controversial if someone simply made a list of restaurants that forced people to bring their dogs and another list of those that forced people to dine at those on the former. I realize it is the not only Mississippi, but the Jackson metro area, but how hard could it be to compile and distribute both lists? I'll step out on limb and suggest it wouldn't take more than, well, a second or two.
I thought Ridgeland and Madison had a law against tobacco smoking in restaurants, also including outdoor patios attached to them. Maybe I don't know that law. Or maybe Shuckers doesn't. Which is it?
7:30pm - You are so right! How dare someone from New Orleans come on here and talk about how advanced they are in their dining options! I bet there's not a single all-you-can-eat catfish buffet in the whole city. The 10 million visitors that visit New Orleans each year from around the globe who come to dine in all of James Beard-award-winning restaurants are just a bunch of dumbasses for not going to Mississippi instead. Don't they know anything about good food like fried pickles?
You mouth-breathing fucktards crack me up. I wonder what culinary mecca 7:30pm lives in? Pisgah? Brandon? Please enlighten us on all of the advanced dining options you have in your city, pardner. I can't wait to hear about the great biscuits at the Cracker Barrel. hahahaha
@11:30
For your information I live in Florence and you obviously haven't been to Berries otherwise you would know better.
I don't have a major problem with this, but I can understand the issues it would create. How would you like trying to enjoy your lunch while someone else's dog is begging for food? Dogs are also unpredictable in social situations if they are not accustomed to it. Some children are also afraid of dogs. So it could have an impact on business in a negative way.
Some of us enjoy bringing our dogs to a restaurant . Mine are better behaved and have less germs than most of your snotty nosed brats. And the one that said she would shoot the pit bulls ?! You sound like you need a good punch to the head. Just sayin . Have some respect for others you closed minded parent
Post a Comment