Starbucks is a well-established chain of coffeehouses and is famous for its refreshments.
Most people go there to get all types of drinks, the favorite being coffees.
They have been in business for a long time and have faced a lot of competition but have managed to stay at the top.
They do this by offering luxurious, deliciously made coffee at very affordable prices.
There was recently an article written on how they had refused to let a customer in with their service dog and it caused a lot of drama.
Starbucks issued an official apology concerning the matter and claimed to be educating their employees about the policy.
Below we will talk about the dogs’ policy in Starbucks.
Do they have a dogs’ policy?
Are Dogs Allowed in Starbucks? |
Their policy does not allow dogs in their stores.
They are one of the several establishments that are not dog friendly mainly due to the nature of the establishment.
This generally means it might be somewhat dangerous to let dogs into the establishment.
Especially the ones that haven’t been trained.
Why is this?
Starbucks is mainly a refreshments-serving establishment.
This means both the servers and the customers get to handles drinks.
They can either be hot or cold.
Now imagine, a facility like that having dogs running around.
They are bound to cause so many accidents such as spilling of drinks or getting people burnt by the spilled drink.
Apart from accidents, they can instill fear in the customers and their children and scare them.
Some dogs if provoked or scared can result in biting someone.
The above are some of the reasons why the Starbucks dogs policy does not allow them inside the establishment.
Does the policy apply in all locations?
The policy can be inconsistent in various locations.
This is because it depends on the particular store.
Some stores have different rules regarding dogs in the establishment.
This can depend on how busy the place is.
Starbucks that are not as busy may allow the dogs in especially if the customers are taking their orders to go.
Those are usually a bit laid back on their dog policy,
In the places where the policy is strictly enforced, the customers are usually asked nicely to leave their dogs outsides.
This does not mean Starbucks is not dog-friendly.
When dogs are left outside to wait for their owners, they can get free starbucks dog drinks, puppucinos, to go.
What about the dog policy and service dogs?
It is important to understand that service dogs are not viewed as pets. So what are service dogs?
Service dogs are generally dogs that offer assistance to people with disabilities whether mental or physical.
They are so many types of service dogs.
Below are some of them and what they help with:
1. Guide dogs
They are known as the most common service dogs around.
They are mainly used by either blind people or people with low vision capacity to ensure their safety when moving from one place to another.
2. Hearing dogs
They are used for assistance by people who are deaf.
They alert their owners to important sounds such as alarms or even oven timers.
If the important sound requires an action to be done, the dog guides the owner to partake of it.
3. Diabetic alert dogs
These are dogs that can detect when the owner’s sugar levels go dangerously low or dangerously high.
They usually have a very superior sense of smell and can easily tell when the owner is hypoglycemic or hyperglycemic.
4. Mobility assistance dogs
These are dogs that have been trained to help the owner when it comes to the movement of a body part or the whole body part.
The owners usually suffer from spinal cord injuries and diseases such as arthritis.
They usually help the owner do normal day-to-day tasks.
5. Seizure response dogs
They are trained to help the owner before, during, and after they suffer from epileptic seizures.
This type of service dog can usually predict when it is about to happen so they can react.
They usually have designated orders to follow.
6. Autism support dogs
They are trained to help people with autism as they go about their daily activities.
Having their dogs around gives the owners a confidence boost.
7. Allergy detection dogs
These are dogs that have been trained to smell odors that may be harmful to the owner.
Especially scents that give the owner allergic reactions.
8. Psychiatric dogs
Dogs under this category are mainly for people with mental disorders.
They detect mood changes and can predict both anxiety and panic attacks and inform others that their owner needs help.
Learn More:
Importance of service dogs
- They help their owners perform daily tasks during the day.
- Service dogs perform essential actions such as warning someone who is deaf about a smoke alert that they are unable to hear thus removing them from harm’s away.
- They also provide mobile assistance to people with physical disabilities.
Final Note
Service dogs are very welcome into Starbucks stores.
It is unethical to prevent an owner from getting in with their service dog.
This is because service dogs are not referred to as pets but employees who belong to the owner.
They provide essential services to the owner and cannot be separated from the owner at all costs because they are in charge of the owners’ wellbeing.
The positive side to all this is customers usually feel understood by the workers in the stores.
It makes them comfortable to know that their service dog is next to them as they get served in the establishment.
The negative side to all these is the people who take their regular dogs who are pets to such stores such as Starbucks as service dogs.
By doing that they are abusing the Starbucks policy.
People who do the above tend to let people with actual service dogs’ needs be discredited.
It makes the workers at Starbucks begin to doubt the authenticity of such claims.
This makes it important that those with service dogs bring documentation to avoid such inconveniences when getting themselves something from Starbucks.
