To Dog or Not to Dog, that is the Question

"Tempest Meet Teapot" says S.L.

My fiber guild board has just passed a vote stating that dogs need to be kept on a leash and by the individuals side during guild meetings and Spinning Saturday due to some individuals being allergic or afraid of dogs if I understood the issue correctly.  Keeping a dog by one's side is a reasonable request as opposed to having it roaming around the room.  I commend the board for taking a measured approach to this concern.  I'm not sure what sparked this discussion or decision on the part of the board to take a stand on the dog issue.  As anyone who knows me knows, I love dogs and have brought my own to the Spinning Saturday meetings as have several others.  My dog is a major PITA, being young and still needing to learn to be good in public, and I keep her leased there. I bring her as a training exercise and don't keep her there very long.  Her idea of greeting a new person is to launch herself at them like some kind of offensive tackle.  But dogs, like kids need to be courteous members of the group and not cruising the room, going through a person's personal items or pawing people. 

There has been some public dialogue that this is about having "clean air" and not have dogs because of airborne allergens, if this is part of the issue I personally find it ludicrous.  Spinning Saturday is a guild event that happens monthly at the local library.  Requesting dogs be barred because of air born allergens is, in my opinion goofy (or a serious control issue on someones part).  If you take 20 people spinning every fiber possible the air is going to be anything but clean.  It is a melting pot of allergens all airborne.   It is going to be filled with bits and pieces of wool, camel, tensel, rabbit, silk, lama, alpaca, and dog hair.  Yes, people spin dog hair - you can't tell me the air is clean or that people need to make sure a dog can't be there because of air borne allergens. If you are allergic to some kind of fiber, what the hell are you doing at a group meeting that will have fiber everywhere?  And then you are going to complain about it? 

My dog is my constant companion (yes, I do leave her at home sometimes) and I work hard to make sure that she continues to learn her social manners.   I think it completely reasonable for the guild board to request that dogs brought stay by the individuals side and be under leash or voice control.  I feel the same way about people who bring their kids to guild events.   People can be afraid of dogs and should not have to have some strange dog trying to sniff their crotch which is polite doggie behavior, but doesn't go over well with people. 

Again, I must commend the board on their measured approach to this issue,.  I think well behaved dogs should be allowed at meetings.  Well behaved being the operative word here.  But leave the airborne allergy card at home, it's a fiber meeting.  You might as well call it an airborne allergen meeting.  Next we will have people stating that members of the guild can only spin yak, because wool makes them sneeze.

Unfortunately, the public discussion just took a rather ugly and personal  turn for the worse this morning.