Chicago's Dining Goes to the Dogs
CHICAGO, June 16, 2006 — -- "People walk by here and there's no guarantee they're clean," sniffed Karen Kirst as she enjoyed her breakfast, her pet daschund, Heidi, in her lap. As Kirst held Heidi inches from her bowl of oatmeal, several other patrons at a North Side Chicago eatery sat thigh by haunch with their dogs.
They never thought for a second that sitting at a sidewalk café with their pooches was actually against the law.
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But in this dog-friendly town and in many other parts of the country, Fido is definitely not invited to dinner. If somebody complains, the Chicago Department of Public Health responds, cites the restaurant and fines the owner.
For many dog owners, that's unfair. The restaurants don't like it much either because they lose reservations from pet owners. Nobody is arguing to put Rover on the dance floor or have him pull up a chair at the legendary Pump Room -- this is all about letting the dogs accompany their masters as they dine al fresco.
"I believe you can control a dog easier and quiet them down easier than an infant," said Steven Graziano as his dogs, Sebastian and Niko, tugged gently at their leashes.
Graziano was feeding some of his oatmeal to them at the same eatery where Kirst was feeding Heidi -- except that Kirst and Heidi were sharing the same spoon. "She's letting me eat with her, actually," said Kirst, laughing.
There are some 65 million owned pets in this country, according to the Humane Society of the United States, and 39 percent of all households have one. Plus, 12 percent of all owners have three or more dogs.
Chicago Alderman Walter Burnett, Jr. says it's time to ease up on the restrictions of dining with your doggie. "You eat with them at home," Burnett said. "You eat with them at the park. Why can't you eat with them at an outdoor café?"
He is co-sponsoring a bill to lift the pooch prohibition and expects that it will be quickly adopted and enacted sometime next month. "People are jumping on board because everyone loves their dogs," he said as his dog, Star, sidled up to his leg.
