c/d pets in the office - or - thread #67,367,372 where we gripe about aspects of our workplace

The two jobs that I've had the longest, both of them were places where the boss used to bring his/her dog to work.

Obviously, this would suck if you weren't a dog lover, or if you had a particularly badly trained dog... but for me, it was utter classic. Whenever I felt particularly stressed, the dog would come over and jump up on my lap, and I'd instantly feel so much better.

All jobs should have ACCESS TO PUPPIES!!! it should be in the job description.

he occasionally naps right behind my chair and after getting rolled over several times you'd think he'd figure out not to do this.

This describes people I have worked with. I've never worked in an office with pets though.

Sounds like they need some Preparation H, at the least.

The second dog was a rather spoiled King Charles Spaniel, appropriately called "Diva", who also belonged to the owner of the ad agency. I really got along with the dog, though many people found her yappy and aggressive. I could say the same thing about her owner, too. ;-)

Everyone should work in porn?

Funny really, the dogs had far more rights and privileges than the employees, who were underpaid, weren't allowed to talk, and had to ask when going to the toilet.

(it is wandering round the office making up offensive nicknames for my colleagues and whistling a chinking pennies extremely loudly. I know I shouldn't criticise people for craving attention, but really. I'm trying to pretend to work here, dammit)

xpost

I'd love to be able to take my dog to work, but to be honest he's probably too exuberant to be a good office dog!

scotties are beyond adorable, but they've got strong personalities and might not be the best for office life.

I quite like having dogs around when working outside.

at my friend's work there used to be a guy who had his dog with him every day (he was disabled in some way, I think). My friend had quit smoking so on his breaks he would play with the dog. It was one of the highlights of his day and provided relief from the tedium of work. I think this c/d comes down to whether one likes dogs/cats in the first place, and the particular pet.

The old stylee art nouveau cinema also near me used to have a resident cat (not sure if it still does?). It was always hilarious when, in the middle of a tense, supenseful horror scene in a film, the cat would inevitably brush past someones legs and they'd scream their head off.

Perhaps because a well-behaved cat is very low maintenance compared to a dog? Perhaps because mice could be an issue? Perhaps the sort of people who like the idea of working in stores also tend to prefer cats over dogs?

If he were in any way a distraction, or under foot, he'd be staying home, snoozing on the bed.

http://nf.wh3rd.net/photos/pics/roll01/george-1.jpg

She also had a dog that would piss on my male colleague's bin every night after we'd gone home. It was really bizarre.

Don't think I've ever posted a picture of Dougal, I feel like I need his permission or something.

Children in the workplace are much much worse than pets in the workplace

Ultra-unbelievably OTM. I've barely been able to get anything done today because someone brought their five-year-old to work and just let him run around the office shouting and throwing things. The downside is that the kid's parent is the owner of the company.

Fuck this...

The only time someone ever brought their dog to my work, it relieved itself on the carpet.

I have a friend that used to be a co-worker that had an incredibly sickly miniature chihuahua that she brought to work so she could feed it from a tube every hour. She kept it in a little nest she fashioned in her desk drawer. We were all rooting for the little dude, so we kind of let it slide that she was bringing this thing to work everyday.

fucking kids, ugh. xpost

Surely this depends on the nature of your workplace?

I've never had either situation at any job, fortunately.

Seeing this thread again reminds me that when my L.A. boss's yorkie died, I had to write the thank you cards to the people who sent flowers to the funeral.

We have a dog - still the same ole Lucy, a Basset Artésien Normandie - and my daughter. Tough shit if you don't like her or my dog.

Ophelia hard at work on my office computer:

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1203/1101563203_ad5b85693d.jpg

yes, I should edit that to SOME fucking kids, ugh. I'm sure there as many angels as there are horrible little urchins that a certain some one feels compelled to bring to work every so often.

Nath your dog is super adorable! And of course Ophelia, too; how many words a minute is she up to now?

Roffle. She hasn't yet mastered the keyboard. But she does know that her grandmother lives in the computer. They skype quite often. She'll be shocked when she sees her in "real" in a couple of weeks. ;-)

I'm sure there as many angels as there are horrible little urchins that a certain some one feels compelled to bring to work every so often.

I'd rather everyone just didn't so we don't have to gamble on whether this is the one time that the "angel" feels the need to cry and scream for hours.

Same thing applies to animals. Leave them all at home.

We have a dog - still the same ole Lucy, a Basset Artésien Normandie - and my daughter. Tough shit if you don't like her or my dog.

You have a home office which doesn't count in any of this.

Elvis Telecom OTM.

That said I am amazed at how big Ophelia's gotten. She looks v pretty there Nath.

If you bring your child or companion animal to work in your shop that you own and run, and they are either v. quiet or v. friendly, then I like that. I like friendly shops with people in 'em who are full of chat or animals who like a bit of a rub.

If you bring your child or companion animal to work when you work in a big open plan office and you KNOW that they will not behave and that at least ONCE during the day you will have to pull them away from someone and apologise for their behaviour, then you are a knob.

There is a shop in Dublin with a little dog, and when you buy something you have to give the money to the dog, and she runs behind the counter, gives the money to the shopkeeper, who then gives her the change to give back to you. Then he gives the dog a treat. This is plainly the best shop in the world.

What shop is that? I want to shop there.

Thats awesome! :D

Spill it DV, where's this shop?

Perhaps it is the little shop in his head where he likes to go during work hours to get away from it all. They sell pretty clouds and fat-free fireworks there.

You have a home office which doesn't count in any of this.

I guess. But I do remember feeling awkward when she was a baby. She didn't cry that much, but she did at times of course and then I felt guilty because the two employees had to bear it. I did tell them and said I would make it as easy as possible for everyone involved.

KV, thanks! I think she is the prettier version of me. :-)

Ages ago when I used to work at a youth counselling center my boss always brought his giant St. Bernard to work with him - he was a really sweet dog and excellent with kids so I suppose he was working as much as any of the rest of us there. He also didn't mind being used as a foot-rest, so he was pretty much the best dog ever.

But Nathalie, having a home office, you don't really have anywhere else to put Ophelia! You can't put the baby in the yard on a leash during working hours.

Man I love huge friendly dogs.

When you have a positive encounter with a child or a pet in the workplace it can put a smile on your face and a spring in your step. I like that.

My wife just started at some celebrity agency place on Oxford St last week and they sometimes have a load of dogs in the office but they are nice and she's a big animal lover anyway (mainly cats, but dogs will do in the absence of cats).

I second any loathing of people bringing kids into the office though. Especially if they expect everyone to make a big fuss about it. Doesn't happen here but used to at my last job.

I'm allergic to dogs & cats so I'm against having them in the workplace. I used to visit a lot of army bases in a former job and wherever I went there was always at least one officer who kept a dog in his office. To be fair most of them would offer to remove it if they knew about my allergy but that wouldn't really make any difference.

I've taken my newborn babies into the office, but only because I was asked to do so. I realise it's a pain in the arse for most people to pretend to be interested.

my only bad experience with pets in the office was at a small pr company. the owner brought his 150lb tosa inu (hybrid mastiff fighting dog) to work basically every day. at first it didn't bother me because i love mastiffs and this one seemed friendly, but then another woman in the office told me under no circumstances to approach the owner when the dog was near him because it was "protective." later that day i learned that when anyone came through the front door, it would go ballistic and have to be restrained by several people. doesn't that seem like a lawsuit waiting to happen?

But Nathalie, having a home office, you don't really have anywhere else to put Ophelia! You can't put the baby in the yard on a leash during working hours.

I guess but what about the child care center or crèche? That said, I don't think I would have been able as all the places were full anyway. Even now, with the second one, I'll have to wait SIX MONTHS until the baby can go to the local crèche.

Lauren, I don't understand why someone would take a dangerous dog to an office. Unless it's a diamond office (which our dealers did for a while, after having had a stick-up or whatever you call it).

I love going into shops and seeing a cat or something.

If I owned my own shop I would definitely bring my pets/children. It would be my own damn shop! (The local yarn store has a couple of dogs in the bag. They generally just sleep)

Also Nath, I did not see your dog in that photo. Just Ophelia. I am confused.

I like shops that have cats, but now I always ask the owner if the cat is pettable before approaching it, after getting bit in a bookstore in the French Quarter.

Cat might have been having a bad day. Our cat bites everyone so I'm always sure to warn people.

Rock, are you in NO? I don't have my jaymc.xls handy.

I would like a office fridge for wine & Beer (a la Gr8080), humidor for smokes (at this point cancer will have been cured so I can smoke again) and a bbq out the back. Pets will include: beer opening monkey butler (preferably a white-faced saki), swearing parrot and happy dog. I will allow cats and things to keep things sweet with everyone. This will all be on my profit-turning organic vineyard (pref. pinot noir but hey, I'll take anything compared to a desk right now) with a view of the Dura. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?

If you've got the money. . .

animals > children

Sometimes. Depends on if you need shoes made or not...

I don't :( (xpost)

Ms M, I'm in northeast MS, near Tupelo. That bookstore cat is long dead now -- it was old at the time, and the time was 21 years ago. So ha ha, I totally outlived that fucker.

Poor kitty. :(

We're going to NOLA in a couple of months and I want to do non-touristy things. Will have to poll Big Easy ILX0rs soon.

Quality crosspost there kv_lol :)

I guess but what about the child care center or crèche? That said, I don't think I would have been able as all the places were full anyway. Even now, with the second one, I'll have to wait SIX MONTHS until the baby can go to the local crèche.

Dude, it's your shop. Family business=family being all up in the business. What your employees need to do is learn to work it. "Hey Nath, Ophelia ate my spreadsheet. I'm going to have to do it again. Er, at home. For five, no, six days. Yes."

Kev-lol, I have just finished my course in So You Want to be a PA for a Strange Dr. Moreau Figure Who Has His Own Organic Vineyard and Monkey Butler?

Coincidence? Hmm? Is it?

I dunno accentmonkey. How are you at swearing and wearing multicoloured feathers?

Screw it, you're over-qualified but I'll give you a chance. The pay is in wine and bbq. I cannot promise a pension or medical but if we work fast enough on finishing off the wine we won't need to worry about either in the long term!

Hooray! This is quite the Lord Flasheart moment.

How do you spell Flashheart?

*WOOF*

mmmmmm, monkey butter

Get your own monkey to milk sicko.

dude, no! Rock's a really good cook. You should hire him.

But no fish, Hardy!

How comfortable are you working with Monkey waiting staff Rock? Accentmonkey OTM re. disgusting fish. Thankfully Dura are inland!

I pride myself on being able to work with almost all vertebrates. I require Thursdays off, and also Tuesday nights from 1-3:30 a.m., and I'll need high-speed internet access, and a skirt steak allowance.

Done, Done and done. What you make your clothing out of is your own business but your uniform will come out of your wages though, sorry.

Damn, skirt steak is dry-clean-only.

*Sigh* fine. I'll cover uniform. Not a good start young Hardy, not a good start at all...

Wait'll you taste the chili verde.

Seriously, if I thought I could get them to Amsterdam without them blowing up all over the inside of my carryon, I'd bring a half-gallon of roasted chilies and make a big batch of green for the scooby gang.

How the hell did this thread get so derailed?

dude, just get 1 vacuum sealer and take the roasted chilies AND THE DURIAN JAM!

That jam is terrifying. I use it in place of smelling salts when I'm sleepy at work. One whiff and my head goes all the way back...

Yes, well, there'll be no use for that kind of thing below stairs at Casa Kev-lol. You can leave it behind at your current employment.

I used to have drinks next to a cat named Cecil at the Whitewater Tavern.

Also Nath, I did not see your dog in that photo. Just Ophelia. I am confused.

I put a link but here she is:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/57/228159685_b25b93eefb_m.jpg

:-)

Aww, very cute! The pair of them!

I would like a office fridge for wine & Beer (a la Gr8080), humidor for smokes (at this point cancer will have been cured so I can smoke again) and a bbq out the back.

holy crap, my job has these things (bbq is in front, at the covered picnic table on the patio) plus a couple of visiting dogs, but all well-behaved and non-intrusive.

A swearing parrot I have at home (well, angry muttering at least). monkey butler is seriously missing, though. Wait, interns!

Interviewed at a small office today with company founder and secretary. Office had cat sleepspace on table w/ toys.

Run away kingfish!

I would love to try this much discussed Chili verde but the sniffing, my PA is correct, that sort of thing won't be tolerated at casa/chateau kv-lol.

Patita, I want to work there. Can I visit and bring my entourage?

My mom's dog still 'works' at her office. Additionally he barks like mad whenever someone wearing a baseball cap enters the shop.

Lucy hates all men, so if their odor' is strong enough she'll go berserk. She would never ever bite, nor could as she's behind the counter. Esp men in uniform piss her off. Very VERY funny.