Are Dogs Allowed in Home Depot?

Home Depot is the biggest retailer for home improvement in the United States of America and the rest of the world. Employing over 400,000 people with over 2,300 stores all across the United States and in Canada and Mexico and with a strong online presence, it isn’t surprising that they’ve been the largest home improvement retailer since 1989.

For the past few years the trend of DIY home improvement has been catching on and because of places like Home Depot, it’s more affordable than ever to fix or improve your home yourself. Why pay someone else when you can do it yourself right? Now, unless major changes are to be made, you’ll most likely find yourself here looking for new lamp covers, showerheads, a new countertop for your kitchen, or even a new furniture set.

Are dogs allowed in Home Depot? Well, it’s very common for dog owners to want to take their dogs out with them. It’s an easy excuse for them to get some exercise and to have fun too. And they might meet other dogs too and you guys might make new friends.

And for those of you who might be too busy to spend a lot of time with their dogs or take them out for walks, this can be a perfect opportunity to have some fun and spend some time with them. Sadly, a lot of stores aren’t pet friendly so it’s not unusual to ask the question, are dogs allowed in Home Depot?

Are Dogs Allowed in Home Depot?

Officially, home depot, like most other major retailers has a no pet policy. They allow service dogs but the rules state that only service dogs are allowed. However, the rule is rarely enforced across their stores with most of them allowing dogs in as long as they’re leashed and under control. You should also clean up after them. Their stores in Canada enforce the no pet policy but across the United States and Mexico, it depends on the staff and people in charge.

Should I Bring My Dogs with Me to Home Depot?

Before you take your dog to the home depot you should consider the people who are going to be shopping with you. A large number of people are allergic to dogs (15% in the United States) and there’s a high chance you’ll run into one of those people.

And you might be wondering, won’t I run into those people at the park? I still take my dogs to the park. Yes, but those places allow dogs and anyone going there is fully aware of that and if they have allergies, they’ll go prepared which might not be the case when they’re going to a store that’s not supposed to allow dogs. There’s also the chance that your dog will attack someone and that’s why Home Depot’s no pet policy is strictly enforced in Canada.

Also, not everyone likes dogs like you and some people are terribly afraid of them and can’t be in the same area with them. For the safety and comfort of other customers, I’d recommend going alone. You should also know that you will be required to pay for anything you dog damages within the store.

I Got Turned Away Because of My Dog at A Home Depot Store

The level of strictness when enforcing the no pet policy in non-Canadian Home Depot stores depends on the manager and the staff present. Some managers will prefer to stick strictly to store policy and a lot of staff members wouldn’t want to clean up after your dogs which a lot of dog owners refuse to do and just end up leaving a mess in their stores.

They might also not want to deal with your dogs at all. It’s not part of their job so their decisions should be respected. If your dogs were supposed to go to Home Depot with you then their corporate store policy would allow them and they’d hire people willing to work with dogs around.

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What About Home Depot Stores in Canada?

In 2011 in Ottawa, Canada, a dog attacked a worker when she tried to greet the owner and the dog at the entrance of the store. Her nose was partially bitten off and since then they banned all pets from their stores. Before the incident, they allowed leashed dogs that were under the control of their owners but now they don’t allow any animals in the stores. They still allow service dogs though because that is required by law.

Are Dog Attacks a Frequent Occurrence?

There have been a number of reported dog attacks in Home Depot stores in the United States and even stories about dogs escaping from their owners and running around freely which can really scare a lot of people. However, the stores in the United States and Mexico don’t enforce the no pet rule as strictly as Canada and it depends on the current manager and staff present. Even if they allow you in with your dog if your dog starts acting aggressively, you’ll be asked to leave.

Service Dogs

Service dogs are allowed and the only restriction is that they must be under the control of their owners. They are not recognized as pets and the establishments are legally required to give them access to any place that the general public has access to.

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Types of Service Dogs

These dogs are specially trained to provide assistance to anyone with a disability who requires their help. Some of them wear vests that contain medication and information about their owner’s medical history for first responders and they can be trained to call 911 on special phones if they’re alone in an emergency. The different types of service dogs are:

Guide Dogs: These are the most common and they help people with visual impairments move around safely.
Autism Service Dogs: These dogs are trained to assist people with autism and can help to prevent harmful behavior, navigate social settings and help monitor kids with autism and get the attention of their parents if they get into any danger and help find them if they run away.

Allergy Detection Dogs: These dogs help to keep their owners away from harmful allergens. Because of their superior sense of smell, they can detect allergens long before their owners and make sure they don’t come in contact with them.

Diabetic Alert Dogs: They help monitor changes in the blood sugar level of their owners and they can sense major changes and alert their owners so they can perform tests and get treated accordingly.

Mobility Assistance Dogs: They help people who are physically disabled to perform a variety of tasks like using light switches, bringing objects, opening doors and even providing balance or pulling wheelchairs. Dogs performing those last two or any similar tasks have to be large enough to support their owner’s weight.

Psychiatric Service Dogs: These serve as companions to people suffering from mental conditions. They go through extensive training and can tell when their owner is about to start experiencing any symptoms. These mental disorders include but are not limited to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

Seizure Alert Dogs: These dogs are trained to monitor people who suffer from seizures and to help them shorten the experience and help them recover and take medication when these seizures occur. If seizures occur in unsafe places, they will pull their owners to a safe place and try to help them or get help.

Hearing Dogs: These dogs help people hear and react to sounds. They can respond to their owner’s name, fire alarms, phone calls, doorbells, and all other everyday sounds. They’ll get their owner’s attention when they hear the sounds or take them to the proper place to respond.

If you’re going to a Home Depot store that isn’t pet friendly, you should know that emotional support dogs or therapy dogs aren’t serviced animals because they’re not trained specially to help with disabilities like service animals.

Conclusion

The behavior towards dogs is solely based on the person in charge and the staff so as long as their official store policy doesn’t allow you to bring in pets, they have every right to enforce it and can do so whenever they please without prior notice. It’s best to call your local home depot store to make sure you can bring in your pets before you go so you don’t run into any issues when you get to their store. You can also get the name of the person you spoke with so you’ll have someone to stand for you in case you’re sent back. I’d recommend going alone though.

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