Introduction
The Kroger Company or famously known as Kroger is an American retail giant that operates multi-department stores in supermarkets across the United States of America. In this article, we will discuss “Does Kroger allow dogs inside while their owners are shopping?”.
Does Kroger Allow Dogs?
Unfortunately, as of 2022, Kroger does not allow dogs or any other pet inside its stores. However, in case the customer is accompanied by their service animal, Kroger will grant entry to the service animal. Customers should ensure that their dog is well trained and not a threat to any other customer that’s shopping in the store.
Kroger Pet Policy
Kroger is often considered a non-pet-friendly retail chain since it has to comply with severe regulations when it comes to serving its customers. As already mentioned above, customers are not allowed to bring dogs or any other animal for that matter, inside a Kroger store unless it is a comfort or service animal.
The reason that Kroger allows service animals inside its store is that it has to comply with the guidelines of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Americans with Disabilities Disorder act, passed by the American government. The only requirement that customers must follow is that their funny companion is well behaved, under control, and not cause a ruckus in the store.
Even though a lot of animals are allowed to be with their owners inside any other regular retail store, this is not the case with Kroger. Kroger is known for selling grocery items and thus, to abide by food safety regulations, Kroger asks its customers to not bring their pets inside its stores. This restriction, however, is not limited to Kroger only. This restriction is followed by every other establishment or company that has a DHEC-grade sticker on the door.
Service Animals Inside Kroger Stores
A Kroger store’s management will only allow customers to bring in their dogs if they are service animals (as described by the Americans Disabilities Act). In the majority of cases, the store management will ask the customer whether their dog is a service animal. Furthermore, they will also observe how well-behaved and well-trained the dog is. In some cases, they will also observe what tasks the dog is performing, and are those tasks related to the disability of its owner.
Thus, in case the dog shows any signs of aggression, lack of training, or poses an immediate danger to any other customers in the store, the dog’s owner will be asked to leave the dog outside until they have completed their shopping.
Conclusion
To ensure that they are abiding by the food safety guidelines, Kroger does not allow dogs inside its stores. In the case customer is accompanied by their service animal, Kroger will allow them to bring in their furry friend inside the store.
Service animals are allowed inside Kroger stores because Kroger understands how service animals assist their owners with their disabilities/mental needs. Customers must ensure that their dogs (if allowed inside a Kroger store) should be on their best behavior, stay under control, and pose no danger to other customers that are shopping inside the store.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Question1) Why are only Service dogs allowed inside a Kroger store?
Answer) Kroger only allows service dogs (who have been trained to assist individuals with a disability) into its stores because Kroger understands how important the presence of a service animal is for its owner.
Service dogs are specially trained to assist their owners in emergencies. They are also trained to behave a certain way, and thus it is typically easy for stores/organizations to differentiate between a regular pet dog and a service pet dog. Below, we have mentioned different roles that dogs play as service animals
-Police dogs
-Patriot service dogs
-Looking after Autistic patients
-Assisting blind individuals
-Assisting individuals suffering from PTSD
-Working as seizure alert dogs
Service dogs are also well-trained to assist their owners with day-to-day tasks, including assisting them with emotional health issues.
Question2) Are all Service dogs allowed inside Kroger Stores?
Answer) As already mentioned in the article above, all service dogs are allowed inside Kroger stores since the Kroger company abides by the Americans with Disability Act, passed by the American government.
However, customers should remember that in case their dogs behave recklessly inside a Kroger store, the store management will have to ask the customer to keep their dogs outside the store while they finish their shopping.
Question3) What rules do customers need to follow to bring their service dogs inside a Kroger store?
Answer) To bring their furry friends inside a store with them, customers must ensure that their dogs will not run around the store freely, threaten other customers inside the store, or cause any property damage. Owners are expected to train their dogs on how to behave in public places and be well-behaved.
Thus, customers must ensure that their service dogs are at their best behavior inside a Kroger (or any other) store. Furthermore, customers should be careful that they do not take their dogs to a ‘dog-free’ area within the store. These areas usually include places
-Where food items are stored
– Where food is prepared
-Other areas that are off-limits to customers/pets (based on the store management’s discretion).
