Friday 26 April 2013

Dogs in Pubs

The latest issue of CAMRA's magazine Beer has an article called Rover's Return, about pubs that welcome dogs.
The nearest they got to Hay was North Wales, and the Groes Inn near Conway, where the owners' two rescue dogs come into the bar.

Hay has always been dog friendly. When my dog Islay was a pup, she once got drunk on a saucerful of Guinness in the Blue Boar, and had to be carried home! She was banned from there once, too, for running round the customers' ankles with the landlord's two terriers. Unusually for Johnny, though, he later un-banned her. He stopped me outside the pub once, to tell me how well he thought Islay had been trained - I think it's one of the best compliments I've ever had! She liked to lie by his open fires (and she never got any more Guinness!)
The Rose and Crown has also always welcomed dogs. One lady I know used to take her standard poodle in there (when he got older, she would wear a badge saying "I am the guide for the blind dog"). They also have an open fire that the dogs loved.
At Kilverts, the bar is named after Freddie the Fox, their own little ginger dog (this is the little dog that once pee'd up my long skirt when he was out for a walk - which was too funny for me to be able to tell him off!). Even when Islay was so decrepit she could barely walk, she was still canny enough to be able to steal his cushion by the fire - and he would sit and watch her chew his bones. There's usually at least one local dog or another in there.
The Three Tuns is very much a food establishment now, and they don't welcome dogs indoors, but there is the back yard with big square umbrellas over the tables where people with dogs can sit. I remember one (quite big) dog, belonging to a friend, trying to climb right onto the table one evening.
The Black Lion is another food oriented pub - and I don't remember ever seeing any dogs in there, but I haven't been for several years, apart from the occasional Christmas dinner.

4 comments:

Arthur's Dad said...

All pubs should allow dogs in – but not children. Dogs are on the whole far better behaved.

Anonymous said...

And the Globe also likes dogs - at least, during the day. I've never thought of taking our lurcher there in the evenings.

Eigon said...

Thanks for reminding me - I forgot about the Globe!

Unknown said...

Wouldn't it be nice to find a pub that banned children, especially over festival! Having been the other side of the bar, I completely agree with Arthur's Dad!