Beat the Heat: Indoor spaces to walk your dog

Dog on leash sits next to his human. He looks up at his human while they are in a store together. — Local Good Boy Camper

The summer can be miserable for our pups and us. Getting your dog out for a walk can feel like torture for you both.

If the heat has you stuck inside with your dog and you’re both going stir-crazy, you’re in luck.

There are some air-conditioned stores that are dog friendly. Taking your dog out for a stroll in a store not only provides some much needed movement for you both, but gives your dog some enrichment by being in a new space or socializing with other people.

But not all pet friendly stores are made equal. Here we’re going to give you quick reference charts for things to keep in mind before deciding on a location to take your dog.

While every place is going to be unique, these are some general rules of thumb when it comes to figuring out what to expect of certain stores. We recommend using these charts as a guideline. If you have concerns, visit these places without your dog first to get a good lay of the land.

As always, make sure to be a good steward and practice responsible handling. Taking pets to these locations is a privilege and being good guests is important.

Be mindful of these tips so everyone can keep bringing their pets to these stores:

Not everyone is a dog person. Do not allow your dog to approach strangers if they are uncomfortable.
Give your dog a potty break before entering the store and make sure to take breaks throughout your visit as needed. Dogs who are not fully potty trained should wait to go to most of these locations or be heavily managed to prevent accidents.
If your dog does have an accident, do not hide it. If needed, ask a staff member where you can find supplies to take care of the mess.
Bring your own clean up bags/supplies and find non-landscaped areas to let your dog do their business.
Dogs who are posing issues to patrons or the staff of the store may be asked to leave. These include but are not limited to behaviors such as excessive barking, growling, or breakage of merchandise.
Always do your due diligence and check pet friendliness of a location before arriving with your dog. While some store chains are known for being dog-friendly, many chains will let local branches decide if allowing pets is right for their store.

Common stores that are dog friendly include hardware stores, pet stores, bookstores, home supply stores, clothing and accessory stores, craft stores, and outdoor/sporting goods stores.

But before you go leashing up your dog and heading out the door, there are some things you should consider before picking a place to walk (and shop).

Check out our charts below to pick the right place for you and your dog to walk this summer. (And take a look at the end of this article for a quick list of common stores that are pet friendly!)

Distractions

When we are looking at the distraction level of a space, it’s helpful to break it down into different components. Some dogs struggle with different types of distractions and not others.

Here we have three distractions that are commonly difficult for most dogs: People, animal, and food.

People distractions refers to not only the amount of people in a space but also how likely these people are to want to distract your dog. For example, pet stores are full of animal lovers. While animal lovers can be very understanding, their interest in visiting dogs can be a heavy distraction when trying to handle your dog.

Animal distractions refers to the frequency in which you may run into another animal at this location.

Food distractions refers to the prevalence of animal and human food you may encounter on your visit.

Place	People distractions	Animal distractions	Food Distractions
Hardware stores	*Time dependent*	Low to Medium	Low
Pet stores	High	High	High
Bookstores	Low to Medium	Low	Low
Home Supply stores	*Time dependent*	Low	Low to Medium
Clothing / accessory stores	*Time dependent*	Low	Low
Craft stores	*Time dependent*	Low	Low to Medium
Outdoor / Sporting Goods stores	High	Low to Medium	Low

Distraction Definitions:

Low: Almost non-existent or easily avoided

Medium: A more frequent occurrence, usually hard to avoid

High: Definitely present and typically not easy to avoid

Smells and Strange Objects

When taking your dog out, it’s important to know if your dog may encounter strange things they haven’t seen before. While many objects are normal to us, our canine pals can find them very strange and startling.

Objects like shopping carts, pushcarts, flat carts, forklifts, statues, and taxidermy can be very off-putting to dogs. Be mindful of what your dog may be sensitive to, and come prepared with yummy treats to make positive associations if necessary.

Strange objects refers to anything dogs may encounter in these spaces that are not typically seen on outdoor neighborhood walks or is not commonly present in the home.

Smell enrichment refers to the diversity of smells available in the space. Having different materials for a dog to smell and a variety of objects can be fun for them on these outings. Letting your dog smell in these spaces can be fun for them, especially if you’re attempting to replace your regular sniffy-walks.

Place	Strange objects	Smell enrichment
Hardware stores	High	High
Pet stores	Low	High
Bookstores	Low	Medium
Home Supply stores	Medium	High
Clothing / accessory stores	Low to Medium	Medium
Craft stores	Low	Medium to High
Outdoor / Sporting Goods stores	Medium to High	High

Strange objects: Low, Medium, and High refer to the diversity and/or intensity of strange objects in a space.

Smell enrichment: Low, Medium, and High refer to the diversity of objects for smelling or the likelihood that materials can pick up and hold onto multiple smells.

a big dog with a branch in its mouth runs in a field with a little puppy

Space Breakdown

Knowing the type of space you’re walking into means you can plan accordingly for handling your dog.

Factors to consider for space are: Floor type, Aisle Space, and Breakables.

Floor type refers to the type of flooring typically seen in these spaces. Spaces can either have hard or carpeted flooring. Having hard floors makes cleaning up potential messes easier if they do happen. Carpet can be more comfortable for some dogs to walk on. Each have their benefits.

Aisle space refers to the width of aisles and walkways. Some dogs do better with more spacious aisles and walkways to move in. Knowing a space is tighter means having a heel or teaching your dog to follow behind you could be necessary in the space.

Breakables refers to items that are that are fragile and easily broken by dogs interacting with them. Having a bulldozer dog in a space filled with ceramics and glass would be asking for trouble. Or if your dog has a powerful tail that is known for clearing coffee tables, you’ll want to remain aware of the surroundings near their back-end.

Place	Floor Type	Aisle Space	Breakables
Hardware stores	Hard	Small stores: Tight Big stores: Wide	Low
Pet stores	Hard	*Mixture*	Low
Bookstores	Mixture	Mixture: *mostly Tight*	Low
Home Supply stores	Hard	*Tight*	High
Clothing / accessory stores	*Mixture*	*Tight*	Low
Craft stores	Hard	*Tight*	Medium to High
Outdoor / Sporting Goods stores	*Mixture*	*Mixture*	Low

Floor type: Hard refers to hard floors. Mixture refers to a space having hard and carpeted floors.

Aisle space: Tight, wide, or mixture refer to how wide aisles are when navigating a handler and dog.

Breakables: Low, medium, and high refers to how many fragile items are in the space relative to the size of the space.

Now that we have gone over the basic factors to keep in mind when choosing a place to take your dog, here is a list of common places that are dog friendly. Be sure to give your local stores a call before taking your dog. Some locations may not be as dog friendly as others.

Hardware stores
- Check out:
  - Home Depot
  - Lowe’s
  - Harbor Freight Tools
  - Ace Hardware
  - Re-store by Habitat for Humanity
Pet stores
- Check out:
  - Hollywood feed
  - Pet Supplies Plus
  - A1 Pet Emporium
  - Pawtopia
Bookstores
- Check out:
  - Barnes and Noble
  - Half-price Books
Home supply stores
- Check out:
  - Home Goods

Clothing/accessory stores
- Check out:
  - Old Navy
  - T. J. Maxx
  - Ross
  - Warby Parker
Craft stores
- Check out:
  - Jo-Ann Fabrics
  - Michael’s
Outdoor/sporting goods stores
- Check out:
  - Bass Pro Shop
  - Cabela’s
  - Academy Sports
  - Tractor Supply