I think how people accept pets inside stores is more geographical. I live in Illinois and hardly ever see people inside stores with dogs. But when I was in Florida there were people inside the mall with their dogs in strollers. My aunt lives in Malibu, CA and she takes hers all the time without even a blink of an eye. I have never seen anyone just walking along inside a store other than Petsmart/Petco with a dog on a leash. I take Bogey with me all the time but always inside his sling carrier and he is always a very good boy. I've even had entire conversations with employees and they didn't even know he was about a foot away from them because he is so good. I have taken him into Sallys, Joann Fabrics, Famous Footwear, Loehmans, Ulta, Target, Michaels plus pet stores and doggie boutique that I buy their food from. I have never attempted to take him into the mall though. Now Doodlebug will bark at people so he is not allowed to go into any stores except doggie store.
Pebbles is too heavy to carry but I know she would be very good if I took her into people stores. If she liked the sling carrier I would take her but she is 11 lbs!
As for the lady that told you that people are allergic, I think I would have sneezed and said something smart about being allergic to HER!
