Just got back from Paris, loved it! I found the Parisians delightful except for one thing, their dogs. They love their dogs but it seems they don%26#39;t want anyone else to. Everytime I stretched out my hand or asked permission to pet their beautiful dog, they gave me a dirty look. One night a couple of young teenagers were standing on the street begging for money and they had an adorable puppy on display next to them. I smiled at them and reached my hand to pat the puppy%26#39;s head ( I was then going to give them some money) when the girl scolded me saying %26quot;no, he%26#39;s just a puppy%26quot;. I was perplexed. In all truth, European dogs seems to be a different breed that don%26#39;t want to be pet anyway. I found this all very unusual.
|||
I love dogs and i always stretch my hand to stroke dogs on the street, i love big dogs so i ask first the owner and they always say Yes you can. So i never saw anyone refusing!
|||
My experience has been the complete opposite. I was once in a taxi and the driver had a big (really BIG)German Shepherd in the front seat and he did not have any problems when we asked if we could pet his dog.
|||
Yes, definitely ask the owner if it ok before touching their dog. Last summer I saw an adorable english boxer at the Vanves flea market. I asked his owner for permission first, to which she replied...oui bien sur,il adore les caresses!!!. Yes, of course, he loves to be touched. Needless to say, within a minute he was on his back and drooling all over me. I always make sure that I show respect to their owners, and I have never encountered any problems.
|||
I%26#39;ve never had a problem with petting dogs in Paris. Two incidents in particular stick out. There is a wonderful pug dog in one of the stands of the Marche Cambio in the puces de St-Ouen. When I sat down to right a check, he immediately jumped into my lap to snuggle and wouldn%26#39;t move. He%26#39;s terribly ugly, but what a great personality! And second, there was %26quot;Robin%26quot; the beagle puppy at our favorite bar. Robin belonged to an exceptionally cute owner and was obviously being trained to work the crowd! He was begging peanuts from everybody and everyone was happy to oblige!
|||
Oh, the dogs......I loved them!! Wanted to hug them all! Loved seeing them in cafes. Wish they%26#39;d allow it in the U.S.
I never petted any, but we did take photos, after asking the owners first. One lady in Montmartre %26quot;posed%26quot; her beautiful Great Dane. She wasn%26#39;t satisfied with the first time and asked if we%26#39;d shoot him again!
|||
Always see lots of dogs (and their presents) in Paris but very few poodles.Maybe the owners are worried about dog bites and liability.
|||
French people can be quite reserved with strangers - perhaps it%26#39;s considered a breach of some kind to touch their pets (if so, asking first doesn%26#39;t really help). Maybe the dog is cute but snappish...
|||
I agree with Travelnutty, It could be that it feels like your invading their privacy. Personal space has to be defined for some people in different ways.
|||
All I know is one of my best New York ccty moments was when a guy saw me sitting outside the sullivan street bakery and asked me to watch his beautiful st. bernard while he went in. The dog was a sweet giant who made me obsessed with st. bernard%26#39;s thereafter. six months later we got stella our St Bernard puppy and I have since been thanking (and cursing because she%26#39;s HUGE now) that guy who trusted me with his dog for a few minutes. I always love to meet new animals in different cities. I imagine that the have different accents depending on the city..
I%26#39;ll be sad if I can%26#39;t meet any parisienne dogs. (cats will be easy)
|||
Oiseau....loved your St. Bernard story. That%26#39;s funny - my hubby and I always laughed, wondering if French dogs bark with an accent! (: Actually, they sound just like the ones in our neighborhood - ha ha)
Was disappointed not to see many cats (we have two and missed them so much while in Paris). Spotted a couple in cafes (appeared to be the %26quot;house%26quot; cat), but only ONE at Pere Lachaise where they%26#39;re supposed to be all over the place.
Our very first day, as soon as we walked into our hotel room, I looked across the street and laughed out loud. A beautiful black-and-white cat was perched on the windowsill of an OPEN window (no screen) and sunning himself....EIGHT storeys off the ground! Took pics, of course. Looked for him/her every day after that but never saw him again.
No comments:
Post a Comment