Hello there you phony jerk.

If you have gotten into a profession in which you don't have to do any REAL work and supposedly "minister" to shut ins and other people in need, since you don't care about their four legged FAMILY MEMBERS, YOU are in the wrong game.

Get out of this racket and get a REAL job.

He's a minister, not a veterinarian. I don't think he was being unreasonable asking that people keep their pets under control just as they would their children.

Animals are shown to really aid those who are in distress or are suffering illness. That's why there are programs to bring dogs to hospitals for sick kids, or bring therapy dogs to nursing homes. So given that the people he's seeing have these issues, why does he begrudge them their furry companions. Of course, the video could be editted/exaggerated, etc...but I think the real issue is that he expects pets to be shut away when he shows up. A cat curling up next to you isn't bad pet behavior...but it probably seems that way to an animal hater.

I own two cats and a dog. If my cats were clawing someone, you'd bet I'd step in. But most of the stuff he cited was not what I define as "bad" behavior but rather pet behavior.

However, dogs sometimes drop toys next to or at the foot of a human because, hey, they want to play. They aren't going to distinguish from one human to the next. I personally like it when my Boston Terrier drops a ball at my feet for me to toss to her. Why would I train her not to do that since I'm the one with the pet 99% of the time and its, um, my home?

So given the choice between the minister and the pet, I'd tell the minister not to bother with house calls. I'll have to ask my good friend who is a hospital chaplain in Dallas to see what he thinks though.

The problem is not that he dislikes pets and wants them to be locked away when he visits, he doesn't like the pets clawing/tearing at his clothes, sitting on his lap, or licking his face, which is reasonable. It's just common courtesy to keep your pets under control when you have guests. I never had pets growing up, so this behavior also makes me uncomfortable, so I understand where he is coming from. (Later in my life I owned a dog, so I don't hate pets). Imagine if these were kids, running around the house, playing rough, throwing things around, you would get them under control when you have someone visit. Why is it different with pets?

I have 4 Shelties, and they can be kind of obnoxious to visitors (in an attention-demanding way). If the pastor was an invited guest, and I knew that he wasn't fond of animals, I would allow them to greet him, and then put them outside or in another room for the duration of the visit. However, if he just happened to drop in, I probably wouldn't put them away--especially if I wasn't particularly interested in having visitors...

While I agree that the Reverend's reaction is outsized and what he considers "poor behavior" occasionally shows he has no understanding of animals (I don't think a dog bringing you a toy is "bad behavior" in any sense), I have to agree with him in part.

Animals who shred clothing, etc. are really badly behaved.

I have two dogs. They are very friendly and high energy. THey do rush the door when they hear someone coming. I have worked to try to stop the jumping up on people as I know its bad manners, but friends and family who are friendly to dogs sabotage my efforts unwittingly (by petting and acknowledging them while they behaved badly). One is a shedder, but that is not her fault, any more than it's her fault she was born a dog. Why people include drool and hair in "bad behavior" I'll never know. The other is a "bouncer" and it does frighten some people to see 40+ lbs of dog bounding around as if on a pogo stick, even if she's bouncing in another room. They may be a little obnoxious to an outsider, but overall they are well behaved. Lots of training and testing of that training has been done.

I do my best to have them be scheduled for grooming or something when we have guests, but if someone takes umbrage to dogs it's mostly on them to let me know. I am unable to crate them (one escapes and reappears at my side, the other freaks out and injures herself) so if I cannot schedule some appointment for them, guests merely must deal.

Ultimately, it's that persons house and while they should be a good host...most consider pets family members so think of them like a nutso uncle. You may not like to visit him, but he's there. Deal with it.

I forgot about this thread for a few days, so its probably dead.

I agree entirely that a pet who claws is badly behaved. I have cats who do this for attention (when they aren't getting what they want) and a spray bottle of water does the trick.

But bringing a toy to a human? Shedding? That's what I took a little umbrage with.

He has points with the stuff that is legitimate bad behavior, but it sounds like it goes beyond the bad behavior.