Sandy Robins
MSNBC contributor

Every evening Justin Rudd dines with his two English Bulldogs named Rosie and Riley at one of the many pet-friendly restaurants on Second Street in Belmont Shore, Long Beach, Calif. He is not alone. The outdoor areas along the sidewalks are filled with other doggie diners. Not to mention the after dinner strollers out window shopping and stopping off at the local pet bakery to pick up a treat for their dog before heading over to Starbucks to meet up with friends for a latté.

“If you’re going to take your dogs with you to restaurants and coffee shops, you have to be mindful of others at all times, says Rudd. “If a restaurant is crowded on a particular night, we’ll go somewhere else. And it’s important that your dog is very well socialized around both people and other pets. I never let them beg at the table or feed them off my plate.”

“And in all the years I’ve been doing it, no-one has ever complained, says Rudd. “ In fact, just the opposite; I take them in a red flyer wagon so that no matter whether they are allowed to sit next to us or on the other side of the railings we are on eye level and at least once a night someone still stop and take their photograph. They are particularly popular with tourists from other cities around the country that are not quite on the same canine wave-length yet. Others just stop to chat because they want to know more about Bulldogs as a breed.”