Those of you who are running a legal home cake business. What are the rules regarding pets in the home? Do they allow you to have dogs, cats, etc.? Thanks!

no pets allowed.

This varies from state to state, but let me ask you this, would you eat at a restaurant that had a pet free roaming?

Would NOT!!!

I'm no expert and it varies by state but I thought I read that if you have a separate kitchen that the pet has no access to and the kitchen has its own private entrance it might be possible. You'd have to check in your area. Good luck!

The health inspector here told me that they can't tell people not to have pets, but they can sure test your product multiple times until they make sure they approve it. He said one woman in Virginia Beach had to have her candy tested three times before there wasn't any dog hair in it. They've never asked me for any samples to test for hair, but I don't have pets wandering through the kitchen, either.

My favorite thing is when I see photos of people's cakes and in the background they have a dog sitting there licking himself. That's very appetizing.

I am not licensed, but i do know that in KY if you have a pet it can not have access to the kitchen in a home bakery.

Even though I am not licensed, When I have a cake order, the dog goes to Grandma's house, my kitchen is cleaned thoroughly, and then I bake. I would not want dog hair in my food, and I sure as heck am not going to serve it to someone else.

mindful that i only do wedding cakes, so it is not like i do cakes everyday. if i did. the dog would live at grandma's (she lives next door) and she's always happy to have her.

I have a licensed home kitchen and a dog (I guess my avatar kind of gives that away ). As long as my dog has no access to the kitchen when I am baking then all is ok as far as the health dept is concerned. Of course my kitchen is throughly cleaned before I bake for clients. I do not meet potential clients in my home so they never see the beast.

The rules vary from state to state. Check with your local HD or Dept. of Agriculture.

we're allowed here in Ohio (at least in my county anyhow) but I don't allow the pets into the kitchen. There is no reason for them to come in there anyhow....we have a lower level office/family room w/ a bathroom (for water to fill their bowls) so I just feed them down there....they have free roam of any other room but kitchen/dining room/cake storage room (off din. room) there is just no reason to chance a dog hair.

On a side note........I am so much waaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyy more disgusted at finding a human hair in my cake than a dog hair, regardless of who's hair it is!! lol

I have a legal home business, except that it is a separate, commercial kitchen. I do have a cat, but he is not allowed in the kitchen at all.

quote]

This is a ridiculous response to me, cause I'm not talking about people you know. I am talking about from the perspective of a potential future client. If you think people don't consider that, good luck to you in your business. And to answer your question, no I don't buy things from a bake sale, ever. But I guess you would eat at a restaurant with a pet there.[/quote]

And your response was just as ridiculous. Why would you even ask that question? One has nothing to do with the other. As I stated before NO I would never eat at a restaurant that had a pet running around. And by asking that you imply that just beause there is a pet that the cake would be somehow tainted. I just thought it was a ridiculous comparison.

In my state it is not legal to operate a business out of your home. They are working on those laws right now. Should they choose to pass it, if they will permit us to do it with a pet in the home (obviously with strict rules as other states have) I will do what I can to get licensed. Perhaps not to start a huge business but moreso for the fact that it would be nice to be able to at least break even on all of the cakes I do. I would be able to do cakes for many friends and family and at least get what I spend and maybe a little extra. Just beause I have a dog doesnt mean my cakes are full of dog hair. The Op posted a simple question and I just felt that your remark was no help to the post. This is why I hardly ever ask questions on this site.

When then make sure to stick to your policies.

Our rules are no pets in the house (hunting or outdoor dogs are fine) and actually no children in the kitchen during "work time". (No problem haha I gate off my kitchen and say "The government says you aren't allowed" LOL!)

My only problem is that I shed so bad...I even lint roller myself after I fix my hair and sometimes AGAIN when I enter the kitchen and I still occasionally find my hair in inopportune places. *sigh*

Several people have said that they don't allow their dog in the kitchen when they are baking. If your dog goes into the kitchen when you're not baking there is still the possibilty of dog hair. My friend has a dog in her home and everytime I visit her (whether the dog is in the house or not) I always have dog hair on my clothes when I leave. She is a very clean person but dogs shed. In my opinion if you bake at home your dog should NEVER be in the area where you bake whether you are baking or not.

I visited my friend the other day and when I got home I noticed I had dog hair all over my pants. If your dog isn't allowed in the kitchen but is in another area of the house and you go into that area then back into the kitchen do you not carry dog hair back in with you on your clothes? Just asking.

Yes. And you make an excellent point. Be as clean as you want, some things are hard to avoid.

I am not saying that there is no dog hair in my house. That would be simply impossible unless I chose to shave my dog, which I assure you she wouldnt be thrilled with at all. BUT that being said I am extra precautions when I bake cakes. IF, and I mean a big IF, they pass the law to permit us to get legal at home AND if they permit you to get liscensed if you have a pet (which both are extremely unlikely) there is no doubt that my dog will not be allowed anywhere near my work area or kitchen. Even now when I do cakes the kitchen and work area are scrubbed down and vaccumed and she isnt within 100 feet of the area and that is for when I do cakes for friends.

Well Sneezie I hope you have found all the advice very helpful, from both those with legal home businesses and those with just an opinion.

I don't usually comment on posts like this as they are often heated. That being said, I have a Rottweiler who lived inside with us for 5 years.

Three years ago I had my youngest son and we encountered may probs with my dog, so we sequestered him to the tiled entryway/dining room only. He was not allowed in any other part of the house and was gated into his area.

Every time I would go to clean the bathroom, which was on the otherside of the house, I would constantly find little black hairs from my dog on everything.

Between his behavior and the hair, we had had enough and biult him a house in the back yard and he has stayed there since. Yet I was still clean dog hair up from everywhere. I kept telling my husband that I think the hair was in the vents and when the heat or ac turned on it would blow it through out the house. He thought I was nuts.

After a year of this I was so fed up that I finally got our air ducts clean and sure enough, I have not seen a hair since! I will never have an indoor pet that sheds agian!

Speaking of hair, I can hardly stand working with white fondant or gumpaste because it doesn't matter how much I wipe down my mat or my rolling pin I still end up finding fibers from clothing or towels or whatever in that bright white fondant. Its terrible!

I don't have a pet and it's illegal in NC to have pets in a licensed home bakery. I don't sell cakes, never want to, but for me I'd rather eat something made in a home with a pet than a home with with lots of kids. I've never caught the flu or a cold or lice or pink eye or chicken pox or measles or mono or anything for that matter from a pet but have (not the lice) caught just about everything else from kids. Kids tend to put their hands and mouth on lots of things. I have a lowered immunue system and always cringe if I am around a kid (or adult) that even has the sniffles (kids get sick more) but a pet, or even pet hair has never made me sick. When I get a grocery cart I sanitize the heck out of it, not just the handle but all the rails where kids put their hands/mouth etc.

I actually like kids but I don't like eating where kids have had access to the food making process.

As far as eating where a pet roamed it's been done in other countries/cultures for years. Taking your own pet to a restaurant isn't uncommon. It's just how it is.

We have different views.

I've been involved in this debate before- not intended, but it popped up, and I did have a little dog. He was a little Shit-zu, and he wasn't allowed in the bakery, but we all know that dog hair travels everywhere. It wasn't the best situation, and although I never noticed dog hair in my bakery, I'm sure it was there.
The problem was tragically solved a couple of weeks ago when truck hit him in our road (he had wandered across the street which he almost never does.) I was about 4 feet from him when it happened, so it was pretty traumatic.
So, dog hair problem solved, but I think I'd rather have my little Gideon back.
Has nothing really to do with the business at hand, but just wanted to share.
We'll have no more dogs though- bad for customer service and simply not hygenic. But I do agree, kids are just as bad if not worse, but at least they don't shed like pets do!