Well, thanks for all of your answers. Sounds like most folks take their dogs out because the dogs enjoy it and you like their company. Fair enough. Enjoyed hearing the answers. You could probably detect in my original post that I'm not a big dog fan but hey, that's me. My kid had a bad encounter with a dog with someone who insisted that their dog was "not bothering anyone" and since then I've been not entirely as trusting. Hope everyone has a happy holiday with their pooch.