A reader writes:

We’re a dog-friendly workplace, and employees can bring in their dogs even if they’re not service animals. The rules are simple, of course. They can’t be aggressive, bite, or bark excessively. One coworker has just such a dog. He’s small, but barks at any dog that passes by. I’ve been told he’s nipped at people before, and he growls at us all when he’s brought into conference rooms for meetings. Our previous HR rep told her that he’s no longer allowed in the office.

Cue where I come in. She knows I have an emotional support animal (a cat, who stays at home), and knows I know the laws. So she asked me how she can get her dog registered as a service animal (which of course, are two different things). Apparently, HR said that he’s only allowed in if he’s a service dog, and if it’s made clear that no one is allowed to pet him.

Said HR rep no longer works here. All of a sudden, this coworker has started bringing her dog back in. I do not know who she spoke to, or what she has said to anyone to set this up. If she does have legitimate need, I empathize and understand. We’ve had a severe safety issue lately, so I understand if there is need. Based on the way she asked me about how to register him as a service animal though, I am skeptical.

Now that he’s back, he still barks at everyone. He just tried to attack another coworker’s dog earlier, who is gentle but still larger than him. People have stopped bringing their dogs because of him. He growls in meetings and even growled at our CEO when he finally came to meet us all today. The rule set by the previous HR rep about not letting him around other animals and demanding no one touch him has gone out the window. She lets people pet him, does not rein him in while we’re in meetings, and lets him pull the leash under the desk to nudge legs. She even let him off the leash this weekend for a good hour to wander freely.

I know the service dog laws. I know that a service dog is not legally protected under these laws if it’s aggressive and badly trained. I want to tell her this, but do not want to cause issues or drama. I’m extremely angry that she’s asked me as a disabled person how to cheat the system because she misses her volatile dog while she’s at work. Should I let my manager know that service dog laws do not protect aggressive dogs, or should I leave it alone and just recommend others complain in hopes that we can get something to change?

We have two centers. HQ in one city, and our building in another. When our HR moved on after finishing hiring, it was decided no one would take her place. We still have HR in the main city, and our site still has OPS and managers.

Yeah, that’s not okay. Dog-friendly offices work as long as there are clear rules that everyone follows, which usually means that any individual dog won’t be welcome back if she’s not well-behaved — and usually that means after one or two instances of aggression, not months of it. (And as long as there aren’t allergies in play, significant dog fears, or other problems — people’s ability to get their work done without being distracted, threatened, or unable to breathe trumps the desirability of having dogs around.)

So yes, talk to someone. Depending on how your office works, that could be your manager, her manager, whoever is overseeing this kind of thing in your office now that the HR person is gone, or the HR people at your headquarters. If you’re not sure who to select, go to whichever of those people you know to be willing to address problems and have uncomfortable conversations. If that’s none of them, then go to whichever of them is the most sensible.

Say this: “Jane’s dog is aggressive, barks and growls frequently, and tried to attack another dog. Jane doesn’t rein him in and even lets him wander freely off his leash. HR had previously told her that she could only bring him in if he’s a service dog, but since our HR person left, she’s started bringing him in again.” That alone might be enough to get it dealt with, but if it seems like it would helpful you could also add, “Jane also asked me how to register him as a service animal, so I want to point out that service dog laws would not require us to allow an aggressive dog in the office.”

If you’re dealing with reasonable people, that should prompt someone to take a closer look at the situation and deal with it. If it doesn’t, you might need to go to someone else on that list — but unless you’re in a really dysfunctional office (and not just any kind of dysfunctional, but dysfunctional in a very specific “speak no evil of dogs” way), that’s likely to take care of it.

Meanwhile, though, there’s no reason you can’t say something directly to Jane too. At a minimum you could address individual problems as they happen — for example, when her dog is growling in a meeting, you could say, “Hey, that’s pretty distracting — can you take her out of here?” But you could also say something more broadly like, “I’ve noticed Cinnamon has been pretty aggressive toward people and other dogs. I know HR had mentioned she shouldn’t come in — have you talked to someone who’s okayed it?” But if your coworker is known to be petty and vindictive or just generally jerky, it may make sense to skip her and just deal with someone above her head.