Barnes and Noble is has been around for years! Many cities are also becoming more and more dog-friendly.
Which got me wondering, does Barnes and Noble allow dogs?! We looked into it and this is what we found…
Does Barnes & Noble Allow Dogs?
Barnes and Noble allows service animals but doesn’t allow pets in general. Like all retail stores of any size, Barnes & Noble has an “animals in the store” policy which all B&N stores must follow and which is published on the B&N website. The policy for Barnes & Noble states that all Service Animals are allowed into their stores.
This article takes a look at the Barnes & Noble “animals in store” policy: what it is, what it means, and what it means for you.

What Does Barnes & Noble’s Instore Animal Policy Mean?
Instore animal policies nearly always divide animals into those that are pets and those that are “in service”. An animal in service is one that has been specially trained to perform tasks to assist people living with disabilities. A non-service animal is a companion animal and/or a pet.
Barnes & Noble’s policy to allow service dogs instore is in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
People who live with disabilities can have service dogs. The person may have one or multiple disabilities, and the disabilities may not be visible. For example, PTSD dogs are a type of service dog that specializes in handling a person who has suffered significant trauma.
Barnes & Noble’s instore animal policy is an acknowledgement that service dogs are both necessary and valuable. The policy also recognizes that people with a service dog would not be able to enter the store or access store goods and services without it.
A “non-service” dog is any dog not trained to work for or assist a person with a disability, in other words, pets or companion dogs.
The Barnes & Noble policy states that permission to bring non-service dogs into a store depends on the local health codes for that town, county, or state.
In other words, you need to contact the store first. Unlike the person with a service dog, you can’t just turn up with your pet and assume you can take it into the store with you.
Why Can’t You Take Non-Service Dogs Into Barnes & Noble Stores?
Barnes & Noble (like all retail stores and business) are obliged to follow local and state health codes. This means that their decision to refuse store entry to dogs that are not service dogs is based on the health code of the area in which the store operates.
What this means in practice is that many (but not all) B&N stores will use their own discretion to allow well trained dogs into the store. However, they can also use this same discretion to ask you to remove the dog from the store if it is unruly or unsafe.
No Barnes & Noble store will allow you to take your dog (unless you have a service dog) into the coffee shop areas. This is because health codes prohibit it, and this ruling has nothing to do with Barnes & Noble.
What Do Service Animals Look Like?
Service dogs often wear clearly marked dog vests or harnesses. They may also have identification collars and/or tags. However, service dogs do not have to wear this kind of equipment.
The most authentic identification for a service dog is an ID card, which will be carried by the dog’s owner.
Service dogs are highly trained: they are consistently calm and not reactive. They are never threateningly, unruly, destructive or disobedient. They are trained to remain calm under any circumstances.
Sadly, it is becoming increasingly common for individuals to purchase service dog vests for their pet dogs and use these to gain access for their dog to nearly all public spaces. This means that recognizing a genuine service dog is not as straightforward as it used to be.
Want to learn more about Barnes and Noble? Check out our related posts:
- Does Barnes and Noble Take Apple Pay?
- Does Barnes and Noble Price Match?
- Why Is Barnes & Noble So Expensive?
Summary
Barnes & Noble will allow all service dogs into any of their retail stores across The United States. They do not, however, permit other dogs (non-service dogs) into all of their stores unless local health codes allow them to do so. Barnes & Noble will not allow any non-service dogs into the café areas of their retail stores because of these same health codes.
To find out if you can take your dog into your local Barnes & Noble store, call them first and find out for sure.