But then somebody complained to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation's Division of Hotels and Restaurants, which conducts regular unannounced inspections of restaurants for potential violations of health and safety regulations.

"Somebody complained to (the state) instead of to us," Sandra Cann said in a recent interview. "We didn't know we were breaking the law by allowing dogs on the patio."

A division inspector informed the Canns last month that dogs and other pets are not allowed in restaurants, indoors or outdoors. They no longer allow pets on their outdoor deck, and have put up signs to reinforce the ban at their restaurant at 2997 W. State Road 44.

They said abiding by the law has cost them.

"We did lose customers who couldn't bring their dogs anymore," Sandra Cann said.

"We lost a lot of customers," Roger Cann added. "We haven't seen them since."

Geoff Luebkemann, director of DBPR's Division of Hotels and Restaurants, said the ban on animals is contained in the state's food safety standards, which are based largely on a U.S. Food and Drug Administration "model food code" that has been adopted by Florida and many other states.

The standards are part of the Florida Administrative Code, not state statutes, and prohibit animals of any kind -- except for service animals, patrol dogs, animals on display in an aquarium, and live animals kept as foods, such as lobsters and mussels -- from being on the premises of a food establishment, Luebkemann said.

"The operative word is 'premises' for a licensed establishment," he said.

Luebkemann said despite common images of celebrities carrying their dogs wherever they go, his inspectors will cite restaurant owners if they see animals in outdoor dining areas. If the violation is not seen, inspectors will "take the opportunity to inform them of the law."

"The food code doesn't distinguish between a tea-cup Chihuahua and mutts on the street," he said.

The ban was drawn up because of health concerns, Luebkemann said.

"It's part of the science of controlling possible contamination in food-serving areas," he said. "Animals shed fur (or) often have feces in their fur. Servers touch the animals and then serve food."

Luebkemann said as with all violations, offenders can face fines of up to $1,000 per incident.

Pet owners could get a break if state Rep. Sheri McInvale has her way.

McInvale, D-Orlando, is filing a pair of bills that would allow municipalities around the state -- or at least those in Orange County -- to enact variances to the state's food code. Restaurant owners would decide whether to seek permission to allow pets to join their owners in outdoor areas.

"It would be up to the local government to decide how to implement the variances," McInvale said in a telephone interview from Tallahassee earlier this week. "We're proposing it as a three-year pilot program to see how well it works."

McInvale said only a relative handful of restaurants might qualify for the variances.

"It really is a niche," she said. "When you have a choice of eating inside or outside, you assume the risks of having birds, squirrels or feral cats around."

If McInvale is successful, Roger Cann at The Wharf would be pleased.

"That would be good . . . as long as a dog was kept on a leash and not be a nuisance," he said.

Kelli Mayo, manager of Dublin Station, 105 W. Indiana Ave., also would favor the change.

"We have a lot of people who would want to (bring their dogs), especially during the dog parade every year (in February)," Mayo said. "I don't see anything wrong with having a dog outside."

Not every restaurateur agrees. Tim Curtis, owner of Houligan's Irish Sports Pub, 1110 W. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach, said he wouldn't support changing the law, having experienced dog-bearing patrons in the past.

"Dogs shake and drool, and their hair goes everywhere," Curtis said by phone earlier this week. "It's not fair to others sitting around them."

The Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association supports the food safety standards, however they're written, said spokeswoman Lea Crusberg.

"If changes are made (to allow pets), we would work with them," Crusberg said. "But the food code is the principal thing that determines how our members operate."