I think at this point, we've all been there. There you are, patiently waiting in your doctor's waiting area, standing in line at the post office or worse even, grocery shopping. If these mundane tasks aren't painful enough, here they come. Someone walks in, or better yet sits right next to you, smelling of wet dog and cigarettes. They pull their yappy mixed-breed Chihuahua out of their oversized purse and place it on their already dog hair covered lap. The little creature starts sniffing around, jumps off their owners lap, maybe pees in the corner of the room, and starts barking at the shadow cast on the wall. The owner is screaming the animals name while it continues to scamper along without a worry in the world. During the commotion, the manager of whatever establishment you are at comes out and tells the owner, "You can't have pets here." The response? "It's not a pet. Its a service dog."
Now, I am not judging the person, per se. I have worked with some of the most questionable looking (and smelling) individuals in the world and have found them to be the sweetest and most thoughtful people I have ever met. I am not here to talk about them. I am talking about the people that misuse and abuse the "service" or "therapy" dog laws. We all know who you are, but, the laws that protect the good, honest people who utilize service animals, also keep anyone from questioning whether or not a dog is a true service animal.
According to the American's with Disabilities Act (ADA), A service animal means any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability (ADA, 2014). But, the part that some Americans seem to focus on and become well-versed in, is this part; "A public accommodation or facility is not allowed to ask for documentation or proof that the animal has been certified, trained, or licensed as a service animal. Local laws that prohibit specific breeds of dogs do not apply to service animals." (ADA, 2014). So, what we have educated the public on, is that you can go down to your local pet store, pick up a pooch, and head out into town running errands with your dog in tow, bring that dog into facilities that clearly mark you can't have pets and simply say, "He/she is a service dog" and the facility has to comply or there could be legal repercussions.
This is asinine and quite frankly a slap in the face to the people who legitimately need and utilize service dogs. Am I so off base that I think a person who has a service animal, having been trained in performing tasks/doing work for their disabled owner, should have to carry some kind of identification for these special animals and be able to present it when questioned? To drive a car, you need to have your license with you. To park in a reserved handicap parking place, you need to have your placard. But any dirty, flee-infested animal that someone states is a "service dog", we have to just take their word for it? Why is this even a thing?
I will say that I think legitimate service dogs are absolutely amazing. The well trained (and well kept if I might add) service dogs I have come in contact with have made my day on occasion. I can only imagine the impact they have on their owner. They serve an excellent purpose and I think that those who go through the proper channels to train and certify their pets, should get to use this ADA law to it's full extent. You take that low blood sugar sensing dog to the club if you want! But, for those of you passing your dim-witted pet off as a therapy dog when it clearly is not, just so you can bring your best friend with you wherever you go, despite its' bad behavior and your poor upkeep of the thing, you suck. Please, stop the suck today.
Reference:
ADA National Network (2014). Service animals and emotional support animals. https://adata.org/publication/service-animals-book...
