#fakeservicedogs

[olivertherottweilersd-blog]

PLEASE don't take your flea infested mongrel into non pet friendly store's. I don't want to listen to the beast bark or watch as it lungs at mine dog and I REALLY don't want to see you Fuck up my right to use a TRAINED Service Dog just because your to STUPID to leave the creature at HOME.

[newleashonlifeusa]

Tips from Tamar

Fake Service Dogs

We are officially in the throws of the holiday season—and that means family festivities, vacations, and, very often, travel. Each year it seems the US hits record-breaking numbers of flights. Airport stress is so common many airlines have invested in therapy dogs to comfort and relax stressed passengers. Therapy dogs are a wonderful addition to many airports and can often be seen in the press. A less-savory dog trend on the rise in the incidence of fake service dogs on flights—and out in public.  

Service dogs are specifically trained to assist their disabled handler to navigate the world independently. Many service dogs work with individuals who have life-threatening disabilities—and all service dogs work with individuals who have an ADA-recognized disability that negatively impacts their quality of life. Service dogs do not provide therapeutic presence for others and do not provide only emotional support or comfort. They are trained to execute specific tasks to mediate a disability.

It is easier to find websites and online providers of service dog gear: vests, identification cards, leashes, etc. However, none of these items make a dog a service dog. In fact, legally service dogs do not need to wear or carry anything at all, they only need to be trained to provide tasks that mitigate a person’s disabilities. Some of these sites even pander to those who want to take their pet on flights or in public with statements such as:

“Service Dog Certification of America recognizes that every person in The United States of America may have some form of disability,” or “Get an SDA kit so your dog can accompany you everywhere you need."

These claims do not address the fact that a person’s disability must be recognized by the ADA as having a negative impact on their quality of life and not every dog, not even most dogs, are actually qualified to have public access rights under the law.

We all love our pets and wish they could be with us all the time. Most of us don’t want to kennel our pets or leave them home—and the opportunity to bring them with us on our travels is certainly alluring.  Faking your pet as a service dog, however, can have very harmful effects on those who truly need their service dog to function—not to mention it is illegal and some states have enacted harsh penalties to deter faking.

The Negative Impact

One major risk to the service dog community by fake service dogs is the ill will fakes can engender in businesses and the public. Business owners are generally uncomfortable questioning a person about their apparent service dog, as lawsuits and poor publicity often follow these encounters. When pets who masquerade as service dogs behave inappropriately, people nearby cannot determine easily if the dog is actually needed or is a fake. This leads to the mistrust of all dogs presented as service dogs. While your pet may be well behaved and a truly wonderful companion, they are rarely as well trained and behaved in public places as an actual service dog who has gone through thousands of hours of training and preparation. One misstep can lead to a lot of fall out.

Another major threat of fake service dogs is they may actually interfere with a service dog at work. Pets often love other dogs and like to show some interest in them. They can distract a dog who is assisting their handler in ways you may not even realize. Service dogs are specifically trained to ignore other animals and when trained dogs are in contact with each other they generally ignore each other or give distance. Pets do not. Sniffing, whining, staring, etc. can distract a working service dog. A pet may actually even harm a service dog—an occurrence which has happened and can cause irreparable harm to handler and dog alike. Fake teams have created havoc on flights and in public with planes being forced to land prematurely and restaurants being forced to close.

Keep in mind faking a service dog is also faking a disability and wishing for one is similar to wishing for a life-altering disability. If you think of service dogs as necessary medical equipment rather than as pets, you will begin to see how faking a pet as a service dog is similar to taking advantage of a close parking space by using a handicap parking space: something I trust most of us recognize as wrong.

While it is tempting to take advantage of the fact that service dog equipment is inexpensive and easy to find, please know each time a pet masquerades as a service dog it causes harm to legitimate teams that rely on their dog’s training and skills.

Faking a pet as a service dog is both illegal and injurious and should not be condoned or attempted.  

[steampunkadventuredog-blog]

Now while I’m not a fan of this group they do have a very valid point which is if you treat the gate keeper with respect you have a better chance of working things out. If you hit record on your camera and start yelling about lawsuits things won’t go well. In fact the very reason your having issues with the gate keepers is probably  because someone else went off on them. Doing this also makes bushiness stop asking the 2 questions and then the Fakers have no problems getting in. So if you want everyone to have a positive experience then you need to check your ego at the door and act as much like a professional as you can. Remember I’m pullen for ya we’re all in this together.