” No dog is perfect, no matter their level of training or professionalism. This applies to service dogs as well. ”
However, there are some tasks that appear to be the dog out of control. For instance, my service dog, Cow, will perform a gradual alert if I am shut down and need to be led out of the public area. First, he will nudge my hand with his nose. If I don’t respond, he will graduate to more incessant alerts, such as pawing at my leg, with him finally ending up jumping his front half into my lap, pawing at my chest, howling quietly, before he hops down, and grabs his leash in his mouth and attempts to pull me. If I’m unresponsive to the first quieter, more subtle alerts, he will always end up performing the alert that looks as if he’s just misbehaving. Seizure alert dogs also occasionally use barking if their handler is unresponsive to their alerts.
It takes a trained eye to spot the difference between a service dog performing a task, and a pet dog throwing a fit, but the differences are there if you know what to look for. For instance, the service dog will always be focused on their handler, and will be trying to get the handler to do something, even if it’s not immediately obvious what that something is. For me, it is to allow Cow to lead me outside and to a safe, quiet place. For others, it could be to lay down to prepare for an impending seizure. Either way, the dog will have an obvious goal in mind, and they will not just be barking wildly and jumping on passerby. Seeing both in person often allows the layperson to discern the difference.
No dog is perfect, no matter their level of training or professionalism. This applies to service dogs as well. All service dogs have their bad days. The days where they don’t ignore the person calling out to them, or they sniff at some merchandise, or their handler doesn’t notice that their dog has an upset stomach. These things have happened, or will happen, to every single handler, no matter the training of their dog. For every handler, this is mortifying.
Cow is a sensitive flower who has a lot of feelings about everything, including the floor.
We are often our dog’s biggest critics, as our dogs are an extension of ourselves. The important thing is that we take actions to control our dog’s behavior. If a service dog is soliciting attention from passerby, their handler will correct the behavior. If the service dog is throwing a legitimate hissy fit because they do not want to be doing their job that day, the handler will take immediate actions to control or remove the dog.
Pet owners who are fraudulently representing their pet as a service dog will usually do none of these things. I’ve had pets in vests attack my service dog, doing their best to hurt him, while their owner just laughs and shrugs. I’ve seen pets in vests urinate all over merchandise, as their owner looks around and walks away as quickly as they can. Service dog handlers are not looking to get away with things. We are just trying to go about our lives. As such, we take responsibility for the actions of our medical equipment, no matter how humiliated and close to, or way past, tears that we are.
What can I do about out-of-control dogs?
” I want (businesses) to stop being afraid of fraudulent pet owners who know that they have the power to make businesses cower under the threat of litigation and bad media…
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Service dogs must be under the control of the handler at all times. Service animals must be leashed, tethered, or harnessed at all times unless this interferes with the handler’s disability, or the dog’s ability to perform their job. If unable to leash the dog, the handler must still maintain control of the dog through signal, voice, or other commands. If a dog, even a legitimate service dog, is out of control and the handler takes no appropriate and effective steps to correct the behavior or remove the dog, then staff may request and demand that the dog be removed from the premises. If the handler removes the dog and wishes to obtain goods and services without the dog, this must be allowed. Out of control could include, and is not limited to, jumping on patrons, barking incessantly or in a non-alert, handling merchandise, showing dangerous or aggressive behavior, urinating or defecting on the premises, or wandering alone without the handler.
Why should I risk my good name by removing possible service dogs?
Even when I’ve had dogs who are obviously pets attack my dog, businesses have been afraid to remove the pet, despite the danger it poses to myself, my medical equipment, and any other member of the public, including children who may run up to and hug or pull on the dog. Businesses are afraid that they will be sued or that the owner will immediately go to the media and cry discrimination.
These are legitimate fears. Many a pet owner has attempted, and sometimes succeeded, in ruining businesses who have asserted their legal rights against their out-of-control pet. In these cases, service dog handlers have risen up to defend the business and reveal the fraud by the pet owner. In fact, service dog handlers generally prefer business owners to assert their rights. Too many good service dogs have had to be expensively rehabilitated or retired early because of an aggressive pet in a vest who attacked them while they were working, because the business was unaware of, or afraid to assert, their rights.
I am writing this article because I want businesses to start asking me the two questions. I want businesses to listen to me when I beg them to please, please remove the aggressive dog on a flexi lead that tried to rip my dog’s face off when it saw us. I want them to stop being afraid of fraudulent pet owners who know that they have the power to make businesses cower under the threat of litigation and bad media, and who use that to endanger the safety and life of myself, my medical equipment, and every other patron they come in contact with, as well as the life of their “beloved” pet when that pet is pushed over their threshold and bites a kid.
Is that it?
Not at all! I couldn’t even begin to cover everything in this article. I only covered the major points. If you’d like to learn more about the specifics of the Americans with Disabilities Act in concern to service dogs, you can visit their FAQ. For a “too long; didn’t read” version of this article, go ahead and read the ADA’s Business Brief. For more information about service dogs and what they do to help disabled persons like myself, check out the rest of Growing Up Guide Pup. There are videos, articles, and cute puppy pictures made specifically to inform the public about service dogs and their many attributes.
For more details on our products and services, please feel free to visit us at: psychiatric service dog, veteran dog, medical alert dog, puppy, puppies.