We had an official letter from GDB stating the regulations that allowed our guide dog puppy into restaurants and stuff. They also wore jackets when working. We went to a farmer’s market once, where dogs were not allowed. A cop had kicked out a non-working dog, but we heard him explain how ours was allowed in.
I think we’ve used the letter once in four dogs.
The politically correct term is “career changed.” 
(We had two, both for health reasons, who took about two seconds to find a home.)
That’s what I’ve been wondering about while reading this thread.
This article details some of the differences between human and dog mouths. Sounds like you’re better off with the dog breathing on your plate than another human at least:
I thought it was “reallocated sentient resources”? 
Jim
Just had a stray thought – I assume the owners (users? what’s the proper term) of these various guide dogs are immune from poop scooping laws?
Because I hate them enough as it is, and can’t imagine having to tackle it from a wheelchair or, even worse, being blind. :eek:
There are exceptions in the bylaws for the blind and for those who are wheelchair bound with specific problems with their upper body and range of motion. I have seen many wheelchair users manage to pick up just fine (the disposable scoops are awesome, if you can get them - they add to the reach, just enough, and you can throw them out!) Many blind handlers I know usually take the dog out for a potty break with someone who can help them pick up after the dog. These dogs are, normally, trained to eliminate (!) on command. This makes it practical for pick-up purposes, and for scheduling as well.
Other than for those exceptions, service dogs are not immune from poop scooping laws.
I don’t know about the law, but I knew of a blind guy from another message board I used to belong to, and he mentioned that when he took his (service) dog out to relieve itself, he would clean it up himself. I don’t recall him specifying the mechanics of it, but he didn’t have the attitude that he should avoid the responsibility.
You’ve not made the argument. First, the OP didn’t make the other guy feel uncomfortable, which is the first rule of etiquette. Second, it’s obvious that the OP feels seeing-eye dogs are a sacred cow and bringing the issue up would automatically make him the asshole. Suspicion confirmed. So some prick has his big dog breathing dog breath all over somebody else, with the attendant sickening noises and possibly drool, right in the middle of that person’s meal. Wait, let me guess, the blind guy couldn’t tell that there was a table near by hearing, could he? Nor does the blind guy have any familiarity with dogs whatsoever and couldn’t say something like, “Excuse me, I can’t see you, but I can hear you, so I know you’re there. Is the dog bothering you?” Or maybe, “Gosh, my 120-pound dog is sitting in the middle of the aisle, can I help make it less inconvenient?” Being blind is not writ to be rude.
bubastis may be an asshole; however, such status is not garnered by his OP in this thread.
You just took my first line of a long post out of context. If you look a post before mine someone mention that **bubastis ** was not getting the reaction he was expecting. The line is half in jest.
Aren’t you suppose to be polite and show that you snipped my post instead of making it look like I just *pooped * in the thread?
Jim
One of the first things you teach your puppy is to relieve on command.
So, the blind person can have the dog go where it is convenient to clean.
(Don’t say “do your business” around a guide, or you might get a surprise. )
I have given this a lot of thought since it was first posted. My immediate gut reaction was to dismiss this without saying anything, but I feel that I would like to add my 2c
Perhaps the whole need to put this in a pit thread could have been avoided by a simple word to the wait-staff. They could have shifted you, they could have shifted the blind man and his “offending” animal.
Bubatstis could have said something, as others have pointed out. I am learning daily, that a lot of people just don’t see ( 
) that they are inconveniencing others. And when it’s nicely pointed out, I find that most of people are mortified. Of course there’s the minority of people who are assholes and just don’t care. But mostly I like to think that people are nice.
I think that if a restaurant was to ban seeing eye dogs, it would be a place that I wouldn’t like to visit. And I’d be happy to swap places with someone like the OP who clearly had an issue with it should a similar incident occur around me.
I was in a local grocery store, and a woman came in with a dog on a leash. This dog did not have a ‘companion dog’ vest on, and as far as could be observed, with merely a pet. Also, the dog was licking surfaces in the area where bakery goods are displayed. I alerted employees, who spread their hands at me helplessly, and said they couldn’t make the woman take the dog out because she claims it’s a “companion dog” and that she’s allowed by law to have it where she is.
I think she was lying to them. I’m reasonably sure that any trained CD would a) be wearing an official vest or collar and b) have better manners than to scrounge like that in a public building. But, I at least asked the employees to wash down and disinfect the places the dog had been licking. I love dogs. I do not love them licking things in the grocery store.
Chotii - Even of the dog had it’s CD, CDX or UD, that doesn’t mean it has automatic access to all public buildings, as a service dog does. The management of the store needs to show a little backbone.
StG
Wow - I just realized that I’ve been a Doper since '99 and this is my first ever post in the Pit. I don’t normally even read Pit posts.
StG
Congrats on popping your pit cherry. If it makes you feel better this pit thread has been borderline IMHO from the beginning.
Jim
Reminds me of a Family Guy episode where Brian has to act as a guide dog for a blind person.
I suspect that if somebody is that sensitive to germs, they probably shouldn’t be out of their home in the first place…
That’s a totally unfair comparison. French guide dogs smoke, and they poop in the kitchen.
Have you been around full-grown shepherds? If on a sit, their heads easily clear most tables. My parents’ shepherd was able to rest his chin on the table (before they trained him out of it) without any effort. If the tables in the restaurant were close enough together, as the OP implies, then the dog wouldn’t need to be in a chair or have a really long neck.