Longtime lurker on these boards de-lurking to bring up something I observed recently on a cruise ship:
An older lady on board was accompanied by her service dog, a tiny Yorkie, complete with tiny orange service jacket.
Okay, I have to admit I rolled my eyes a bit before I even found out what service the dog was providing. I didn’t say anything, because, well, ya never know. What might appear to be a thinly disguised work-around of the “no pets” on cruise ships rule might turn out to be something heretofore unconsidered situation.
The cruise was a long one, and by the end of the first week, it was widely known among the passengers that the Yorkie was a “depression dog”.
You can imagine the uproar - admiration from other lapdog lovers who noted that the fee to make your dog a service animal is less than you’d spend on boarding the dog if you travelled frequently; irritation from people who thought service dogs should be reserved for blind people who “really need them” because Depression Dog Woman was risking THOSE people’s rights to bring their service dog on board by abusing the loophole of the ADA - no discriminating.
My thought is that if it’s really that easy to bestow Service Animal status on your lapdog, pretty soon cruise lines won’t allow ANY animals or else ALL animals.
So: Depression Dogs - a menace? necessary? clever ploy? discuss.
It’s funny that you mention that because when my dog does something that makes me especially happy, like crawling into bed and nuzzling me, I’m known to call him “Puppers.”
And, I too, enjoyed the flying pigs reference. It would have brought me special joy if they’d flown that pig into Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky Airport. They have a special appreciation for flying pigs in those parts.
One day a District Attorney was out for a walk with his German shepherd. He ran into a friend of his who was a Public Defender, walking his chihuahua. They chatted for a bit, and the PD offered to buy the DA a beer. The DA said, “We can’t go into a bar with our dogs”. The PD said, “Oh, come on, we’re a couple of smart lawyers, we’ll figure something out”.
So, the DA goes into the bar across the street and orders a beer. The bartender says, “You can’t bring your dog in here”. The DA says, “He’s a seeing eye dog”. Bartender apologizes and gets him a beer.
The PD came in a few minutes later and orders a beer. The bartender says, “You can’t bring a dog in here”. PD says, “He’s a seeing eye dog”. Bartender says, “Oh, come on, they don’t make chihuahuas seeing eye dogs”. The PD says, CHIHUAHUA!! THEY GAVE ME A CHIHUAHUA???
In any case, although dogs can be therapeutically used quite successfully, I think tapping ADA protections for therapeutic pets is really going beyond the pale. For real, if you can’t take your pet, go someplace you can if it means that much to you.
Since I actually do suffer from chronic depression, I’m thinking of taking our two “Depression Cats” to France with us in a couple of weeks. At least they’d behave better than the pig.
I wouldn’t count on the ADA to get you through French Customs.
Anything that helps is fine in my opinion. Yes, the pig thing is ludicrous. But did this lady’s lap dog really cause anyone trouble on a cruise ship? I think pets should be allowed in far more places than they are. There is no reason at all that a dog can’t walk into a bar. (I know what you’re thinking, and I beg you, stifle yourselves!)
If the animal acts badly it should be treated just like a human customer who acts badly. What is so frickin’ difficult? Service animals are allowed because it is assumed that they are well trained and will behave appropriately. I say any animal that behaves appropriately should be allowed.
I used to have a ferret who went pretty much anywhere with me, including several trips to the mall. She stayed on my shoulder, mostly hiding under my hair, and when she needed to poop I would set her down in the bathroom, and clean up after her. No problem. Heck I had an anole (again, just stifle it, please?) who sat through church with me once. He sat so still on my lapel that one lady complimented me on my “brooch”.
I’m sure there has been research done that claims people who keep pets, dogs specifically, I think, tend to live longer and with a better mental state than those who don’t.
Depriving someone of their doggy dose could be deemed cruel and unusual punishment.
(Note for cat-owners - when you start walking your cat and taking it for drives in your motor because you can’t bear to be parted, then you can claim special dispensation.)
You should be able to have whatever you want as long as it can do what a “helper dog” can. Good luck getting a calf of any sort to fetch your slippers.
Really interesting stuff like the woman with the seeing eye horse, the monkey for the agoraphobic (and litigious) woman, and the psychotic man who has a bird that keeps him from murdering people.
When I was living in Manhattan with my large dog, I often thought of getting him certified as some sort of helper dog so he could be on the subway.
It would have been a total fraud for my own convenience. It’s a fraud that belittles people with real disabilities.
