I remember posting a thread about my own troubles training seeing eye and service dogs. Some people are just idiotic. In Canada, they can get seriously fined if they refuse entry - I’m sure it’s similar in the states. Your disabilities act is particularily impressive!
I’m glad the situation got sorted out quickly!
As for guide dog abuse, we have seen it a lot - some people, having recently lost their sight, take it out on their dogs. Dogs make mistakes, they’re not perfect, and they’re certainly not 100% reliable when guiding. Sure, we try to make them that way… but they’re still dogs… they have their bad days too!
** snake ** According to the law, guide and service animals are to be considered the same as a wheelchair, crutches, a cane for the blind. Would you see yourself saying that wheelchairs are a hazard (they have wheels and can run over people’s feet! Especially childrens’!) in restaurants? There’s no question of “middle ground” here.
Frankly, guide and service dogs are well looked after. Chances of you getting a dog hair in your steak far more remote than having the chef sneeze on it before it came out from the kitchen. It’s not like the dogs are running around, shaking out their coats. Most of the time, when I’ve had a pup in training in a restaurant, people didn’t even notice he/she was there until we left…
Just be glad you’re not yet dealing with Guide Horses (yes, they exist - miniature pigmy horses!) - which, actually, are probably the best kind of guiding animal around in the world, but I digress.
LurkMeister there’s a wide variety of service dogs. Some dogs guide autistic kids, just like a guide dog. Others assist wheelchair-bound folks and do fun tasks such as: opening doors, getting the phone when it rings (cordless, of course), picking up stuff that’s dropped, handling money (coins and bills), loading/unloading carts, getting things off shelves (like in grocery stores - we use lazer pointers to point out what they are to grab), doing the laundry (loading/transfering/unloading washers/dryers - all front load of course!), retrieving things from the fridge… all very useful tasks.
Some service dogs work with epileptic patients, as we have discovered that some dogs can actually predict the coming of a seizure. They also offer protection if someone does have a seizure. They are often called “Seizure Alert Dogs”.
Some work with the deaf - “Hearing Dogs” - they alert at the person’s name (by putting a paw up on them, or climbing into their lap if they are small dogs), fire alarms, phones ringing, doorbells, traffic, car horns, that sort of thing. They serve as a person’s ears. Many work with sign language.
Some dogs are now being used to work with psychiatric patients - to remind them to take their meds, to carry the meds, to provide a “touch with reality” with some, or to provide the vehicle for them to leave the house (in the case of severe anxiety). These dogs aren’t yet recognised as service animals, but they may well be soon.
In order to be recognised as a service animal, dogs need to pass specific tests and/or come out of a recognised school or training institute. That way, people can’t just train their own and take it to the store. In some places, people DO train their own service dog (I knew a young paraplegic woman who trained a lab for herself) and then have them tested. Talk about a wonderful partnership!
My current working animals work with disabled children who don’t qualify for a service dog of their own because they are considered too “low functionning”. we work with them until they do qualify. It’s very rewarding work, and our training organisation only keeps the top 1% of its trainee dogs to work in this program. I’m blessed to have had two such working dogs live and work with me over the last 8 years. All the others I’ve trained have been placed with disabled adults and are contributing to every day life and autonomy.
Workings animals are… gifts, from whoever you wish to thank (God, people, whatever.) They willingly and happily serve, and give people their autonomy back. Some people don’t understand that - cultural differences sometimes paint dogs as “unclean”… but you know, a few months ago in Ottawa, I had Zap on the bus with me when a young woman wearing a veil and her young boy stepped onto the bus: I moved the dog a little so they wouldn’t come into contact with her (it’s a cultural thing with many practicing muslims). They sat opposite me, and the young lady smiled, and thanked me. Then, she proceeded to explain to her son that this was a working dog, and that it would someday help someone who was disabled and needed the help.
Talk about bridging difference, eh.
I was totally suprised that the dog didn’t have “an accident” while crossing the street with this SOB. I believe that the dog knew he was a professional and took pride in doing its job well. It would get a slightly perplexed expression though when its charge would mistreat it. :mad: