[nagdu] Disabled vet and service dog banned from supermarket

[William ODonnell]

I have been in some similar situations recently.  Just last week, an owner of a restaurant first denied me access asking me to contain the dog in a separate location. I was told that they were aware that dogs could go everyware; however, rules were different when it came to the board of health and other customers bringing the issue up as a complaint.  In addition, I found out that the establishment (Dallas BBQS) manager informed me that they were not trained properly on this issue from there corporate supervisors.  After educating them and keeping a firm but open dialog, I informed them that this should have been discussed during there employee training.  I then found out that the manager went out of there way and googled some policies in New York City that stayed factual to my story.  The conversation ended with the manager apologizing saying “wow, you learn something new every-day.  Thank you for helping make us all aware of the facts.”  
I was permitted in to the place and everything went well.

--- On Mon, 8/9/10, Aaron Cannon <cannona at fireantproductions.com> wrote:

> From: Aaron Cannon <cannona at fireantproductions.com>
> Subject: [nagdu] Disabled vet and service dog banned from supermarket
> To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Date: Monday, August 9, 2010, 4:16 PM
> If the store is to be believed, it
> sounds like the owner is largely at
> fault, though the bit about calling ahead leaves a bad
> taste in my
> mouth.
> 
> >From http://www.examiner.com/x-36055-Hartford-Disability-Examiner~y2010m8d4-Disabled-vet-and-service-dog-banned-from-supermarket
> 
> According to NBC News Connecticut, Kim Mucha is a veteran
> who served
> in the Air Force Military Police.  She was injured in
> battle and now
> requires the help
> of a service dog to keep her balance and reach lower placed
> objects.
> 
> Ms. Mucha entered the Big Y in North Haven, Connecticut
> along with her
> service dog, Ivy, to do some shopping.  While in the
> store, Ivy
> defecated in an aisle.
> Despite the fact that Mucha cleaned up the feces
> immediately, she was
> banned from the store.  Mucha told the New Haven Register,
> "They
> treated me and my
> dog like criminals."
> 
> A spokeswoman for the store, Claire D'Amour-Daley, defended
> the
> decision stating the store was well within its right.  She
> told the
> Register that the dog
> was not on a leash at the time that it had several
> accidents,
> including one near a food preparation area.  D'Amour-Daley
> went on to
> say that the Big Y
> is happy to work with people and their service dogs, but
> prefers that
> the customer call ahead to inform the store prior to
> arrival.
> 
> There is no stipulation in the
>  Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
>  stating that individuals need to give notice to a business
> prior to
> entering.  Mucha told the paper that she is considering
> filing a
> lawsuit against the
> Big Y stores.
> 
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