[nagdu] SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT: Fake service dogs and the negative impact

Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC) REBECCA.PICKRELL at tasc.com
Tue Nov 15 16:28:16 UTC 2011


A few questions here.
First, if the reporter broke the law, why isn't she in legal trouble? I don't care what her motives were, she still broke the law or so this article leads one to believe.

Second, if the dog is behaving, why is this a problem?
Third, the article implies that people should ask questions of guide/service dog users. Is this really a path anybody wants to go down?
Fourth, all dogs are capable of biting someone. A brain tumor, stress, chronic pain, vision or hearing going, and all of us can be unaware of such things. So the argument of "a dog may bite someone" is not relivant.

Finally, this article did a disservice because it did not convey that guide/service dogs have different standards of behavior and that is an ongoing project. I can easily saying "see, that guy's dog was trained for two years" "Mine went to obedience school and listens".
This article bothers me but not for the reasons it is supposed to.


-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Ginger Kutsch
Sent: Tuesday, November 15, 2011 10:32 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: [nagdu] SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT: Fake service dogs and the negative impact

SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT: Fake service dogs and the negative impact

Updated: 11/14 10:16 pm | Published: 11/14 10:14 pm

Reported by: Kylie Conway

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) - You can buy them on-line and then take your
pet wherever you go. People are actually ordering service dog vests for
their pooches and pretending to need them in public places. It's doggie
deception.



Many Americans treat their dogs nearly like children. They buy them glittery
collars, dress them in clothes and even push them in strollers! But, a new
trend has pet owners disregarding "no pets allowed" signs and finding loop
holes to bring their dogs wherever they go.



ABC 4 went undercover to see what kind of reaction Natalie Kauffman and her
dog Libby would get with a mail-ordered dog vest. First, Natalie and Libby
entered a café, then a Utah book store and finally a busy downtown
restaurant during prime lunch hour.



"I thought it was kind of cool. They help a lot of people," said the
bookstore owner Peter Marshall.



In each place Libby and Natalie walked around, ordered food and drink and
never got asked a single question. But, this fraud is creating big issues
for people like Tim Daynes and Becky Anderson. They both rely on their dogs
for independence.



"The simple pleasure of walking from my office to the grocery store and
back," said Anderson who has Retinitis Pigmentosa and is legally blind.



"I could not get into my house without him!" said Tim Daynes. Daynes was
paralyzed when he was just 16 years old when he dove in Lake Powell and
broke his neck. He is now a C-5 quadriplegic. Both Daynes and Anderson are
concerned over what abusing service dog privileges could mean for their
future.



"Sad, frustrated," said Anderson.



"If you get a dog that for some reason would bite someone. As a business
owner I don't blame them. I wouldn't want to see that happen," said Daynes.



Certified service dogs are trained for two years mostly from the time
they're puppies. There is a very low graduation because the standards to
become a service dog are so high.



"I can take him in to public and know that he's going to behave himself,"
said Daynes.



This is something Daynes is sure about but when a non-certified dog like
Libby goes into a business, how they react to stimuli is unpredictable.
Anderson's bad experience was with a flight attendant.



"She was convinced that my guide was going to hurt her," said Anderson.



The Americans with Disabilities Act makes it very difficult to questions
someone over their needs for their service dog. For some, the liability of
digging into the specifics isn't worth the risk. Basically, if you're
prepared to lie there's a good chance you'll get away with it.



"Maybe there needs to be a law where the pack has to have some sort of
license on it," said Daynes.



The service pack, regardless of what dog was wearing, passed for Utah
standards. But, with some education, awareness and maybe even policy changes
Daynes and Anderson hope to keep their future of independence in tact.



Advocates against wrongful vest use say it's important to remember that it's
against the law to use the vests improperly and you could be prosecuted.



URL:
http://www.abc4.com/content/news/state/story/SPECIAL-ASSIGNMENT-Fake-service
-dogs-and-the/3wpzr-yryUmu5u05WM8Npg.cspx

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