[nagdu] Family Upset After Dog Removed From Eatery

Sat Aug 24 15:53:45 UTC 2013

Minh,

It's a pretty fine distinction, so a lot of people misunderstand it. 
Also, emotional support and comfort animals do have a place under the 
FHA (Fair Housing Act) and some of the transportation laws, where they 
are treated much like SDs. The ADA, which covers places of public 
accommodation, limits rights of public access to those with service dogs 
only, as defined in the ADA.

The difference lies first with the handler. Does the condition reach the 
level of disability, as defined? Then the handler has the right to be 
accompanied by a service dog.

The next difference lies with the dog. Is it task-trained to do work, 
such as alerting, for the disabled handler? If it is, then it is a 
service dog. If not, it is an emotional support animal or comfort 
animal. The handler still does not have the right to bring it into the 
store.

In general, the psychiatric support service dogs are task-trained to 
alert a person with PTSD to the onset of an episode and/or to remove the 
handler from the triggering situation. They may also (I think) have 
trained behaviors for helping to ease the reaction and bring the handler 
back to a calmer state.

Dogs naturally may notice an episode of some sort and do something to 
let their human know and to comfort them. So I think that adds a bit to 
the confusion. The difference lies in the training still, though. Is the 
alerting behavior specific and consistent? Is it something the dog was 
trained to do?

It's a blurry distinction on the surface, especially since the 
disability is hidden. You can't tell someone with a service dog from 
someone with an emotional support dog from someone with no problems 
bringing in a pet. So this seems to be the most common pretense by the 
pet owners who just want to bring their dog everywhere. It's easy for 
them to say the dog makes them feel better and waltz on through the 
door. I'm not sure they know what they're really saying about themselves 
by implying that they need a service dog to function. When some fool 
starts blabbing at me about how they do that and I explain the truth to 
them, they seem a little uncomfortable. Don't know if they stop doing 
it, but at least they know that people who understand the service dog 
laws are going to assume they have a mental health issue so severe they 
cannot function in normal life without the help of a dog. If that is not 
the case, they are committing fraud. I've gotten a little blunt about it 
unless the person gets it with the gentler explanation.

Tami

On 08/24/2013 08:31 AM, minh ha wrote:
> I'm a little confused. So emotional support dogs for people with
> depression and stuff like that are by definition, not service animals?
> But I thought veterans that come home from the war that have PTSD and
> depression are allowed to get emotional support dogs as service
> animals.
>
> Minh
>
> On 8/24/13, Tami Jarvis <tami at poodlemutt.com> wrote:
>> Hey! This one seemed really clear about the laws and the distinctions.
>> Refreshing. It's good when the quote by the Designated Expert stresses
>> the training, especially when it comes to the different between ESAs and
>> their SD counterparts with task training. I was glad he mentioned that
>> the highly trained service dogs can be removed for the listed misbehaviors.
>>
>> Tami
>>
>> On 08/24/2013 06:35 AM, Ginger Kutsch wrote:
>>> Family Upset After Dog Removed From Eatery
>>>
>>> by Jeff Rusack,
>>>
>>> August 23, 2013 8:13 PM
>>>
>>> Source:
>>> http://www.kdlt.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=29327&Itemid=5
>>> 7
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> One Sioux Falls' family is crying foul after they say they were
>>> discriminated against for having an emotional support dog at a fast food
>>> restaurant, Thursday.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Mocha may have brown fur but she seems to be in a grey area.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Thursday afternoon when Alan Steele and his mother Edwina decided to dine
>>> in
>>> at a Sioux Falls Taco Bell, they were told to do something that surprised
>>> them.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "We were asked if we were going to eat in. I said, 'yes, we are.' And he
>>> goes, 'I'm sorry. I can't allow you to do that,'" said Alan Steele.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The Americans with Disabilities Act allows any service animal into just
>>> about any business.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "On the back it says that she is a part of the American Disabled Act of
>>> 1990," pointed out Steele.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Mocha is titled as an emotional support dog. Mocha's owner, Edwina Steele
>>> suffers from depression and anxiety and can't take prescriptions due to a
>>> heart condition, as they tried to explain to the Taco Bell staff.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "She is a service animal, emotional support. And he goes, 'that doesn't
>>> matter,'" added Steele.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "Just because a dog has a vest on doesn't mean the dog is protected,"
>>> said
>>> Steve Slavik, the CEO of Big Paws Canine, a company that trains dogs for
>>> Veterans dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "What a service dog is and how it is defined, is a dog that is trained to
>>> perform work or perform a task for an individual with a disability,"
>>> quoted
>>> Slavik from the American with Disabilities Act.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> And the Steele's may be out of luck when trying to bring Mocha with them
>>> to
>>> businesses with pet policies.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "Dogs that wouldn't be protected are emotional support dogs and companion
>>> dogs. They are still considered pets and they are not defined in the
>>> protection of the ADA," added Slavik.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> But, asking someone about their dog, when it comes to determining if they
>>> are indeed a service animal, can be tricky.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Businesses are only allowed to ask two questions when it comes to service
>>> dogs.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Is the service animal required? And what work has the dog been trained to
>>> perform?
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Businesses cannot ask what the owners disability is or for the owner to
>>> provide documentation.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "If the dog is barking or being destructive to merchandise or going to
>>> the
>>> restroom on the floor, those types of things, even if it's a full-fledged
>>> 1,000 of hours training service dog, a service dog can be denied access,"
>>> added Slavik.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The Steeles say there was no indication of any misbehavior at the Taco
>>> Bell,
>>> Thursday and they still hope for an apology from the restaurant.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "I would like for people to ask and understand before they criticize or
>>> discriminate against her," added Steele.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> There's no doubt Mocha is a lovable pup. But, service dog experts say an
>>> emotional support dog has no protection when it comes to the Americans
>>> with
>>> Disabilities Act.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
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>
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