[nagdu] The harm a fake service dogs good article

The Pawpower Pack pawpower4me at gmail.com
Mon Aug 17 18:12:07 UTC 2015


Hi Marianne and all,
For many blind people, working with a guide dog is a choice. Many blind people do equally as well with a cane, but for various reasons prefer a dog.  They like traveling with a dog better, but can and do, still use a cane if the dog cannot work with little disruption in their lives. 
However, for many people, me included, partnering with a service dog and having that dog work for you is the difference between being stuck at home or a very limited area without that dog, or working that dog and being able to do much, much more.  If I did not have a dog, I don't know if I could work, I certainly would be much more limited in what I did for activities outside of what was necessary.  i would need about $3000 worth of modifications in my home if I did not have a dog.  So while many people work a dog because they like it, there are those of us who work a dog because we literally would not be able to be as independent without one. 


 Rox and the kitchen Bitches: 
Mill'E, Laveau, Soleil
Pawpower4me at gmail.com
Sent from my iPhone

> On Aug 17, 2015, at 8:28 AM, Marianne Denning via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Below is the text of the article.  I was not the one who posted the link.
> 
> 
> I have a friend who lost a leg ten years ago. No one has ever said how
> lucky he is to have such a cool prosthetic and how they really want
> one, too. Yet, if he used a dog instead of a prosthetic to function,
> that's exactly the kind of comments he would get. Even worse--plenty
> of people are trying to pass as disabled so they can bring their dog
> everywhere.
> 
> I don't think they realize what it means to have a disability so
> severe that they cannot function at a "normal" level--to be unable to
> work, go shopping, get around in their own house--without assistance.
> Constant pain, seizures, loss of vision, hearing or having a
> life-threatening illness are not good trades for a pet, even a
> miniature horse, or a really cute monkey.
> 
> 
> By expressing a desire for a Service Dog, you're also wishing for the
> accompanying disability. For a disabled person, hearing an able-bodied
> person openly wish for a disability (even if you don't actually say
> those words) is deeply hurtful. It suggests you don't take them or
> their disability seriously and furthermore, it makes light of the
> thousands of hours of training and socialization their partner has
> undergone to perform his [or her] job. Anythingpawsable.com
> 
> 
> 
> I have a friend with a disability that is often invisible to
> strangers. She uses a service dog to pull her wheelchair, or provide
> balance assistance while walking. The dog can retrieve items and
> provide a number of other tasks, for which she underwent two years of
> intensive training.
> 
> The cost of a dog like this is around $20,000. While sponsorships are
> available, one site which places around 75-100 dogs a year, has a
> current wait list of 1,600 people. That equates to 16-22 years of
> potential wait time.
> 
> "To see someone who threw a cheap vest on their dog's back because
> they like to have it around is like kicking me in my dislocated knee,"
> one service dog handler said.
> 
> Emotional Support Animals are not the same as service animals. They
> provide much needed comfort to many people. They do not require
> training, and accordingly do not receive the same protection. Properly
> documented Emotional Support Animals can be legally kept in housing
> that prohibits pets. Often times they can be brought on airplanes. But
> they cannot be brought to restaurants and movie theaters and
> everywhere their owners go. Unfortunately, the ease with which a pet
> can be labelled an Emotional Support Animal means that few people
> really know what rights they do and do not have.
> 
> Service animals provide valuable assistance in myriad ways. This full
> list  details ways animals can help with psychiatric disabilities,
> which are above and beyond the comfort of an Emotional Assistance
> Animal.
> 
> Here are just a few examples of the tasks a trained animal can perform:
> •Bring medication in a crisis, by retrieving bags, even opening cupboards.
> •Bring fluids to swallow medications.
> •Remind their partner to take medication on schedule.
> •Call 911, alert partner to smoke alarms.
> •Provide balance support for walking, ascending and descending stairs.
> •Vigorously lick their partner's face to interrupt an episode of
> combat side effects.
> 
> I was with someone who brought their emotional support dog to a
> restaurant last week. She had her doctor write her a letter stating
> her need for such an animal because her condo didn't allow pets and
> she wanted a dog. The pet sported an orange vest she bought online and
> sat next to its owner in one of the restaurant's chairs. She couldn't
> put the dog on the floor because it was not reliably housebroken. The
> dog ate off the table on one of the restaurant's plates. She told me
> the dog was "legally allowed anywhere she went," and that she was
> considering, "getting a letter to make her cat an emotional support
> animal, too."
> 
> 
> The only indicator that [a handler/dog] team is "legit" is the dog's
> behavior. Service Dogs are well-trained, well-mannered, calm,
> unobtrusive and handler focused. anythingpawesable.com
> 
> 
> 
> In researching this, I went to the American Airlines website to review
> their policy on service animals and emotional support animals.
> 
> 
> To show that an animal is a service animal, you must provide (at least
> one of the following):
> ▪ Animal ID card
> ▪ Harness or tags
> ▪ Written documentation to verify the service, psychiatric or
> emotional support status of your animal
> ▪ Credible verbal assurance
> 
> 
> 
> Sounds good, right? One problem:
> 
> 
> There are no papers, documents, certifications, vests, tags or special
> IDs required for Service Dogs in the United States. Under federal law,
> disabled individuals accompanied by Service Dogs are allowed access to
> places selling goods or services of any kind, including places
> offering entertainment, lodging and food.
> 
> 
> 
> Yet you can easily register a fake service animal online and have
> really nice paperwork to prove its necessity. Do you see how the
> preponderance of fake service animals is making it harder for disabled
> people with legitimate service animals to get around?
> While it's tempting to buy a fake vest online and bring your beloved
> pet everywhere, think about what you are really saying. Think about
> what your actions are doing to the community of disabled people who
> rely on their animal partners to function. If that isn't enough to
> sway you from faking a service animal, CBS News reported that,
> 
> Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, it's a federal crime to use
> a fake dog. And about a fourth of all states have laws against service
> animal misrepresentation.
> 
> 
> 
> However, the need for creation of laws to punish people who are taking
> advantage of the system is placing the burden of proof on the
> legitimately disabled.
> 
> I am a dog owner and an animal lover, but faking a disability to enjoy
> your pets' companionship is not only inappropriate, but detrimental to
> people who rely on service animals to experience a modicum of the
> able-bodied privilege so many of us take for granted. Calling your pet
> a service dog is the same as the person you see in the disabled
> parking spot in the Home Depot parking lot, throwing one hundred pound
> bags of concrete into their car using their grandmother's parking
> permit.
> 
> Follow Lara Lillibridge on Twitter:
> 
> 
>> On 8/17/15, Marsha Drenth via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> Julie and all,
>> It would be preferrable  if the person who is posting a link, could also
>> copy and paste the article along with the link into the email. We have lots
>> of people on list who are reading emails in many different formats. Yes,
>> links do fall under the one line one word rule.
>> 
>> 
>> Marsha drenth, NAGDU List Moderator
>> email: marsha.drenth at gmail.com
>> Sent with my IPhone
>> Please note that this email communication has been sent using my iPhone. As
>> such, I may have used dictation and had made attempts to mitigate errors.
>> Please do not be hesitant to ask for clarification as necessary.
>> 
>>> On Aug 17, 2015, at 7:04 AM, Julie J. via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>> 
>>> I'm with Debbie.  If there isn't something in the body of the message
>>> explaining the article in a way that makes me believe it's a legitimate
>>> link and not a link to download a virus, then I'm not clicking.   I would
>>> specifically like to know why you thought it was a good article.  What was
>>> the key take-a-way?  Was there a new idea brought up?  Does it relate to
>>> something recently discussed?
>>> 
>>> And does posting the link only violate the one word one line message
>>> rule?
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Julie
>>> Courage to Dare: A Blind Woman's Quest to Train her Own Guide Dog is now
>>> available! Get the book here:
>>> http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QXZSMOC
>>> -----Original Message----- From: Jimmy via nagdu
>>> Sent: Sunday, August 16, 2015 10:40 PM
>>> To: Debby Phillips
>>> Cc: Jimmy ; NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog
>>> Users
>>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] The harm a fake service dogs good article
>>> 
>>> Good evening.
>>> Thankyou for your reply. I understand your thought. Hence, that is why
>>> when I posted the mentioned article I put in the subject line of my
>>> posting-The issues or problems of fake service dogs-good article. This
>>> this give you a good idea of what the article is about. If that subject
>>> interests you, you can select the link and read it.  I would prefer myself
>>> a short and to the sweet posting that gives the subject  and the main
>>> point in the subject and then I can choose to read it or not rather than
>>> have a posting that rambles on and on . I will keep your mention in mind
>>> in the future to make sure my subject lines are specific, but I, like
>>> many, do not have time to always rewrite or explain the article. I hope
>>> you are well! Have a great week!
>>> 
>>> James Alan Boehm
>>> Phone: 901-483-1515
>>> Personal Email: jimmydagerman80 at gmail.com
>>> Refer NFB correspondences to:
>>> secretary at nfb-tn.org
>>> 
>>> "Blindness never limits- Low expectations do! Live the life you want!"
>>> 
>>>> On Aug 16, 2015, at 9:44 PM, Debby Phillips <semisweetdebby at gmail.com>
>>>> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> Hi Jimmy, I'm not a moderator, but I do wish that you would post
>>>> something about why you've sent these links, at least.  I usually read my
>>>> email with my Apex and forward emails to another email address I have
>>>> that's just on my phone for when I want to look at a link someone has
>>>> posted.  But if I don't know anything about the article, I don't do it.
>>>> Perhaps I'm the only one who feels this way, but there may be others who
>>>> don't wish to just hit a link just because someone posts one.  Thanks.
>>>> Debby and Nova
>>> 
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>>> 
>>> -----
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>>> 
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> 
> 
> -- 
> Marianne Denning, TVI, MA
> Teacher of students who are blind or visually impaired
> (513) 607-6053
> 
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