[NAGDU] “service dog” off leash

[Tami Jarvis]

The law is that a service dog must be on leash, unless its work requires 
it to be off leash, in which case it must be under voice control. This 
is just a guess, but it is possible that if the dog is trained to go 
find assistance in case of a seizure, the leash would prevent that if 
the handler's hand did not release it. As for needing to be close to 
detect a seizure, I have no idea how far away the dog can smell the 
chemical changes that indicate a seizure is on the way.

Tami

On 10/11/2017 07:12 AM, Nancy VanderBrink via NAGDU wrote:
> Hi all,
> I encountered something odd & concerning in the grocery store.  A woman came up to me accompanied by a dog that was wearing a vest.  I did not have my dog with me at the time because I had taken an Uber and I was getting groceries.  Her  dog comes up and starts sniffing my pants. I noticed that the space between her and the dog was quite large so I out of curiosity asked if the dog was on a leash. She said no the dog was not and that it was a service dog that detected seizures.
> 
> I was concerned because it’s a dog after-all and having no leash in a crowded grocery store seemed odd.  My husband said later I should have asked where she got the dog but she could’ve said it was owner trained.
> 
> It may actually be a service dog and be legitimate but the reason I am even mentioning this in the first place is that I don’t see how she can claim to have full control of the dog when it is not on a leash. Someone actually said that they thought that the leash ordinance would come into affect in the situation and the police could be called but I have a funny feeling they would hesitate to do anything because she could sue.
> 
> Thoughts?
> 
> Nancy
> 
> 
> 
> Please forgive the typos as this message was most likely generated using voice dictation
> Nancy Irwin
> 
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