[NAGDU] In-depth: Why some feel it's OK to have comfort pets in public

Fri Apr 27 21:29:08 UTC 2018

This article presses so many of my buttons.  Both animals are referred
to as comfort pets.  You guys have already pointed that out.  I also
really really don't like it when people say or write that our dogs
take care of us.  How can guide dog schools even say this about their
dogs when so much of our time in training is devoted to learning how
"we" can take care of our dogs?  It's bad enough that the sighted
public thinks that my dog takes care of me.  This article also spreads
around the notion that people can bring their emotional support
animals everywhere.  Where do they get their facts?

Julie

<div id="DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2"><br />
<table style="border-top: 1px solid #D3D4DE;">
	<tr>
        <td style="width: 55px; padding-top: 13px;"><a
href="https://www.avast.com/sig-email?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campaign=sig-email&utm_content=webmail&utm_term=icon"
target="_blank"><img
src="https://ipmcdn.avast.com/images/icons/icon-envelope-tick-round-orange-animated-no-repeat-v1.gif"
alt="" width="46" height="29" style="width: 46px; height: 29px;"
/></a></td>
		<td style="width: 470px; padding-top: 12px; color: #41424e;
font-size: 13px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;
line-height: 18px;">Virus-free. <a
href="https://www.avast.com/sig-email?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campaign=sig-email&utm_content=webmail&utm_term=link"
target="_blank" style="color: #4453ea;">www.avast.com</a>
		</td>
	</tr>
</table><a href="#DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2" width="1"
height="1"></a></div>

On 4/27/18, Buddy Brannan via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Tracy, my reaction agrees with your reaction, both to this article and to
> the GDB logo, which was just fine before, thank you very much. Referring to
> guide dogs as “comfort pets” just grates on me like nails on a chalkboard.
>
>> On Apr 27, 2018, at 11:29 AM, Tracy Carcione via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> wrote:
>>
>> The first thing this newscast says is that guide dogs and ESA's are both
>> comfort animals.  Wrong!!!
>> Though I think guide dog schools are somewhat to blame for this
>> impression, with some of their PR that I think of as "a companion in my
>> lonely darkness."  Last I heard, the GDB logo is a person with their arm
>> around their dog, which to me doesn't show the real purpose of the dog at
>> all.
>> Tracy
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: NAGDU [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Ginger Kutsch
>> via NAGDU
>> Sent: Friday, April 27, 2018 8:45 AM
>> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
>> Cc: Ginger Kutsch
>> Subject: [NAGDU] In-depth: Why some feel it's OK to have comfort pets in
>> public
>>
>> In-depth: Why some feel it's OK to have comfort pets in public
>>
>> By: Michelle Kingston 
>>
>>
>>
>> Video at
>> http://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/in-depth-why-some-feel-its-ok-to-have-comfort-pets-in-public/1145167813
>>
>>
>>
>> Theresa and Dana both say their dogs provide them critical care.
>>
>> One, who is visually impaired, has a service dog that helps guide her
>> around town.
>>
>>
>>
>> The other says she suffers from depression and needs her dog to reduce her
>> anxiety.
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thursday night, KRON4 goes in-depth to explore why both women feel they
>> have a right to have their comfort pets in public.
>>
>>
>>
>> Wills is an adorable yellow lab, Theresa Stern's best friend and guide
>> dog.
>>
>>
>>
>> Stern is visually impaired.
>>
>>
>>
>> "Having a guide dog is life changing," Stern said. "It is so hard to
>> explain. It's like asking someone who is sighted what it is like for them
>> to have their eyes."
>>
>>
>>
>> Wills went through months of training at the Guide Dogs for the Blind in
>> order to care for, guide, and protect Theresa.
>>
>>
>>
>> "He, he is amazing," Stern said. "He helps me live my life in the way that
>> I want to live my life. I feel comfortable and confident getting out in
>> the world."
>>
>>
>>
>> Dana Valladares feels the same way about her dog--but she's not blind.
>>
>>
>>
>> "All I did was just fill out like an easy 5-minute application,"
>> Valladares said.
>>
>>
>>
>> Dana bought Tazz last year, went online, and a couple of clicks and
>> dollars later, he became a certified emotional support dog with no
>> training, no doctor's note, and very little effort, joining a group of
>> animals--like the pig, duck, and squirrel we've seen on social media--that
>> can now fly on a plane for free in the cabin.
>>
>>
>>
>> "I carry him in a little purse so whenever something, I'm getting a little
>> shaky and everything, I'll just go to pet him, and then it'll just calm my
>> nerves instantly," Valladares said.
>>
>>
>>
>> The easy websites, and the people who are taking advantage of them, are
>> what Theresa says is making her life more difficult
>>
>>
>>
>> "It's starting to really affect the way that we get out in the world
>> because of the sort of suspicion that comes with having a real service dog
>> because of all the phony ones," Stern said. "People will come up to me and
>> say, 'Is that really a service dog? Are you really blind?'"
>>
>>
>>
>> Dana says Tazz helps her deal with her depression and anxiety--and that
>> she didn't register him just so she can take him everywhere she goes,
>> although that is a benefit.
>>
>>
>>
>> "Me and him we are inseparable," Valladares said. "It's to the point where
>> we don't know who needs who more."
>>
>>
>>
>> While Theresa does believe there are some people who really need emotional
>> support animals, she is fearful of how many people are registering their
>> animals fraudulently who could put her dog--a fully qualified service
>> animal--and herself, in danger.
>>
>>
>>
>> "I think they need to look inside themselves and think about what they're
>> doing and think about if they are willing to lie about something as
>> profound as having a disability, so they can bring their pet with them and
>> not have to pay a fee knowing that that can really inhibit the
>> independence of people who rely on those," Stern said. "You know, what's
>> next?"
>>
>>
>>
>> So, how easy is it to register your dog as an emotional support animal?
>> And does any breed, size or, behavior qualify?
>>
>> You can find out Friday night on KRON4 News at 10 p.m.
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> NAGDU mailing list
>> NAGDU at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> NAGDU:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/carcione%40access.net
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> NAGDU mailing list
>> NAGDU at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> NAGDU:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/buddy%40brannan.name
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> NAGDU mailing list
> NAGDU at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for NAGDU:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/kaybaycar%40gmail.com
>

-- 
Julie A. McGinnity
President, National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division,
Second Vice President, National Federation of the Blind of Missouri
"For we walk by faith, not by sight"
2 Cor. 7