[Nfbf-l] Fake service dog gear creates problems for Americans withdisabilities

Sat Aug 17 03:26:24 UTC 2013

I agree with you on this.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Sherrill O'Brien" <sherrill.obrien at verizon.net>
To: "NFB of Florida Internet Mailing List" <nfbf-l at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, August 11, 2013 11:33 AM
Subject: Re: [Nfbf-l] Fake service dog gear creates problems for Americans 
withdisabilities


> Hello all,
>
> As frustrating as the  increase in people passing off their dogs as 
> service
> animals is for those of us who legitimately need them, requiring ID would
> seem a good solution at first. But the ADA makes it clear that no
> identification is required, so Florida could not pass any law requiring
> such, as state law does not trump the ADA. And don't think for a second 
> that
> folks wanting to bring their pets everywhere with them would roll over and
> give up. A brisk business for Fake service dog ID's would quickly
> proliferate on the Internet. How is some little clerk in a small business
> supposed to know a valid ID from a fraudulent one? There are more and more
> owner trained dogs out there, as you know if you subscribe to the national
> Association of Guide Dog Users list, thus they don't have identification. 
> I
> think requiring ID would prove very difficult for all involved. What if 
> you
> changed purses and thus left your ID at home? Or lost it? While I 
> certainly
> don't condone people having fraudulent service dogs, really, if the dog
> isn't posing a direct threat and is behaving, I don't see it as a huge
> problem. I have more problems with pet dogs which are allowed these days 
> on
> restaurant patios and in pet stores. I often try to pass our neighborhood
> restaurant Tijuana Flats, and little yappy creatures, even if on a leash,
> come leaping out at Fallon while we're trying to weave our way through the
> maze of tables and chairs on a  very narrow sidewalk.
>
> The bottom line to me is that we need to be very careful about changing 
> our
> current system, as doing so could cause even more problems for those of us
> who rely on our dogs. Folks wanting to bring their pooches with them would
> still be able to do so. If they're serious enough to get fake service 
> vests
> and other gear for their pets, they certainly wouldn't hesitate to buy a
> legitimate looking ID online.
>
> Just my opinion,
> Sherrill
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Nfbf-l [mailto:nfbf-l-bounces at nfbnet.org]On Behalf Of Patricia A.
> Lipovsky
> Sent: Sunday, August 11, 2013 9:23 AM
> To: NFBF List
> Subject: [Nfbf-l] Fake service dog gear creates problems for Americans
> withdisabilities
>
>
> This is happening way too much.  This is why the law needs to be changed 
> to
> allow business owners etc. to ask for some sort of ID.
>
>
> Fake service dog gear creates problems for Americans with disabilities
> August 7, 2013
> By Kate Santich, Orlando Sentinel
> http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-08-07/features/os-fake-service-dogs
> -20130807_1_service-dog-dog-walk-service-animal
>
> Public confusion, legal loopholes and shady Internet businesses have led 
> to
> an "epidemic" of fake service-dog certificates, vests and harnesses for 
> use
> on ordinary pets. And advocates for the disabled say the issue is creating
> big headaches for those who truly need the canines' assistance.
>
> The problem has gotten so bad that Canine Companions for Independence - 
> the
> nation's largest breeding and training service-dog program - launched an
> online
> petition this week asking the U.S. Department of Justice to take action.
>
> "Unfortunately, people are trading on the fact these harnesses and vests
> have become distinguishing marks of service dogs, so now you find
> unscrupulous
> businesses who sell these things to people who want to take their dogs 
> into
> the store or restaurant or in the passenger cabin of the plane," said Paul
> Mundell, national director of canine programs for CCI. "It happens all the
> time."
>
> On a recent flight to Orlando, where CCI has its regional headquarters,
> Mundell said he watched a man with a toy breed of dog walk off their 
> flight
> to
> the baggage area, remove the dog's "service animal" vest and leave the
> airport. "It was quite clear that he was simply using the vest to get 
> cabin
> privileges,"
> Mundell said.
>
> Under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, state and local
> governments, businesses and nonprofit organizations that serve the public
> generally
> must allow service animals to accompany those with disabilities in all 
> areas
>
> of the facility where the public is normally allowed to go. And inquiries
> are limited. When it's not obvious what service an animal provides, 
> workers
> may only ask if the service animal is required because of a disability and
> what tasks the dog has been trained to perform.
>
> Legally, they can't ask for documentation. And some say that fact is being
> exploited.
>
> "There's no penalty for people in Florida who fraudulently claim their dog
> is a service animal," said Paul Edwards of Miami, president of the Florida
> Council
> of the Blind. "There are some of us who feel it isn't unreasonable to ask
> folks to carry identification for dogs that shows them to be a trained
> service
> animal - and most legitimate service-dog organizations do issue those. The
> danger is that you may throw the baby out with the bathwater."
>
> Some advocates, for instance, are concerned that doing so may put an
> unreasonable burden on those with disabilities to "prove" their dog is
> legitimate.
> But others say that, because of the fraud, humans are already facing more
> hassles.
>
> "It has become an epidemic," said Kris Baker, 63, who lives in Orlando. 
> "And
>
> what we're getting is the aftermath. Somebody will take Fluffy with them
> into
> a restaurant, and the dog will bark or snap at someone or poop on the 
> floor.
>
> So when we come in with a legitimate dog, we get the questions and the
> resentment.
> It's harder for us."
>
> Baker, who had polio as a child and has used a wheelchair for 30 years,
> needs her CCI dog to help pull her along when she gets fatigued. The dog
> also opens
> and shuts doors, retrieves the phone, picks up objects she drops and helps
> open the refrigerator and cabinets. So when people ask her in ignorance,
> "Hey,
> where can I get one of those vests for my dog?" she educates them.
>
> "This is not something that is for pets," she said. "This is an indication
> of training that my dog and I have been through. These dogs are the brain
> surgeons
> of the canine world."
>
> Luke McGregor, a 48-year-old Delray Beach resident, also has to do his 
> share
>
> of educating. On a flight home from New York this week, McGregor witnessed
> a woman who claimed to have an "emotional-support dog" that whined and
> scratched at its cage throughout the trip - behavior considered 
> unacceptable
>
> in
> a legitimately trained service dog.
>
> Though he could do little more than roll his eyes at the scene, McGregor,
> who uses a wheelchair and CCI dog, knows he'll be left to deal with the
> fallout.
>
> "I'm already stopped in restaurants and grocery stores sometimes by 
> workers
> who say [wrongly], 'You can't bring that dog in here,'" McGregor said.
> "There
> will be a time when the public is going to reach critical mass regarding 
> all
>
> of the alleged service dogs out there, and we will suffer for it."
>
> Already, in 2011, the Department of Justice issued revisions to its ADA
> regulations singling out dogs as the only legally protected assistance
> animals.
> Before that, some people were claiming monkeys, snakes and other creatures
> were helping them cope with disabilities. The department also clarified 
> the
> definition of a service dog as one that is "individually trained to do 
> work
> or perform tasks for a person with a disability."
>
> But while some states have laws against residents pretending to have a
> legally protected disability in order to gain access for their dog, most 
> do
> not.
> And there is no law against the sale of merchandise emblazoned with phony
> "service dog" logos.
>
> A search of eBay under "service dog patches," for instance, reveals more
> than 22,000 sellers.
>
> While some can certainly be used for legitimate purposes, advocates for 
> the
> disabled say many are not.
>
> CCI.org is seeking to get 10,000 signers in the next week to say the 
> problem
>
> needs to be stopped.
>
> "That's the exact purpose of our petition," said Martha Johnson, a CCI
> spokeswoman for the Southeast region. "We want to go to the Department of
> Justice
> and say: 'Look at how many people agree this is a problem, and something
> needs to be done.'"
> _
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