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Service Dog Fraud & The Problem
© Written by sassawjService dogs can be of any breed, size or mix of breeds,
though some are more suitable for special tasks than others...
A fairly new trend that is hitting the streets is perfectly able-bodied dog owners passing their average pets as certified service dogs to reap the benefits of all public access in places where animals are generally prohibited, such as in grocery stores, coffee shops and even restaurants. And how it's done is easier than you may think...
There are a number of different bogus online service animal registries nationwide, such as www.RegisterMyServiceAnimal.com, that will "register", "certify" and send you "official" accessories such as ID tags, a vest and other so-called credentials, which will then give you the power to take your pet anywhere you please, all of that for a low one-time fee.
These registries have zero requirements for dog / pet owners to meet in order to obtain documentation "proving" their pet is an official service animal and is needed to be with the handler in public places, no matter if the dog has been properly trained to complete certain tasks special to the disabled or if the dog is nothing more than an average family pet with only basic training or even none at all, and no matter if the owner is simply using the documentation just to gain the right to be accompanied by their pet everywhere they go. And if it was not obvious enough, these registries do not even require medical documentation proving the owner truly has a disability, medical ailment / illness that calls for a the assistance of a service animal, making it frighteningly easy for absolutely anyone, even perfectly healthy and able-bodied, to register their pets as service animals, fake a disability, wave a little service animal ID card around everywhere they go and actually get away with it!
Above are a couple examples of the service animal ID tags & certificates, which are
available for all types of pets & for absolutely anyone with a bank account, no questions asked
So, What is the Harm in Faking a Service Dog?
By passing your dog off as a service dog, with the sole intention of gaining public access, is without a doubt faking that you yourself have a disability and that disability of yours requires the assistance of a service dog, be if for mobility, epilepsy, some other medical problem or mental illness; while such frauds fake these disabilities solely to gain that very right to be accompanied by their pets in public places, those with real disabilities that truly rely on the assistance of a service animal would prefer to be fully independent.The disabled who require service dogs fight enough discrimination as it is, especially when traveling by airplane, and such frauds that lack training and are badly behaved ruin the reputation for true service dogs, also making shop keepers, clerks, business owners and the like skeptical of which dogs are true service animals and which ones are the frauds.
For the privacy and rights of the disabled, if someone takes a dog into a pubic establishment and claims it is a service dog, the only questions the owner or employees can legally ask that person is – "Is this a service dog?" and also "What is he / she trained to do?" – It is illegal to ask any further questions, such as what the handler’s disability is, for their own privacy and rights. However those two legal questions will not stop frauds, as they will continue to sneak through the cracks just for the sake of taking their dog into the coffee shop for a quick latte
Isn’t Service Dog Fraud Illegal?
Yes, service dog fraud is certainly illegal but determining who the real service dogs are and who the fakes are is what stands in the way, because of the legal issues surrounding one asking about the handler’s disability and whether or not they are legitimate. Basically, there are no national requirements for service dog certification, licensing, training, or identification. Most states have laws about the rights of people with service dogs to take their dogs into public places and on public transportation. No states require any type of registration, certification, or identification of service dogs, but fortunately, there are advocacy groups riling together in effort to crack down on those many fraud service dog handlers.How Do I Tell the Difference Between Fraud & Not?
Service dogs perform actual, specific tasks for people with disabilities: signal dogs for the deaf, guide dogs for the blind, assistance dogs for those in wheelchairs, alert dogs for insulin-dependent type 1 diabetics, seizure response dogs, assistance dogs for persons with certain psychiatric disabilities, and medical alert dogs. These are not your everyday, average, ordinary pets!Most real service dogs have been carefully selected by professionals for their suitable temperament, health and aptitude for their necessary work. They have received intensive training, often completing a two year training program before being assigned to their person. In some instances, pet dogs can be trained by their owners to be official service dogs as opposed to acquiring a pre-trained service dog from an organization for any of a variety of reasons, though this is not always the most preferred route, yet these animals are most often no less legitimate than any professionally trained service dog.
Average pets masqueraded as service dogs do not generally display the typical behaviors of a highly trained service dog – these dogs are often too friendly and too eager to approach strangers and jump up to greet them, some are timid, some are even aggressive and problem-some, and most of all, these dogs do not perform any sort of tasks that a disabled person may need completed.
Next time you slip that eBay purchased vest onto your badly behaved pet, ready to run to the shopping mall to pick up some grocery, think about what harm you are doing to those that are truly disabled and those that truly require the assistance of a service dog…
Is all the lying and deceiving on your behalf just to bring your dog to WalMart really worth it?
On the left, a disabled boy with his service dog
On the right, a behavior a service dog should never display which quickly points to fraud!
Informative Links:
o Service Dog Central | o Service Dogs for Americao Assistance Dog International | o Canine Companions for Independence
o International Association of Assistance Dog Partners | o ADA Service Animals
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