People who fake having service dogs so they can get them into airplane cabins for free or go into a restaurant should be shot in the foot and have their dogs taken away.
That's so they would know what it's like to be disabled and not have a service dog who can do things like push the "power" button on public doors. Of course, that's a temporary hobbling, not a life-long one, but it would give the fakers a small taste of what it's like to be disabled.
Faking makes lots of people angry for valid reasons.
And now, in Florida, you can be convicted of a misdemeanor for pretending your pet is a service dog. Yep, you can even do jail time for it under Bill CS.HB 71! The bill states: " ...provides penalty for knowing & willful misrepresentation with respect to use or training of service animal."
Way to go, Florida! Bravo!
The bill passed unanimously, by the way. Bipartisan agreement in this day and age is rare but the idea of fakers wandering about pretending their pets are service dogs is universally despised.
Why?
Because every time egocentrists (folks who don't understand any perspective other than their own) pretend a pet is a service dog, they endanger some of those long-sought and deserved protections for disabled people. It creates an atmosphere in which business people have to bend over backwards to accommodate fakers. They can't risk having their company unfairly bandied about as one that illegally doesn't follow the Americans with Disabilities Act, or be sued when they have done nothing wrong. It's one thing when it's valid - go nail 'em, in that case - but when it's not and someone's business is adversely affected by dishonest publicity, it's a nightmare of epic proportions. The perpetrator lies, and the business suffers while the egocentrist fakers smugly go on their self-absorbed way.
It's an extreme version of parking in the only remaining handicapped parking space because you're in a hurry while the disabled person with a legally valid reason to use it goes to the far back of a parking lot.
Your convenience is not the point.
"When untrained pets masquerade as service animals, there is increased risk that bona fide service dogs and their partners will face dangerous aggression or distraction in unexpected places," said Dr. Melissa Nixon, a veterinarian working with her service dog, Mo; Mo is her third in the past 18 years. "Venues such as hospital emergency rooms, weary of poorly trained or fake service dogs, have frequently tried to bar my bona fide service dog from their examination areas. This is especially difficult in Veterans Affairs facilities, where the law is currently unclear, but still aggravating in civilian facilities where the ADA law is clearly on the side of the bona fide team."
Phlebotimist Lisa Marie McKay said she can usually spot fake ones at her clinic because of the animal's behavior.
"An obviously untrained Pomeranian is sitting there, and the dog is physically upset because they are in a place they don't know, like a little kid," McKay said. "It's really obvious when someone has their baby with them or a working dog. Often the patients with small lap dogs have said that they are there for emotional service or anxiety, and I think that's a valid reason to have a service dog, but I question whether or not that's an accurate situation when the dog is riddled with anxiety himself, panting, twitching, and can't sit still. Unless someone is about to go into a seizure, I don't think so."
I really feel for restaurants that have to put up with fake dogs. Sure, service dogs can get sick in restaurants, but real service dogs don't bark during the meal or nip at a waiter's ankles.
Being taken advantage of makes me angry, and if numerous people with untrained dogs kept faking me into providing some amazing service that they would not normally have a chance of getting - because they don't deserve it - I too would come to hate the law. If my business regularly lost money because of it, I would become upset enough to fight the law and try to weaken it enough so that people couldn't take advantage of me, which would hurt the people the law is designed to help.
The airline abuse is my biggest peeve, and I have lots of peeves. Lots.
What fries me more than anything are the dog show competitors who pretend their show dog is a service dog so they can fly their dogs for free in the cabin rather than enduring the risks and costs of cargo where they are supposed to go. There are only so many seats per flight for service dogs. Plus, the business loses legitimate income.
"Before any big dog competition it's impossible for anyone with a real service dog to find a place on a flight," said Mary Schurr, who shows her dogs frequently but only goes to shows she can drive to. "The spots have all been taken by competitors with fake service dogs. That's not right. As an advocate for real, trained service animals, I can see a time where someone faking it with no training will cause bad things to happen and things will only get tougher for those with a real need. It's a very well known dodge to book your dog as a service dog to get the cabin privilege. As soon as big events are noted, people book up flights."
The egocentrists who think they can fly under the radar don't seem to realize what harm they do: they are stealing from a business and should be arrested for it. It's no different than walking into a store and stealing a television. They are causing harm to the business, and the more lies a business is forced to endure, the more they want that law to go away even though they know disabled people need every protection afforded to them by the ADA.
"Oh, no, I'm not hurting anyone," they think. "Not me. I'll just get this dog from point A to point B for free. Or get a discount at the vet, or hang out at Outback Steakhouse. Why not? They'll never know."
Pet dogs may have the temperament to be a service dog, but they haven't been trained practically since birth for it. That is why it's usually easy to suspect a cheater.
Real service dogs are trained to become one from the moment they enter the training program at 8 weeks old. The puppies usually spend a couple of years with volunteer puppy raisers, and then the new owners are trained to work with that specific dog. It takes years, fund raising, a veritable village, and despite the enormous volume of volunteer hours it costs thousands of dollars to train a service dog.
The thing is, if you cheat on this in Florida, now you can do jail time. Hopefully other states will soon follow because it's the right thing to do. Disabled people have a tough enough time in life without jerks provoking attacks on the ADA that could result in less independence for them.
To the fakers out there: We're keeping an eye on you. The Florida law is just, and karma is justice personified.
19 Comments
Regina Glanzberg, DVM
March 15, 2018
Phyllis DeGioia
June 30, 2016
Damaris
June 29, 2016
Joseph Phligh
February 2, 2016
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January 6, 2016
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October 30, 2015
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October 10, 2015
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October 9, 2015
Dr. Snyder
October 5, 2015
cjdavis
September 30, 2015
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September 29, 2015
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September 29, 2015
Windchyme
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September 29, 2015
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September 28, 2015
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September 28, 2015
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September 28, 2015
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September 28, 2015