Is this really a service dog?

Incomudro

Incomudro

Well-Known Member
dryerlintfan said:
I love my dogs... I do... but WHY would anyone want to bring their dog to Disney. Having a dog there would seem to make everything harder in every possible way. One more being to ensure stays cool and hydrated and doesn't walk further than their abilities and the pads of their feet don't get burned on the sidewalk and if they're a short hair making sure they don't get sunburned. I cannot imagine taking a dog to a theme park and having any fun with it.

Which I guess is why I'm inclined to believe/hope that most service dogs at Disney are true service dogs because why would anyone want to put a beloved family member through all that just so they didn't have to pay for a daycare/kennel???!
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Why?
Because many of today's dog owners - who now call themselves "pet parents" are out of their minds.
Have you seen these people?
Have you noticed how few people who have their dogs out in public on a leash make any attempt to heel the dog?
It's predominantly a much different class of owner out there now, than decades ago.
 
Incomudro

Incomudro

Well-Known Member
jaklgreen said:
A lot of dogs do not have that kind of exposure. I think people need to stop and think what taking their dog to WDW will truly be like for the dog. I am sure there are plenty that will do fine, but if there is even a hint of doubt that the dog might be stressed by any of the things that I, and others have mentioned, then it would be best to leave the dog at home.
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And don't forget that many of these phony service dogs brought to WDW will be placed in carriers, in and out of car service, on and off of jets, etc. etc.
 
jloucks

jloucks

Well-Known Member
durangojim said:
So I hate to jump into the middle of this, but I am compelled to. I'm a physician and once a month I receive a request from patients asking for a letter to present to their landlord, airline company, employer that they be required to allow the patient's service animal with the patient. 95% of the requests pertain to mental illness (anxiety, depression, etc). I politely tell them that I don't write letters for service animals. While many people do have their dog go through some of the "training", most just say they feel a certain way if they're away from their animal. Also people seem to think that paying a company online for a vest, or dog tag somehow confers some form of legitimacy. It does not. Ironically the thing that convinced me not to write any letters is actually the guidelines by the ADA itself. It is so vague and lacks so much common sense that I could not in good conscience participate. Let me show some examples:

A person with depression may have a dog that is trained to remind her to take her medication.
Q3. Are emotional support, therapy, comfort, or companion animals considered service animals under the ADA?
A. No.

If someone's dog calms them when having an anxiety attack, does this qualify it as a service animal?
A. It depends.

Q5. Does the ADA require service animals to be professionally trained?
A. No.

Q7. What questions can a covered entity's employees ask to determine if a dog is a service animal?
A. In situations where it is not obvious that the dog is a service animal, staff may ask only two specific questions: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? and (2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform? Staff are not allowed to request any documentation for the dog, require that the dog demonstrate its task, or inquire about the nature of the person's disability.

Q10. Can a person bring a service animal with them as they go through a salad bar or other self-service food lines?
A. Yes.

Q11. Can hotels assign designated rooms for guests with service animals, out of consideration for other guests?
A. No. A guest with a disability who uses a service animal must be provided the same opportunity to reserve any available room at the hotel as other guests without disabilities. They may not be restricted to "pet-friendly" rooms.

Q17. Does the ADA require that service animals be certified as service animals?
A. No. Covered entities may not require documentation, such as proof that the animal has been certified, trained, or licensed as a service animal, as a condition for entry.

So basically I can bring my dog with me anywhere at Disney without any kind of paperwork, and if asked I can tell CMs that it is my support animal because she alerts me when I am about to pass gas.
I apologize for being sarcastic but I get very tired of people who try to scam the system, and government entities who enable them.

Fortunately I have only seen one "service dog" while at WDW in the past 5 years, and none 2 weeks ago when I was at the BC.
Click to expand...
This is an underrated post.

This also supports my hypothesis, from a unique perspective, that MOST "service dogs" you see out there are fakes. Manipulations of the system to get a dog medically certified by a naive medical professional don't make the dog any less fake!
 
Incomudro

Incomudro

Well-Known Member
jloucks said:
This is an underrated post.

This also supports my hypothesis, from a unique perspective, that MOST "service dogs" you see out there are fakes. Manipulations of the system to get a dog medically certified by a naive medical professional don't make the dog any less fake!
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, it's the nature of humans.
For every well intentioned benefit for the needy, there will eventually be scores of people outnumbering the truly needy scamming the system.
 
jloucks

jloucks

Well-Known Member
21stamps said:
A service dog handler should be able to make their own decisions about what their dog can do. Maybe they have a certain command for when it’s time for play to be over.

Live and let live. No reason to crucify people for their own lives and decisions. Especially when they are playing with their dog in a secluded area.
Click to expand...

The problem with this is that it blurs the line between pets and Service Animals and incentifies abuse of the system.

Take this example...

You like dogs. A lot. Probably too much. You want to take your dog with you everywhere. You have noticed more and more "service dogs" out there. You have a mild case of *insert whatever here* and you figure you could use a dog for it. All the dogs you see are happy and frolicking, and having the time of their lives. Sometimes the dogs wear little cute costumes. These are not working dogs, they are happy play pets that get to go everywhere with their owners. Gosh! You want in. You work the system and get a vest and you are off to the dog party!

--verses--

You like dogs. A lot. Probably too much. You want to take your dog with you everywhere. You have noticed more and more "service dogs" out there. You have a mild case of *insert whatever here* and you figure you could use a dog for it. All the dogs you see seem to be working pretty hard. They are super well behaved and it looks like the amount of training involved is substantial. The dogs are never seen playing, and their entire break times in public are only for urinating and defecating, which the owners always pick up. The dogs never wear costumes, play catch, or spend time off the leash. It looks like a lot of work and not like much fun. Gosh, you don't really think it is worth the hassle and responsibility to game the system. You pass on the dog party.

So, that is another reason why owners of service dogs should not do whatever they want with the dogs.
 
KLinder7

KLinder7

Well-Known Member
I stayed at the Yacht a month ago, and sure you can see dogs but in my 9 days hardly noticed. To be honest, I saw more dogs in the actual theme parks than I did at the resort.
 
21stamps

21stamps

Well-Known Member
Incomudro said:
Why?
Because many of today's dog owners - who now call themselves "pet parents" are out of their minds.
Have you seen these people?
Have you noticed how few people who have their dogs out in public on a leash make any attempt to heel the dog?
It's predominantly a much different class of owner out there now, than decades ago.
Click to expand...

I keep responding because so many lines are getting blurred, and so much bad info..so, I’ll try again,

No one likes when people abuse a system such as Service Animals or the new phenomenon of obviously whacko abuse of Emotional Support Animals.
It’s wrong, and it should end.

Within the 1st or second page of this thread it quickly turned into someone saying that they were going to lie about being allergic to dogs , to prevent ANY non service animal from flying. To then all dog owners who travel with their dogs- following rules and regulations that have existed for decades- are selfish and also doing something wrong.

Can we PLEASE stop confusing Rule Following Pet Owners with Abusing a System Pet Owners?

Seriously. I said many pages ago, most of you never knew that the dogs were there before, you probably didn’t even know the policies (understandable if you don’t travel with a dog)... but now it is being brought to your attention because of the ABUSERS.
Regular “pet owners/parents” don’t like to see the abuse any more than anyone else does, it’s actually more bothersome to us as we are paying fees for our dogs wherever they go.

jloucks said:
The problem with this is that it blurs the line between pets and Service Animals and incentifies abuse of the system.

Take this example...

You like dogs. A lot. Probably too much. You want to take your dog with you everywhere. You have noticed more and more "service dogs" out there. You have a mild case of *insert whatever here* and you figure you could use a dog for it. All the dogs you see are happy and frolicking, and having the time of their lives. Sometimes the dogs wear little cute costumes. These are not working dogs, they are happy play pets that get to go everywhere with their owners. Gosh! You want in. You work the system and get a vest and you are off to the dog party!

--verses--

You like dogs. A lot. Probably too much. You want to take your dog with you everywhere. You have noticed more and more "service dogs" out there. You have a mild case of *insert whatever here* and you figure you could use a dog for it. All the dogs you see seem to be working pretty hard. They are super well behaved and it looks like the amount of training involved is substantial. The dogs are never seen playing, and their entire break times in public are only for urinating and defecating, which the owners always pick up. The dogs never wear costumes, play catch, or spend time off the leash. It looks like a lot of work and not like much fun. Gosh, you don't really think it is worth the hassle and responsibility to game the system. You pass on the dog party.

So, that is another reason why owners of service dogs should not do whatever they want with the dogs.
Click to expand...

If it would have been at a park then I would totally agree with you, but this was an obvious private relaxing moment at the beach.
 
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Incomudro

Incomudro

Well-Known Member
21stamps said:
I keep responding because so many lines are getting blurred, and so much bad info..so, I’ll try again,

No one likes when people abuse a system such as Service Animals or the new phenomenon of obviously whacko abuse of Emotional Support Animals.
It’s wrong, and it should end.

Within the 1st or second page of this thread it quickly turned into someone saying that they were going to lie about being allergic to dogs , to prevent ANY non service animal from flying. To then all dog owners who travel with their dogs- following rules and regulations that have existed for decades- are selfish and also doing something wrong.

Can we PLEASE stop confusing Rule Following Pet Owners with Abusing a System Pet Owners?

Seriously. I said many pages ago, most of you never knew that the dogs were there before, you probably didn’t even know the policies (understandable if you don’t travel with a dog)... but now it is being brought to your attention because of the ABUSERS.
Regular “pet owners/parents” don’t like to see the abuse any more than anyone else does, it’s actually more bothersome to us as we are paying fees for our dogs wherever they go.



If it would have been at a park then I would totally agree with you, but this was an obvious private relaxing moment at the beach.
Click to expand...

I suffer no confusion regarding genuine service dogs vs dog owners who scam the system.
 
NelleBelle

NelleBelle

Well-Known Member
Nubs70 said:
I actually saw an ESA cockatoo at the airport in Birmingham AL. Bird had a vest on too.
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No way! Please tell me his bird was in a cage (although I’m sure it probably wasn’t given most ESA) 😡 How do they keep the the bird from pooing all over the place?? Uh-huh, just wrong!
 
Nubs70

Nubs70

Well-Known Member
NelleBelle said:
No way! Please tell me his bird was in a cage (although I’m sure it probably wasn’t given most ESA) 😡 How do they keep the the bird from pooing all over the place?? Uh-huh, just wrong!
Click to expand...
Pearched on his shoulder. It was a well behaved bird.
4228.jpeg
 
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