Interesting! I had never heard of one. I was actually just joking about non-service dogs that people carry around in purses claiming they are. Maybe there should be some type of service “bag” (like there are vests).
I knew a woman got a therapy pet “certificate” (not sure what it is called) from her vet for her dog so the dog could fly with her. (It was not a therapy dog - she was not diagnosed with anything (except entitlement - LOL). The dog was not trained for anything - not even house broken!)
I am all for therapy and service pets - I think they are amazing and amazing for their humans!
Obviously service dogs go through a lot of training and are identified as “service” through their vests, harnesses, etc. Yes, they should be allowed.
I am not sure about the process for an individual’s pet to be identified as a “therapy”. From what little I know, there does not seem to be any type of training required, so while that pet may be a comfort to its owner, it may not be to others. So I will go with “no” on being allowed everywhere.
I know a teen with a small service dog who can detect when she will have a seizure before it happens. It doesn’t go around in a purse but it easily could. It’s a tiny dog doing a good job.
I’m not a fan of dogs going places. There are a lot of great pet owners but the ones who aren’t are problematic. My youngest was afraid of dogs for years because so many run at people while barking, Even if restrained by a leash. My favorite is when the owner would says “oh didn’t worry, he won’t hurt you” as the dog is jumping and barking at my 6 year old. Well all the progress we might have made getting past the dog fear just went out the window! He’s scared. Again
Then our school district got a pack of therapy dogs and he learned to really like them a lot. Plus he grew so is bigger than dogs now, LoL.
My dog was a therapy dog. Not for myself, but to bring into a hospital/hospice/nursing home facility. The training was very extensive. Advanced canine good citizenship class and then months of speciality classes. We did training weekends in a facility that worked with brain injured adults so the trainers could see how the dogs reacted to unpredictability - metal trays dropping on the floor in front of them, speciality equipment, shouting/screaming, etc… That was early in the process to check for temperament. Dogs that instinctively snap at being spooked were automatically eliminated early. The dogs that startled and then immediately bounced back, went on.
Some of the more difficult tasks for therapy dogs were to be able to be put in a “stay” and remain there for two minutes with their person out of the room and continue to “stay” until the person returns and give the release command. They also need to be able to “leave” anything that may fall on the floor so if someone dropped pills, the dog would obey the command. (The test for that was the dog had to walk across the room alone with high reward treats on the ground and leave everything and just come right to me.)
My understanding that “real” therapy dogs, which can be used for everything from PTSD, mental illnesses, predicting seizures, etc…are highly trained.
The problem is that so many people have cheated the system, it’s impossible to tell these days.
Thanks for the link! Sounds just like the woman I know. When I teach NAMI classes, I ask her to come speak to the group. She was fortunate that a trainer offered to supply her a service dog at no cost. That little dog passed away and she has a new one, but I don’t know if that dog is trained the same way.
Unfortunately emotional support animal designation was taken advantage of…especially with the airlines. Sample of one (but it’s not a single by any means). Friend’s daughter had a mastiff. She had it noted as an emotional support animal, and because of its size, it was with her in the bulkhead area…at no charge. She did this when flying to visit her family and friends who live quite far from where she lives. Since emotional support animals no longer fly for free…she has not been to visit her parents, siblings or friends here. She won’t pay for the pooch, and won’t allow him to travel where the pets travel. She was angry. Oh…and this was only an emotional support animal for airline reasons.
Therapy dogs, used in facilities as you described, are well trained. Emotional support pets are not, and some people try to conflate the two terms. Neither, though are service animals.
This may be a bit of a tangent, but in our area I see a lot of owners taking their dogs out for a “walk” in a pet stroller. I suppose it makes some sense if it is a senior dog that no longer walks far, but I have seen young and healthy dogs being pushed in strollers as well.
I find it hilarious, but have not summoned the nerve to ask the owners the point of this practice.
We live in a sort of rural area with two acre zoning. There are only 12 houses on our street, and only two dog owners. Both are very nice dogs. One owner is responsible and makes sure their dog is in their yard, unless accompanied by the owners.
The second owner thinks it’s OK for her dog to roam the neighborhood not on a leash. When the dog comes to our house, he runs around the house and it makes our poor cat crazy. The dog is easily accompanied home by me…but the neighbor doesn’t seem to see the issue (adding, she needs to come clean up after her dog too). Last time I took the dog home, the neighbor was dealing with leaves. She asked if I thought the dog should be put in the house. I politely told her that that was a good idea…unless she could keep her dog from wandering away. She was insulted.
I have a dog stroller. I use it when my dog has a flare up of arthritis or he luxates his patella. That can happen to even young dogs. I also take it if I want to get him out of the house for a long walk that I know is too long for him. I loves being outside.
Older S’ and GF’s dog is now being pushed in a stroller. She’s not quite 2 and probably looks healthy in the stroller. But she just had surgery on 1 leg and will have surgery on the other next month. She has a condition where her knees easily pop out of joint. They tried to wait to see if it could get better, but it’s not. And without the surgery she wouldn’t be able to walk anymore in a few years.
But because of this, she’s never been able to go on long walks. Though the stroller is new, I could see it being a good thing if they wanted to go longer and take her.
Some people brought up small children. I will say that the number of parents who allow their children to run up with hands out to grab at strange dogs is amazing to me. Not a good idea. My last girl who was just the sweetest thing, had dog dementia the last two years of her life. She was often fearful. A little girl ran over and grabbed her on her rear and she snapped at the air in fear. The girl’s mom proceeded to tell me I shouldn’t walk my “vicious “ dog. I had some unkind words for her.
I guess this was more or less what I thought, but just remembering our dogs really didn’t like being out in crowds as they aged or if they weren’t feeling well.
But all dogs are different, just like people.
There are very few retail establishments where non service dogs should be allowed, including:
Pet stores
Hardware Stores, where permitted (around me all the big box hardware stores welcome dogs)
Other stores that specifically welcome pets (we have a bird food store with a big sign in the window to this effect)
Outdoor seating at restaurants, where permitted
Moreover, if you have an aggressive or poorly behaved dog, they should not be at any of these places.
We have a fairly large dog who is sweet and well behaved, and she often comes with me on my numerous trips to Home Depot. Beyond that, the petfood store, and the dog park, she stays home.
When we bring Maggie to Home Depot the staff universally love on her, as do some other shoppers. The store keeps treats at the checkouts, which is a bonus.
I’ve probably run by their house.