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Originally Posted by Skip  I'm all for making dog-laws fair and not breed specific, but some people are just rabble rousers also. Unless this Pit was a confirmed, titled seeing-eye service dog (and I HIGHLY doubt that), then what other type of service dog would be necessary for shopping at Wal-Mart? Even the website doesn't mention it. This story stinks. |
Skip, you need to educate yourself. Any dog that has been individually trained to migate a person with a disability can be a service dog. There is no requirement that they be certified.
A friend of mine has trained her rough collie to be her service dog. She has a bad back. She needs him to help her get out of soft chairs and get out of bed in the morning, among other things. You would never guess that she is disablied by just looking at her. Infact, the only thing that is good for her back is to walk and she does a lot of that. She trains and titles her dogs in obedience, herding and agility. On doctor's orders she had to retire from a lucertive job as a director of a major US company due to her disability.
I have a long history of being hard of hearing. I have trained my dog to alert me to certain things that I generally do not hear, or hear well. He would be considered a service dog under the law.
I wished I had him with me a few years ago. I could have died a from a hydrogen gas explosion. I didn't hear the alert and evacuate the building. My hearing loss caused people to go search the building in which I worked, risking their lives because I didn't hear the alarm. Fortunately there was no explosion, but there could have been.
People that I have known for years don't know that I am hard of hearing. I hide it well. Most people don't react well when you tell them that you are not "normal". I don't tell most people because I don't want to risk discrimination. Being hard of hearing has been limiting. I love to go to the movies, but I don't go often because it is a frustrating experience because I miss a lot of dialog. I watch tv with closed captioning. I do a lot of my correspondance via e-mail instead of the phone. Fortunately in business, that doesn't seem weird to insist on e-mail communication.
There is a woman with a beautiful Black Russian Terrier who is her seizure alert dog. Should she be denied entry to Walmart because she doesn't look like she is disabled and her BRT isn't a certified seeing eye dog? The woman with the seizure disorder hasn't had a seizure in over a year, but she could have one any time. Does that mean that she should leave her dog at home to go shopping?
There are lots of different breeds that are used as service dogs. There are any number of reasons why a person needs a service dog. Just because the dog is a pit bull doesn't mean that it isn't trained to assist a person with a disability.