At Your Service
Let’s set the stage. You’re browsing the aisles of Target on a weekday evening to pick up some mundane cleaning supplies before making your way home. As you stand there, mulling over whether you want your detergent to smell like “fresh linen” or “soft breeze” (what does a breeze even smell like, anyway?), you hear a child down the aisle shout “mommy look at the dog!” You turn to peek and, sure enough, a young man is walking by with a small spotted dog in a bright red vest trotting at his heel! You can’t help but stare for a moment, who doesn’t love to see a cute dog in public, before you go back to your shopping. The team garners quite a few looks and comments as they also attempt to pick out their detergent scent of choice. A few people stare at and speak directly to the dog in excited tones, the child attempts to rush over to pet him before her parent can intervene, one person whips out their phone to snap a photo, a few people roll their eyes and mutter something as they pass about how “people are bringing their pets everywhere these days.” You notice the dog scratches the man’s leg with his paw a few times and the pair quickly retreat towards the back of the store. With a shrug you grab your detergent (you wound up settling for “soft breeze”) and head back home.
Now let’s set a different one. You live with a disability that, among a host of other things, causes chronic pain and occasional fainting. Today is a bad pain day. Everything hurts and you just aren’t feeling up to leaving the house, but you really need detergent so you work up the energy to head out. Frisco, your service dog, eagerly waits by the door for you to put his working vest on that holds your emergency medication. You make it to Target, hoping for a quick in and out visit, but as soon as you walk through the door, a security guard steps up and tells you that pets aren’t allowed. Frisco automatically puts himself in a down-stay at your side as you try to explain that this is your service animal and the ADA laws around public access even though your head is pounding and your heart is racing. You go back and forth for a while, during which the increasingly agitated guard demands to see Frisco’s “certification card” and asks you why you need him, but after a few minutes they begrudgingly allow you to pass by.
It’s much busier than you thought it would be, so you try your best to hustle to the cleaning products section. It feels like everybody is staring at you. You even notice one person blatantly taking your photo. Frisco does such an amazing job of staying focused on you, but even he’s having a hard time with the number of people talking to him, getting down low near him, and reaching to pet him. With a deep breath you pretend to ignore the rude comments from strangers as you finally make it to the laundry aisle. While you have your hands full with two heavy jugs of soap, a young girl suddenly rushes up to you with her hands outstretched. Frisco whips around to pivot into a blocking position behind you as she approaches. Luckily her mother swoops in to pick her up and walk her away without an apology, and seconds later you begin to feel lightheaded. You feel Frisco scratch at your leg, one of his alert behaviors, and you rush to find a place to sit to prevent a fainting incident. At the back of the store, you take a seat on a patio furniture display and Frisco hops up next to you to lay his body over your legs. After a few moments, grateful that Frisco could still alert and task amid the distractions, you pick out your soap and make your way to the exit.
Service dogs have become a bit of a hot button topic. Sensationalized news stories about emotional support peacocks and the misconceptions surrounding service animals have only muddied the waters. Before you jump in on that messy facebook post about a miniature horse on an airplane, we wanted to provide some clarity about what a service animal is, what they do, how they are trained, and what you should do if you ever encounter one in public.
Service dogs, ESAs, and Therapy Animals, Oh My!
First, let’s clear up those definitions. You’ve probably heard the terms service animal, emotional support animal, and therapy animal all used frequently and interchangeably. Despite the similar seeming titles, these are all extremely different things!
Service Animals have been specifically trained for one person to perform tasks that mitigate their disability. They go through extensive training by the owner, a professional organization, an individual professional trainer, or a combination to perform these specific tasks at home and in public. They have full public access rights, meaning they can accompany the handler anywhere the public is allowed (with few exceptions). There are no official or required registries or certifications for service animals! Their ability to perform tasks for their handler alone is what distinguishes them as a service animal.
Emotional Support Animals provide comfort for their people. They are not specifically trained to perform tasks, and in most states they do not have public access rights. Currently, Emotional Support Animals are permitted to ride in the cabin of an airplane to accompany their people, and they are allowed “reasonable accommodations” for housing. There are no official or required registries or certifications for emotional support animals! So don’t fall for the expensive online “certification schemes”. A letter from your doctor or therapist stating you have a need for an emotional support animal alone is what distinguishes them as an ESA.
Therapy Animals provide comfort for many people. They can be trained by the owner, an individual professional trainer, or a combination, and typically receive certification and insurance through an organization like Pet Partners. While therapy animals do not have public access rights, they can be invited to perform therapy work in places like schools, hospitals, courtrooms, etc.
Who qualifies for a service animal?
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) describes an individual with a disability as “a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of the impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment.” There is not necessarily an approved list of specific disabilities, but the service animal must be able to perform specific tasks that directly help the handler with their disability. Guide dogs are an extremely well-known example of service animals, but service dog tasks can include item or medication retrieval, alerting to changes in the handler’s blood sugar levels, detecting allergens in food, providing balance and mobility support, aiding and calming a handler during a panic attack or flashback, and so much more. They can be any size or breed of dog; as long as they can successfully perform their trained tasks, they are service dogs!
In addition to learning tasks, service dogs also undergo intensive training to navigate public spaces. While there is no single official public access test, many organizations (including Assistance Dogs International) have specific guidelines for how working service dogs should behave in public. This training typically includes basic and advanced obedience cues, long periods of settling and tucking into tight spaces, and ignoring all kinds of distractions. Service dogs are not robots, and every now and again they may have an off day or get spooked by something unusual. A service team may only be asked to leave a public place if the dog is disruptive and out of control, or poses an immediate threat to the public.
So you think you want a service animal?
There’s no doubt that service animals can be (at times literally) life-saving additions to a home, but making the decision to take on a service animal is big! Considerations before getting a service animal include:
Do I have time to train?: Many service animal training programs are 1-2 years long! Service animals require a high level of training for both task performance and public access success.
Is the cost within my budget?: Whether you are choosing to acquire a trained dog from a professional organization, or want to take on training yourself, it’s going to also require a financial commitment. It’s much more than simply buying a fancy vest!
Can I care for an animal (even into retirement)?: At the end of the day, your service dog is still a dog who will need all of the normal care, exercise, and enrichment that goes into having an animal in your life. Service dogs will likely not be able to work for their entire natural lives, and they deserve a retirement plan where their needs can still be met.
Am I prepared to navigate the public with a service dog?: Unfortunately, not everyone you may run into in public will be educated on service dog laws and etiquette. Until we can provide more thorough public education about service animals, you may be approached or bothered by strangers, and you may have your access questioned or denied. If this will cause significant distress, it may be worth exploring alternative strategies to mitigate your disability.
Do I really need assistance in public, or do I just want to take my dog everywhere?: Service animals are intended to help with impairments that make daily life events difficult or impossible for their handlers. Being slightly uneasy in crowds would not be a reason to have a service dog, but having debilitating panic attacks in crowds would be. We know all pet dog owners wish Fido could go everywhere with them, but unless you truly need them, let’s keep Fido in pet-friendly places instead!
Is that a service dog?
We’re dog people, so we fully understand how excited you might be to see Frisco strolling through the middle of Target. We described a few different versions of “what not to do” when you see a service animal at the beginning of this blog, but we want to set you up for success.
What should you do when you see a service dog team in public? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You will do that team a massive favor by just pretending the dog is completely and utterly invisible. Most people know they should not try to touch a service dog (though many still try!), but you should also avoid looking at or speaking to a service dog at all. That means no eye contact, no kissy noises or gasping, no offering the service dog food, no attempts to “test” or distract the service dog, and no attempts to make physical contact. If you must address the team, speak to the handler instead.
Service dog handlers are normal people who just want to get their detergent and leave the store like anybody else. Their service dog is their medical equipment which helps them accomplish that goal. Would you ever think to stop and pet a stranger’s oxygen tank, take photos of their wheelchair, or ask them about why they need their hearing aids? Of course you wouldn’t, because that would be unbelievably invasive (and honestly a little creepy.) The same rules apply to service animals. At the end of the day, it’s not the job of disabled people to educate the able-bodied or neurotypical public. They do not owe you their time, and it’s unfair to expect them to offer it.
Maybe you’re thinking, “but I LOVE service dogs and just want to be supportive of their amazing work.” That’s wonderful! Instead of approaching handlers in public, here are some great ways to show some love for service dog teams:
Keep your pet dogs at home or in pet-friendly public spaces only.
Educate your friends about service dog etiquette and laws.
Leave nice comments on service dog handler social media accounts.
Take the time to donate or volunteer for service dog organizations!
Do you still have questions about service animals? Go check out this helpful FAQ Page courtesy of the Americans with Disabilities Act.