Last weekend, I read about service animals for people with disabilities and how they differ from support animals. Until reading this material that explained the differences between the two, I had not really thought much about the issue. A service animal is one who is trained to not only recognize a need but is also trained to act upon it. For example, a service animal who is paired up with someone who has anxiety would know what to do when his or handler is beginning to grow anxious or is having an anxiety attack. On the other hand, a support animal would possibly “calm” down the handler by being present but would not remove the handler from the situation as a service animal would.
I was also very surprised to read that miniature horses could be service animals! I typically think of dogs when I hear the term and never even considered that a miniature horse could serve in that role. If businesses and members of the public might have issues relating to service animals who are dogs, can you even imagine how those same businesses and the public would react upon the arrival of a miniature horse carrying out the role of service animal??
What I learned in my readings is that according to the American Disabilities Act (ADA), a public accommodation (business, member of the public, etc.) may only ask two questions when it comes to service animals:
1. Is the animal required because of a disability?
2. What work or task has the animal been trained to perform?
2. What work or task has the animal been trained to perform?
A public accommodation may NOT ask for proof that the animal is indeed a service animal. This was very surprising for me to learn because I would think that asking for proof is a reasonable request. As a dog owner, I am used to having to show “proof” that my dog is up to date on his vaccinations whether I take him to a local nursing home to visit elderly clients, take him to the kennel, or for a visit to the community dog park. I would think that showing proof that the animal is a legitimate service animal would help to eliminate or at least cut down on the instances in which people falsely say their pets are service animals to avoid paying fees or to have their pets be with them (i.e., on vacation, at a restaurant, etc.).
Another consideration that I had not thought about until reading this material was that service animals are not used just for physical disabilities. I guess, what came to mind for me, was vision or hearing dogs who assist those with vision or hearing losses. I had never thought about service dogs being used to assist those with sensory, psychiatric, and neurological disabilities as well. Check out this link that takes you to some Youtube videos that demonstrate service dogs working with veterans who struggle with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other psychiatric disabilities.
Another article that I read for class, dealt with a little boy with autism who had a service dog. His home district opted to send the little boy and his dog to a different school a half hour from home due to his having a service dog citing that the dog was not part of his Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and concern over at least one other student in his old class having severe animal allergies. This is a tricky situation…as an animal allergy sufferer myself, I wonder where do you draw the line? I understand the little boy needs his service dog and that he has the right to being mainstreamed and educated in his home district but at the same time is it fair to other students or staff to be exposed to something that may cause allergic reactions? Depending on how severe of an allergy there is, that can be a life threatening issue. I suppose a solution could be to remove the people who are allergic so that the little boy and his dog can attend but where would you put them? Would they go into a different classroom? Would they have to go to a different school? I can see this case from both sides of the issue. What do you think??!
Cambria, N. (2009, September 14). Autistic boy with dog will start at new school. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved from http://www2.stltoday.com/news/local/education/article_c4f3fe11-7d9f-500b-97de-6ea948bb4670.html
Novelli, R. (2010, July 7). Blue dog’s blog: The life of my two-legged friend [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://bluedogblog.com/2011/06/03/discussion-of-the-new-ada-service-animal-definition/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bluedogblog+%28Blue+Dog%27s+Blog%29
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