Originally Posted by Bonny (Post 1433215)

It really saddens me to read all the people bashing on here.
I have a friend who lost her husband a couple of years ago after 55 years of marriage. He was her world and did everything. After he passed away, she mostly stayed in the house depressed and crying. Her friends tried to help, but it was so hard on her. Some of us talked her into getting a little dog. Needless to say, the dog is now her life. Several of us think that little fur baby saved her.
Yes, she doesn't go anywhere without her little dog. So what. She now gets out some instead of being shut in. They don't hurt anyone. I truly believe, contrary to what others say, that this dog is a service dog, therapy dog, whatever.
She's not an evil person "gaming the system". She's a wonderful person. She just needed a little help to help her get through life.
God bless her. She and her fur baby can sit by me any day.

Originally Posted by capecodder1 (Post 1438921)

I was at one of the regional rec centers and a man came into the line dance class, with a dog in a stroller. I inquired at the front desk if this was allowed and was told rec center employees are not allowed to question anyone claiming to have a comfort dog.

Does not sound right to me.

Originally Posted by KakiOmmm (Post 1435682)

I help with service dog training and they are real service dogs. I continue to hope for the goodness of humanity and less judgement of other people's lives.

Originally Posted by capecodder1 (Post 1438921)

I was at one of the regional rec centers and a man came into the line dance class, with a dog in a stroller.

Originally Posted by Wiotte (Post 1434053)

Home

The REAL thing

Originally Posted by Wiotte (Post 1433035)

I'm not sure when this happened, I guess I wasn't paying attention. At what point in our society did the distance between man and beast become blurred. I love my dog and I keep a definite boundary between the dog and me, it's master. I do not tolerate my dog on furniture which includes the BED, uggh. Any business that needs to be done is done OUTSIDE. None of that wee wee pad nonsense, REALLY ? Only human pigs allow this. When it comes time to put my dog down, he goes down. I will not spend $15K to extend it's life for another 6 months. At the end, I will dig a hole 6' deep and place my beloved companion wrapped in his favorite blanket and place him at the bottom of his final resting spot. Along with his favorite toys. As I backfill his new home I'll think of all the good times we had together knowing that the distance we kept between us was healthy for BOTH of us, for I'm his master and he the dog.

Originally Posted by Sandtrap328 (Post 1432637)

I was at Spanish Springs this evening for the Rocky and the Rollers entertainment. They were excellent, as usual.

A few minutes before 5, a couple walked onto the square with their dog and took seats near me. In a couple of minutes, I go over and engage them in conversation. Their dog was wearing a vest that read, "Service Dog...Do Not Pet". I definitely can respect that in a service dog. This was a ShiuTsu! We got talking and I asked what kind of service the ShiuTsu performed. The man said his wife was a little hard of hearing. When the husband is out of the house, the dog will bark when someone rings the doorbell so his wife knows someone is there.

What dog doesn't bark when someone comes to the door? For this, they bought a service vest and can take the dog into restaurants, fly it free on airplanes, and stay in pet-free hotels with no extra charge.

I totally understand appreciating a dog announcing a visitor to someone hard of hearing ...but to take it to the squares, etc ... is gaming the system. What service was the dog going to do outdoors, going to a restaurant, on a plane, etc since the service only applied at their house?

Don't get me wrong, no one loves dogs or cats more than me - but gaming the system like this just rankled my feathers - so to speak.

My lovely wife just said that I do not know if this couple would do all those things and maybe the service vest was just to kindly tell people not to pet the dog. I did not think of that. It is a possibility either way.

Originally Posted by Mrs. Robinson (Post 1438954)