Therapy dogs in shops and restaurants

[Humpback21]

Where I used to work we had a rule of no dogs except assistance and guid dogs etc. in the last few years at that job we get dogs coming in as “therapy dogs” with coats for the dog saying therapy dog.One lady would bring her big dog pulling on the lead I questioned her and politely said no dogs allowed she claimed it was a therapy dog but it didn’t like to wear its coat and collar. I recently saw a dog outside the supermarket with therapy dog written on its coat waiting with its owner and all their shopping. There are no dog charity’s that train dogs to be assistance therapy dogs. I know of charities that bring therapy dogs into hospitals and care homes. Are people really buying fake coats for their dogs so they don’t have to part with them. I’m all for dogs and am a massive dog lover but surely dog owners have to realise that a trained assistance dog in a public or private space is trained to be

What about people who are scared of dogs? Should they have to avoid packs of dogs in the supermarket just to buy their necessary provisions?

Hyberbole much? Never seen “a pack” of dogs in a supermarket. Have occasionally seen a guide dog. Have seen the bonkers lady locally with her two poodles but even then only seen her a couple of times. So even with the potential for people system I don’t think anyone is in danger of stumbling across packs of dogs in .Tesco.

And yes, I do think someone with a genuine disability trumps someone with a fear of dogs. Would you rather all the blind people stayed at home? If someone with a phobia is unfortunate enough to encounter a dog I’m sure they can go down a different aisle or wait two mins for that aisle to be dog free.

of course a proper registration scheme would be better. Dogs don’t have to be officially trained but there could maybe be a dog competency test to show the dog can do what the owner says it can do. 🤷‍♀️

there are idiots on here that think I should be imprisoned and my dog put down

where has anyone said that?

also from what you’ve described your dog meets the definition of an assistance dog under the equalities act, not an ‘emotional support dog’.

Oh yes legislation creating a register to allow people to register their assistance dogs (who often are self trained) would be very helpful, but it doesn’t exist. It’s probably too difficult though, all my dog really needs to do is stick with me, others need more specialist training That is why you stating a proper assistance dog would have paperwork is incorrect. This type of misinformation is damaging. Imagine if every time you went somewhere in your wheelchair people demanded you proved you needed it by getting you to provide medical records.

My dog is non- shedding and likely to of less an issue to those with allergies (although some would obviously still be affected) But would you expect every place that served food to stop using ingredients which were allergens?

Despite numerous claims to the contrary I’ve never seen a dog do anything but sit or lie down /maybe get up to have a drink of water in any pub etc. Dogs simply do not go running round pubs. Basically you get dog haters who see a dog move and it’s out of control.

I agree that those with a genuine disability, such as blindness, trump people with a fear of dogs. But people with a fear of dogs trump people with unofficial "emotional support dogs" for spurious reasons.

There was a post up thread if you look although hopefully it’s been deleted. Another post saying only guide dogs should count as assistance dogs and people claiming wrongly all assistance dogs have paperwork. This thread has a complete lack of understanding esp regarding mental health to the point of hate. Life is difficult enough for people with mental health without having to explain the presence of an aid that helps them. Can you imagine a post about the inconvenience of businesses adapting to wheelchair users. Rightfully people would shoot it down.

Many people with ESA animals probably fall within the definition of disabled. Many people with mental health issues find it difficult to access proper help both practically and psychologically. The stigma surrounding mental health and the complete lack of support is sickening. Try telling an employer you’re disabled because of mental health issues compared with say mobility issues. Many people with mental health issues resist being labelled as disabled. It’s so complex. Many just suffer silently trying to muddle through, a dog might allow this person to leave their house but the person cannot engage with agencies - how is that person going to cope with demands around registration going to training classes etc when their well behaved dog is doing everything it needs to by just being there. This idea of Britain being overrun with badly behaved dogs is not an accurate picture. Things such as this thread add to the narrative of mental illness being some kind of attention seeking, second class disability where the sufferer is blamed. That is not OK. It is not ok to try and disadvantage
peoplexsuffering disability or poor mental health to try and hide the fact people just don’t like dogs. Do some people take advantage, do some take the piss? Yep absolutely but this happens in all areas. Are people suggesting reasonable adjustments shouldn’t be made for wheelchair users because some benefit cheats fake mobility issues?

Research is showing more and more people benefit from having dogs. More and more people are suffering mental ill health, mental health is helped by a variety of measures, all round treatment helps, often it is a permanent issue. Someone finding dog drool “unattractive” is not justification for those who often are in a living hell having their lives made even more difficult

Maybe the official assistance dogs could be chipped so that it alerts the supermarket to their presence. If they see a dog in the store that doesn't have a chip, they can take appropriate action.

As of shat is an official assistance dog? There is not such thing.

And was it that should say lol

Well make it an official thing. There should be a national registry of official assistance dogs.

It’s a legal requirement for all dogs to be chipped already…

And what would be the requirements to go on the register and who would pay for it?

So, the supermarket must have some scanner on the entrance that scans dogs as they go in?
Madness!

What's a genuine disability to you other than blindness?

I'd honestly rather have a Dog in a restaurant being a good boy, than listen to your miserable moaning's! I can tell your fun at parties too

@Gingerkittykat actually he is registered as an emotional support dog, my psychologist signed my forms and the fair housing guidelines allow pets which would otherwise be prohibited.

Actually it is proven that animals have a massively positive impact on peoples well being. Many people with mental health issues find it difficult to interact with people. You are being incredibly derogatory to people in these circumstances.

People holding those sorts of views are the sort that think mental health issues are all made up and perpetuate the stigma they face.

I suspect I would feel a lot better spending an hour in the company of a dog than with you.

I don't doubt at all that some people find dogs soothing etc. But that doesn't mean they should be allowed to take them everywhere they go.

You do understand mental health don’t you? Or do you just think it’s nothing a hug and a bit of backbone wouldn’t sort out?

for many dogs make a massive difference in their day to day lives and enable them to do many things most people wouldn’t think twice about.

People like me didn't cope.

They probably coped with negative coping mechanisms like self harm and alcohol.

I have noticed myself some badly behaved dogs wearing a therapy dog vest, just a few weeks ago a bloke had four cockapoo therapy dogs in the beer garden of a local pub and they barked at each other the whole time but I've seen plenty that behave well. I think issues arise when there's no minimum behaviour standards to be classed as a therapy dog.

I don't think it's a case of people pretending their pets are therapy dogs, and just whacking a vest on the family pet but that because they're purchased with the intention of improving mental health and giving emotional support to a specific family member rather than being for the whole family, to that person it is a therapy dog, because it gives them a reason to live and purpose.

If a dog is what people need to live a normal life then they should be able to to talk those dogs to the places they need, but.I do think there needs to be minimum standards of behaviour in public for therapy dogs to be allowed the same places service and other assistance dogs are.

There's a few social media accounts where people with guide dogs or assistance dogs document their encounters with poorly behaved therapy/emotional support dogs, things like them running up and growling at a working guide dog, or barking at other service dogs and that's not ok.

Maybe something similar to an agility tests where the dog has to show they are capable of not barking at and approaching other dogs when wearing the vest, no leash pulling, no approaching or jumping at people.

I think this would be really helpful although consideration would need to be given re the funding and how people with mental health issues would react to test environments, eg whether it would be best done at their home etc.

ideally this would then lead to official recognition.

Oh I don’t know, there are some very badly trained animals due to bad pet owners. That said, I cannot fathom that an owner trained assistance dog would ever demonstrate behaviour like that. I was just reiterating that point because service/assurance animals are usually exceptionally well trained and therefore, when people make excuses about “badly behaved dogs”, it doesn’t apply to service dogs (even owner trained ones). 🙂