It is really difficult to go after people breaking EA law like Wetherspoons, as a solo person anyway. Many many places are breaking EA access laws in a variety of ways, but the police aren't interested and where do you go from there, bring about a private law suite - who has the cash for that, not me!
Back to assistance dogs.
To limit them to just those who can afford a professionally bred and trained dog or a charity supplied dog would rule out the vast majority of people needing an assistance dog.
So owner trained has to be acceptable.
To require them to be registered or wear equipment, would again put extra costs and hoops in place for someone already at a disadvantage to jump through - it would limit who could have an assistance dog.
It is strongly recommended by anyone who supports owner training (like me, an independent trainer) that dogs do wear jackets/harnesses that identify them as an assistance dog. I think its good practice, however there may be times you're out with your dog for a walk and you didn't take their kit with them and then you do need to use their skills... it shouldn't be mandatory.
I ask my clients that their dog be clean and tidy, well behaved in public, under their control at all times (And if their disability means this may not be possible, their dog needs to be tethered to them, and must 100% allow others to touch them, touch the dog, and lead the dog away if necessary. No 'protecting' the unconcious person from strangers, that is a sure fire route to not getting paramedic treatment if you need it, and potentially losing the dog their life!)...
When I have clients who are planning a puppy to be an assistance dog, I ask they VERY carefully consider the breed and the tasks they want that dog to do, and where they want them to task.
So if they would like a St Bernard, but they want it to work outside of the home, say, on public transport, I recommend they stick to that being a pet dog and get a more suitable breed (for one thing by the time a St Bernard is old enough to work it only has a couple of years of working life left!)...
Back when I did more in person training, all the stores/venues we worked with, I had a meeting with management and made them aware that they COULD ask teams to leave if the dog were filthy, dripping wet or covered in mud/shit etc (not merely hairy or panting), or out of control. We went through what that might look like because some tasks may look like a dog out of control - eg:
- wilful disobedience to handler, leading them out of the store or making them sit down for example.
- dog barking at the handler
- dog putting paws in the handlers lap
There are times when an assistance dog needs to be disobedient - eg, handler asks the dog to walk with them across the road, but the dog knows the handler is about to faint or seize. Owner ignores an indication that they need to sit down or take medication so the dog insists vocally or physically.
At no point should the assistance dog bark at or make contact with a member of the public. If a handler should pass out or sieze, the dog should sit quietly with the handler, may do deep pressure therapy (climb on and squash their handler) but they should NOT seek out strangers, bark at strangers, prevent people from aiding the handler.
Unfortunately as with pretty much every accessiblity concession to the disabled or reasonable accomodation, there are people who will take the fucking piss.