No service dogs allowed?

Service dogs. The Americans with Disabilities Act. McDonalds et al.

You have a service dog. Your dog is permitted to accompany you to pretty much any public place in the U.S., right? You know the law. Does the American public know the law? Too often the answer is no. The Today Show recently ran the story of the mother of autistic twins, their service dog, and a confrontation at McDonalds. Is this unusual? Unfortunately, no. Similar scenarios play themselves out daily in this country.

Sue Kindred, President of Service Dog 411, noted examples of noncompliance with service dog laws in a recent white paper:

• In Denver, Colorado a blind woman tried to hail a cab. The cab driver insisted that she put her service dog in the trunk of his cab. 
• In South Carolina, a woman entered a restaurant, and the owner asked her to sit far away from the other patrons in the back of the restaurant at a less desirable table.
• In New York, a man entered a bus with his service dog and he was ridiculed and harassed by the bus driver because his dog “didn’t have a handle” and she knew it couldn’t be a real service dog.
• In Florida, a young man was denied entrance to a “big box” warehouse store because they “require papers on all service dogs and we keep records”.

According to Kindred "In each of these instances, the service dogs were wearing a vest. The owners were humiliated and so uncomfortable with the harassment they received, that THEY complied with the business owners demands to put the dog in the trunk, sit away from other patrons, get off the bus, and leave the store. Sadly, this is all too often the case and it perpetuates the criminality of not abiding by the law."

What should you do if you and your service dog are denied access? The Delta Society recommends:

"If you are illegally denied access to or otherwise discriminated against in a place of public accommodation because of your service animal, stay calm. Explain that the ADA (or state law if it provides greater protection) protects your right to be accompanied by your service animal in places of public accommodation. If that does not get you admitted, ask to speak to the manager or supervisor. Repeat the explanation. If you are still not admitted, you can politely offer to call the police to have them explain the law."

Going somewhere with your service dog? Carry with you at all times a card that explains your service dog's rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Sharing these cards with anyone who questions your rights will, hopefully, continue the process of educating employees and owners of businesses: 

There are many kinds of service dogs - not just service dogs for the blind - and they are ALL permitted in your place of business.