Mini-Rant - Service Dog Issue

[SaveTheSeaTurtles]

Hi, all!

I just wanted to post about my recent experience at Publix (this morning actually)

We travel with a service dog. She is tagged and wears a vest so that everyone can see that she is NOT a pet. I purposely ensure that she carries more identification than is required by law.

This is the first time in months that anyone has caused an issue with her. The manager came over as I was in the produce isle and said " Ma'am, I am sorry but dogs are not allowed in our store". I said "are you certain that this is your policy? She is a service dog" - He came around in front of me, saw her credentials and immediately apologized. (She is a smaller dog, so it is not like she is a lab or anything so he had not immediately seen her tags and vest) We have been shopping in this store since we moved here - about 3 months.

I though that was the end of it - until I walked down the next isle - a woman came down the isle from the other end - moving very quickly. She looked irked and came up to us. She said "exactly what can she do????" - : Although businesses are allowed to ask what service she provides - and we gladly tell them - we are not accustomed to the general public being entitled to know. I simply said she is a medical assistance dog.
She huffed at me, and said " I HARDLY think so. I had that breed of dog before and she could not do anything"

I should have thought more quickly and had a witty comeback but we simply walked away. It just upsets me when people do not take the time to educate themselves on service dogs but would prefer instead to angrily confront store patrons. It was not like the dog peed on the lady's steak or drooled on her foot or something...

 

[lovesmurfs]

Hi, all!

I just wanted to post about my recent experience at Publix (this morning actually)

We travel with a service dog. She is tagged and wears a vest so that everyone can see that she is NOT a pet. I purposely ensure that she carries more identification than is required by law.

This is the first time in months that anyone has caused an issue with her. The manager came over as I was in the produce isle and said " Ma'am, I am sorry but dogs are not allowed in our store". I said "are you certain that this is your policy? She is a service dog" - He came around in front of me, saw her credentials and immediately apologized. (She is a smaller dog, so it is not like she is a lab or anything so he had not immediately seen her tags and vest) We have been shopping in this store since we moved here - about 3 months.

I though that was the end of it - until I walked down the next isle - a woman came down the isle from the other end - moving very quickly. She looked irked and came up to us. She said "exactly what can she do????" - : Although businesses are allowed to ask what service she provides - and we gladly tell them - we are not accustomed to the general public being entitled to know. I simply said she is a medical assistance dog.
She huffed at me, and said " I HARDLY think so. I had that breed of dog before and she could not do anything"

I should have thought more quickly and had a witty comeback but we simply walked away. It just upsets me when people do not take the time to educate themselves on service dogs but would prefer instead to angrily confront store patrons. It was not like the dog peed on the lady's steak or drooled on her foot or something...

I guess I would have chosen it as an educational opportunity for the public. "Yes, she's trained to do X, Y and Z, and more information is found at www.xyz.com. Here's some information on it." When it's out of their peripheral, most people don't know. Only you know her tone of voice, but I would rather have someone ask questions than to get dirty looks throughout the store with no comments.

 

[Dax]

Hi, all!

I just wanted to post about my recent experience at Publix (this morning actually)

We travel with a service dog. She is tagged and wears a vest so that everyone can see that she is NOT a pet. I purposely ensure that she carries more identification than is required by law.

This is the first time in months that anyone has caused an issue with her. The manager came over as I was in the produce isle and said " Ma'am, I am sorry but dogs are not allowed in our store". I said "are you certain that this is your policy? She is a service dog" - He came around in front of me, saw her credentials and immediately apologized. (She is a smaller dog, so it is not like she is a lab or anything so he had not immediately seen her tags and vest) We have been shopping in this store since we moved here - about 3 months.

I though that was the end of it - until I walked down the next isle - a woman came down the isle from the other end - moving very quickly. She looked irked and came up to us. She said "exactly what can she do????" - : Although businesses are allowed to ask what service she provides - and we gladly tell them - we are not accustomed to the general public being entitled to know. I simply said she is a medical assistance dog.
She huffed at me, and said " I HARDLY think so. I had that breed of dog before and she could not do anything"

I should have thought more quickly and had a witty comeback but we simply walked away. It just upsets me when people do not take the time to educate themselves on service dogs but would prefer instead to angrily confront store patrons. It was not like the dog peed on the lady's steak or drooled on her foot or something...

Maybe you should have let the dog do that...

Sorry some people are just rude..

I saw a service cat in the airport the other day...very neat...we see service dogs here of all types though..The coolest one we saw was someone had there pug as a seizure dog!

 

[Piglets Mommy]

Since the manager apologised I'd let him slide as for the lady, I might have said something like "I have seen smart and dumb dogs in every breed. Same goes for people." Of course was I actually IN your position, I would have thought of that AFTER the fact.

 

[kwelch10377]

Maybe you should have let the dog do that...

Sorry some people are just rude..

I saw a service cat in the airport the other day...very neat...we see service dogs here of all types though..The coolest one we saw was someone had there pug as a seizure dog!

I don't think I have ever heard of a service cat. The only service my cat can provide is leaving black globs of hair everywhere for me to clean up.

To the OP it really stinks that people feel the need to be that way. I would have responsed , well if you spoke to the dog like you just spoke to me I wouldn't have done anything for you either.

 

[wildernesslodgelover]

I am sorry that happened to you. I am not a good judge of the situation, because I think most of our pets are cleaner and more sanitary than some of the people I see walking around Publix.

Don't let that woman rent space in your head! There are always going to be people that want to comment on everything.

 

[ilovepcot]

The manager came over as I was in the produce isle and said " Ma'am, I am sorry but dogs are not allowed in our store". I said "are you certain that this is your policy? She is a service dog" - He came around in front of me, saw her credentials and immediately apologized. (She is a smaller dog, so it is not like she is a lab or anything so he had not immediately seen her tags and vest)

Sounds as though the manager was kind and polite. Seems you ran into a "loon" of a shopper and that could happen anywhere.

 

[Deb in IA]

Our kids' piano teacher is blind from premature birth, and has a Seeing Eye dog.

She is constantly having to tell people NOT to pet the dog. Yes, she is a friendly-looking Labrador, but she is WORKING and cannot be disturbed.

Amazing how people don't understant that.

 

[DizBelle]

Would you mind sharing the breed and the medical assistance he/she can provide?

I just simply don't know what all services a service animal can provide.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

It stinks that you had to deal with that but to be honest this is a result if every idiot bringing their dog all over town as their shopping buddy. Years ago you would never see an animal in a store that wasn't a service dog. Now everyone can't leave home without their pet. Not everyone finds that cute. So of course now when people have legitimate service animals nobody believes them.

 

[ilovepcot]

Years ago you would never see an animal in a store that wasn't a service dog.

You're probably way too young to remember this, but when I grew up (60's ) people were seen on a regular basis with their small dogs in the top section of their shopping carts in the grocery store. No one said a word nor did anyone look twice. And no, wasn't just in my home town....friends and family members in other areas spoke of the same thing going on in their towns.

I do know and understand what this poster is saying and she's right. It has become a recent "thing" for people to do this. Suppose it's because Hollywood's "glamorous ones" did it and ordinary people wanted to follow suit.

 

[Karalea]

Sounds as though the manager was kind and polite. Seems you ran into a "loon" of a shopper and that could happen anywhere.

Exactly. I would have been nice to the manager and other store employees as they are just doing their jobs. I would have told the other shopper it was none of her @!$@##!! business if she said that to me. You are much nicer than I am.

 

[wdwmom2]

I would have just told her that my dog was a service dog, and if she had a problem with that, for her to please speak with the store manager. I would have ended the conversation right then and there. Period!!!

As far as breed, what does it matter??? There are MANY service dogs that are rescued from the pound and trained for service work. Obviously, this lady knows little about service dogs.

Don't let it get to you. Some people are just crotchety and have no desire to learn the truth.

 

[scottishduffy]

Sadly,

Many people take advantage of the 'service dog' name. While most service dogs are genuine and should be respected as such, there are too many people who take their pets everywhere and claim them as service pets when they obviously are not.

I was at a restaurant a few weeks back and saw a middle aged woman at a nearby table with a yappy little yorkie standing on the table. She was feeding it from her plate. It definitely was not trained, it was like any other yappy yorkie. But when a manager asked she claimed it as a service pet. These types of people who take advantage are sadly making it more difficult for the real service animals.

 

[swanmom]

She looked irked and came up to us. She said "exactly what can she do????" - :

You probably should have said that "she's trained to attack when she feels that I am approached by someone threatening."

 

[Rora]

OP- I'm sorry that happend. That really really stinks and some people are just so rude.

You did the right thing by just walking away. Certain people don't even deserve a witty comback.

 

[sunnyday123]

"She eats stupid people!"

 

[SaveTheSeaTurtles]

I don't think I have ever heard of a service cat. The only service my cat can provide is leaving black globs of hair everywhere for me to clean up.

To the OP it really stinks that people feel the need to be that way. I would have responsed , well if you spoke to the dog like you just spoke to me I wouldn't have done anything for you either.[/QUOTE]


That would have been amusing - sometimes it is either laugh or cry ! Sometimes in my more upset moments, I think of funny things like that just to make myself stop thinking about it.(athough I would never actually say them) -

Thank you!

 

[bumbershoot]

I can understand that it bugged you, but education would probably be a good thing. As it is, she's probably crabbing to people about the cheater. But if you could have given her a range of the things that service animals can do, she might have had an "aha" moment.

I know that you don't want to bare your medical soul to random people, which is why I said to give her a variety....some animals can detect oncoming seizures so people can get safe, some animals can detect swings in blood sugar before the person can detect it, etc etc...

I know that once I found out about the variety of things animals can do (some have to be trained, while others do it by instinct) it was good for me! I have indeed had a very negative experience with a fakey mcfakerson neighbor who lied just so she could have an otherwise-forbidden-by-the-apt-complex breed*, BUT it hasn't soured me on others that I see. If only others would do the same!



*she had worked in apt management and knew what to say, she said they were to detect seizures but they NEVER went ANYWHERE with her, and more fun stuff...we finally moved away so we didn't have to deal with her dogs (after the second time the female blocked DH from getting out of his car and the dog had to be dragged away by the owner's boyfriend while the dog was out for a potty break *alone*, while the owner was off at work, as usual, without her service dog(s)...the female was possessive and defended the entire building as belonging to her owner, even though there were 8 or so apartments in the building).

 

[SaveTheSeaTurtles]

Thank you all for your understanding (and often funny posts).

I just want to clarify - I never mind if someone asks me about the dog. This lady was being mean and confrontational - that is why I was upset. Most often, we are approached by children who want to "look at/pet the doggy" - sometimes, I am able to allow her to spend time with them and other times, I am not - it depends on the circumstance. Sometimes I hear their parents tell them "no, she is a working dog and we cannot pet her

We have often provided education - and don't mind doing it but not to someone who is being an idiot. She did not approach us like she genuinely wanted to know anything, just that she wanted us to know by her tone and body language that WE did NOT belong there while she was shopping...

Service dogs are not required to be tagged and wear vests - it makes it easier for those of us that have the dogs to put the ID's on her/him (and easier for store workers too so they are not stressing) . In our case, her vest has a badge that says " Working Dog. Do Not Pet" and she also wears an ID tag, noting that she is a service dog with full access. When I travel, I carry medical documentation so that if it is ever required, I have that too but I don't carry it with me every day, just like I don't carry my passport.

There are people who will abuse the term or use of dogs - but that is no different than someone who abuses any other system - ie: store return policies, using handicapped parking spots when they are not legally allowed to, misleading CM's at Disney by telling them a restaurant reservation was made when it wasn't just so they can get their table NOW , the infamous refillable mugs, etc - all of which we have all seen happen. I really just try to worry about getting my own life right and doing the best I can - I have enough to handle without taking on everyone else's issues. We all need to decide what we need to do in order to be able to sleep at night and feel good about our contribution in this life.

There are many people that simply do not like animals - and I really do get that - but I guess like so much else in this world, we need to accept that not everyone is the same. And to the poster who noted that many dogs are cleaner than some of the people in the stores - I will agree. We were in a restaurant once and saw an either homeless or near-homeless man at the next booth - he ordered only water and promptly used it to wash his hands, arms, face and neck & then ordered another glass of it. After that, he left. Miss Service Dog spent her time laying on the floor at our feet. Things happen all the time -sometimes, you can only shake your head and move on.

I think that part of the issue is that some people have the image in their minds that a service dog is a dog that would accompany someone in a wheelchair or someone who has a seeing-eye dog - that is not the case with many service animals. I have even heard of some people who have service horses (the small ones) although I have not personally seen one of them.
What it comes down to is that someone who requires the use of a service dog or requires one in order to be able to complete normal every day tasks of living, does not necessarily display a physical disability that is readily apparent. I think I am "preaching to the choir" here as they say -

I was just bothered by it this morning - we are so seldom treated in a mean way. (and for the record, I in no way fault the manager for coming over to me. He was kind and immediate in his response. What I THINK happened was that that same woman was the one who approached him in the first place and in the interest of customer service, he did what was expected to him). We often have employees who "casually" walk by to glance at her vest/tags & then keep going - and I don't mind that at all.

People who do use service animals legitimately are aware that, for example, when they go into a restaurant, the dogs are not permitted to eat from the table and use the dishes, etc. My dog is not even allowed to eat her own food in restaurants - she is working and will eat when we get home.

Thanks for reading my post. Maybe someone will read it and want to learn more about the use of service dogs !!

Take care and have a great evening.