Loopholes in service-dog law easily exploited by pet owners

Just because a dog is wearing a boldly colored vest that says “Service Dog” doesn't mean it's a service dog.

That Fido could be a phony.


NADIA BOROWSKI SCOTT / Union-Tribune
Pam Albertson, who shopped for groceries with her service dog, Cameo, and her boyfriend, John Carpenter, said that people who do pretend to have service dogs don't realize the damage this can cause.
The vests cost about $30 and are easily available online. You can also order patches that say “Medical Alert Service Dog” or “Hearing Alert Service Dog.”

Why would people pretend their pooches have such abilities?

So they can take their dogs just about anywhere they please, including restaurants, beaches, stores, movies and hotels that prohibit ordinary pets.

Kathy Maxfield, who is disabled, knows pet owners who do this and she is livid. It's making it tough for people who have true disabilities and rely on trained service dogs, the San Diego resident said.

“It's just pure wrong.”

And it's just about impossible to stop. The Americans with Disabilities Act, signed into law in 1990, shields those who use service dogs from being harassed when taking their animals to public places.

It's against the law, for instance, for a business owner to ask someone with a service dog what kind of disabilities the person has.


NADIA BOROWSKI SCOTT
/ Union-Tribune
Pam Albertson has a photo ID for her service dog, Cameo, when on Qualcomm property. Using a phony service dog is a misdemeanor in California, but the law is nearly impossible to enforce.
It's also against the law to ask for proof that the animal is a trained service dog. A service dog doesn't have to wear a vest. And it isn't required to have professional training.

The only thing a merchant can ask is whether the animal is a service animal and what tasks it can do.

Because of such privacy protections, it's impossible to estimate how many dogs aren't actually on the up and up. People who train service dogs and people who use them legitimately say it's a growing problem, though. So do officials at the San Diego County Department of Animal Services, which issues special tags for assistance dogs.

“Like anything else, people take advantage,” said Carol Davis of Paws'itive Teams, which trains service dogs in San Diego. “There are dog owners who love their dogs and want them to go everywhere with them.”

Pam Albertson, who relies on her service dog, Cameo, to help her, said the people who do this don't realize the damage they can cause.

An improperly trained dog can be aggressive or ill-behaved. It may not have the calm temperament that her dog, a golden retriever, has. She's concerned that an untrained dog might attack her dog.

“It's one more thing we have to worry about,” she said.



Service dogs today perform a host of tasks for an ever-growing range of people with disabilities.

People in wheelchairs have dogs trained to pick up items they drop. People who suffer seizures have dogs capable of signaling for help.

And people with emotional disorders, such as panic attacks, have trained service animals that can sense an attack coming and step in and perform an act that eases it.

People see all these folks in restaurants and shopping malls with their dogs by their sides and wonder: Why not me and my dog?

Dawn Danielson, director of the county Department of Animal Services, suspects that some of the people who get assistance tags for their dogs are taking advantage of safeguards that were established to protect those with disabilities from uncomfortable inquisitions.

The ADA prevents her staff from asking if the person seeking the tag has a disability or if the dog has any specific training.

“We can't say, 'Hey, that poodle doesn't look like it can do all that much,' ” she said. “Our hands are tied.”

In 2000, 82 tags were given out. Last year, that number had grown to 265.

Kent Krueger, vice president of Lincoln, Neb.-based SitStay.com, which sells service dog vests online, also can't question the motives of those who buy his vests.

“It's the honor code,” Krueger said.

People who pretend that their dogs are service dogs are breaking the law. In California, it's a misdemeanor and punishable by at least six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

There's one problem, though. The law is just about impossible to enforce.

The San Diego Police Department has never made such an arrest, said Det. Gary Hassen, a spokesman.

In 2003, the Sheriff's Department investigated reports that a man and a dog – both of them “filthy” – were entering restaurants and grocery stores, said Jan Caldwell, a spokeswoman. But after conferring with disability experts, the department made no arrests, because the dog might provide psychological comfort and be considered a service dog.



While some people fake it, other people may really believe they have a valid reason to take their pets to public places. They claim the animals provide emotional support. Some get doctors to sign notes, saying the dogs play a role in their health care.

But service dog trainers question the practice, arguing that such dogs aren't trained to do anything. They're pets.

Davis knew of one woman who carried her poodle to a play. She was a breast cancer survivor and her doctor had written a note saying the dog provided continuing support.

“I can understand why people want their dogs with them. Who doesn't?” Davis said.

But such a dog hasn't undergone the rigorous training required of a working service dog, Davis said. And if it behaves badly, it sours the public perception of dogs paired with the disabled. Merchants can ask a person with any dog – including legitimate service dogs – to leave if the animal is acting badly.

Only about 45 percent of the dogs that enter training with Canine Companions for Independence end up graduating from the 2½-year training program, said Corey Hudson, executive director of the Santa Rosa-based organization. He's also president of the North America board of directors for Assistance Dogs International, which works to establish and promote standards for service dogs.

“We select and select and select and then we screen and screen and screen,” Hudson said of the dogs his organization trains.

While ADI has an accreditation program for properly trained dogs, accreditation isn't mandated by any government agency. A person can self-train the dog and claim it performs as a service dog, even if the owner lacks the expertise to train it properly or the dog doesn't have the temperament for the job.

Determining the legitimacy of service dogs is made even more confusing by conflicts over emotional support dogs. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, emotional support dogs are not trained service dogs.

But the U.S. Department of Transportation ruled in 2003 that animals that provide emotional support should be allowed on airline flights. And some courts have ruled that people with emotional support animals can't be denied apartments that prohibit pets.

As the laws have loosened, people have begun showing up in more places with more varieties of animals. Airline passengers have successfully lobbied to bring dogs, cats, monkeys, goats – even a small horse – onboard.

And if they can take their animals on a plane, they figure why not a restaurant or a movie theater?

The Coalition of Assistance Dog Organizations is lobbying the federal government to change the Americans With Disabilities Act's definition of a service animal. To qualify, an animal would need to be trained to mitigate a person's disability, according to the definition sought by the coalition.

That definition stipulates that an animal providing “comfort” would not qualify. Finding a solution will be difficult, said Hudson, director of Canine Companions for Independence, because everyone agrees that people with disabilities shouldn't have to answer demeaning and challenging questions.

Unfortunately, that has created loopholes a St. Bernard can get through.

“And that drags all of us down,” Hudson said.

By Michael Stetz