#benefits of an ESA: comfort and support at home and anywhere pets are allowed and if well behaved allowed in no pet housing and on airplanes | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

blindbeta · 3 years

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Hi! I'm writing a blind character who uses (among other accessibility aids) a seeing-eye animal. This is science fiction, and they're on an alien planet, so I don't want it to be a dog exactly, but I also want to make sure it could conceivably fill the same role. My ideas are ranging from "generic four-legged mammal" to "scampering lizard beast" to "literal alien bird." Is there anything I should avoid? Anything I should be sure to include? Any tips are welcome!

Title: Creating a Guide Animal a.k.a. Way More Than You Ever Wanted To Know About Service Animals, Emotional Support Animals, and Guide Dogs and Guide Horses Specifically

Hi! Thanks for the fun question! I wanted to apologize for the length of this answer. Take your time with it. Even if you already know most of the extra information I provided (which you probably do), I hope it can give you some idea of what might need to be emphasized or explained in your story. I wanted to be as thorough as possible for you and anyone else reading. Understanding more about guide animals will help you create one for your story.

Note: I use Service Animal and Guide Animal in this post. All Guide Animals are Service Animals (they are trained to provide a service to disabled people), but not all Service Animals are Guide Animals.

Okay, as always, this is going to be split into parts for easier understanding. Also, note: This is the perspective of someone who does not use a guide animal and is from a Western country. If someone who uses a guide or service animal AND is from a non-Western country with different laws, feel free to share them. Due to the nature of this question, I only want other blind people and/or service animal users to reply with information. I mostly focused on Western links and laws, as I feel these were easier for me to find sources for when I searched.

The Seeing Eye (trademarked) in an Alien World?

Fun fact! Seeing Eye dog is a specific type of dog trained in The Seeing Eye Inc in New Jersey, USA. The generic term is guide dog or service dog or service animal. I would stick with one of the generic terms, as Seeing Eye dog is specific to Earth. Not all guide dogs come from The Seeing Eye Inc. It would be inaccurate, possibly culturally strange, and take viewers out of the story if you use it. Unless you want someone to establish a Seeing Eye Inc on the new planet, although you could call it something else to avoid confusion, or address it in the text. The Seeing Eye is, thankfully, not the only training school for guide dogs. Although Vision Australia does call them “seeing-eye dogs”, I wanted to include this just in case it tripped a reader up. People will recognize the “seeing-eye dog” term if you decide to use it.

Question 12 on the Seeing Eye website says:

Only dogs trained by The Seeing Eye, Inc., of Morristown, N.J., are properly called Seeing Eye® dogs. The Seeing Eye is a registered trademark. The generic term for dogs trained by other schools is "guide dog."

Guide Dogs and Canes

This may not seem as fun to readers, but your character should follow most Earth rules when training. This is to avoid confusion for a public that tends to know little about service animals. You specificied the character would use other aids, which is great, so I’ll assume you already know this. Your character should already know how to use a cane before getting their guide animal. They will need to use these navigation skills because while the animal can help somewhat, they cannot replace the ability to navigate. For example, when crossing the street, the guide dog waits for the owner’s command to cross. In order to do this, the person must have experience with crossing safely.

Guide animals are also more expensive than canes, which can be free and easy to replace. Animals require food, toys, medical bills, and time.

My source on this is also the Seeing Eye website, which you’ll want to peruse because they have helpful information.

Other Helpful Research Tips

I have two links below about choosing to use a cane vs. a guide animal. They will provide you with information about the advantages and disadvantages of a service animal compared to using a cane. As I said before, blind people must know how to use a cane in order to qualify to get a guide dog. Therefore, it would be appropriate and helpful to have your character also know how to use a cane and to keep a cane on them often, such as in a backpack.

Reasons one might want to use a cane while having a guide dog include:

They want to interact with their environment more, particularly if it is less familiar or has changed

They don’t want to use the guide dog that day because it is too hot, the dog is sick, they don’t want to have to clean up after the animal, etc

They are between guide dogs

Those are some of the reasons someone who already owns a guide dog may want to use a cane. Some people even use a guide dog and cane simultaneously.

For more information about the pros and cons of getting a guide dog, read these articles, one of whom is by a guide dog user. You’ll want to keep these advantages and disadvantages in mind while writing.

White Cane vs. Guide Dog: Why or Why Not?

Guide Dogs vs. White Canes: The Comprehensive Comparison

Things Your Guide Needs

This is not a comprehensive list, but I wanted to include things your animal needs and general tips on how to treat the animal in the story.

1. It needs the ability to follow commands. How you do this is up to you. For research, watch YouTube videos with service dogs. Pay attention to the commands they give.

Here is a list of some commands taught by a school for service dogs, which you can probably use as a base.

Command Central: Guide Dog Commands

2. It should be trained to avoid obstacles, like benches or people

3. It should not be touched or distracted by other characters or animals - people will probably try to do so, and your character should explain that the animal is working and should not be distracted

4. It should be taken care of an given time off-harness, such as at home. It should be well-behaved as well.

5. It should be able to go anywhere. Transportation, hospitals, royal courts, sports centers, whatever is on this planet. Service dogs can go anywhere and saying they aren’t allowed somewhere in a story would be a problem. Some people do try to bar service dogs, such as restaurants, but they do so out of ignorance and not because the law is on their side. Some countries do not have protections in place, true, but because you are creating your own planet, service dogs— or in your case service animals— being allowed anywhere should hold true no matter what. Why? Because even in Western countries where dogs are seen as culturally favorable, service animals are turned away illegally, particularly at restaurants, hospitals, doctor’s offices, and public transport. This differs from an Emotional Support Animal, who are allowed only in housing, dorms, and airports. For more information on the differences between where Emotional Support Animals and Service Animals can go, read the article below.

Where Can I Take Emotional Support Animals?

Who Can Be a Service Animal?

I wanted to discuss this as well. Again, there is a lot of misinformation out there and this leads to a lot of anger directed at people with service animals.

Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals are not the same. They do not serve the same purpose, cannot go to the same places, and are not bound by the same rules. You have probably heard at least one irate person claiming someone tried to bring their service monkey into a restaurant. That person is misinformed.

To start, Emotional Support Animals can be any animal. A dog, a cat, a bunny, a bird, a turtle. There is no limit as to what the animal can be, although it must provide comfort and be beneficial to your mental health. It should be easy to train and not harmful to others. It should also be able to live in a house or be otherwise domesticated. Emotional Support Animals need a letter from a Licensed Mental Health Professional in order to qualify as an Emotional Support Animal, which should hopefully keep people from trying to keep wild or dangerous animals as pets and claim them as Emotional Support Animals.

Here is an article that goes over things what an Emotional Support Animal does, what qualities and qualifications it must have, and examples of good ESA’s and what they can do for you.

Types of Animals As ESA’s and Their Benefits

Remember, Emotional Support Animals are only allowed in any kind of housing (such as apartments or dormitories) and airports. They are not allowed in other public places where animals would not otherwise be allowed. ESA’s also need to be registered through a letter of support by a mental health provider. This letter should be shown to a landlord, as Emotional Support Animals require proof.

Next, Service Animals. Let’s get it out of the way. Service Animals (usually dogs) provide services to people with disabilities. This means a guide dog, medical alert dog, psychiatric service dog, etc. Service Animals are owned by individuals and are not therapy dogs or other working dogs. For example, dogs you are providing therapy to children in hospitals are therapy dogs. Search and Rescue dogs are working dogs. I don’t know much about either of these, but here is an article that goes into more detail about the differences.

Service Dogs, Working Dogs, Therapy Dogs, Emotional Support Dogs: What’s the Difference?

Dogs and Miniature Horses

Service animals can only be dogs OR miniature horses. Many people only think of dogs, as dogs are more popular and common in public than horses. However, a miniature horse has the same rights as a dog when in a service animal role. In the United States, Federal law recognized miniature horses as accepted service animals in 2011.

Service dogs or service horses can:

-enter any public place dogs and horses are not usually allowed

-can be trained to guide the blind or provide services for other disabilities

-can go on planes without a pet fee (provided they can fit by the owner’s feet and not block the aisle)

If we take a look at this article again:

White Cane Vs. Guide Dog: Why Or Why Not?

we’ll notice that “being denied access” is not under the disadvantages of a Guide Dog section. I think it should be. Is denying access illegal? Yes. Does it still happen? Yes. And it would probably be even more likely when someone is presented with a miniature horse - at least in countries where dogs are more popular. On top of lack of knowledge about service animals, people are not often aware that miniature horses can serve in these roles as well. Vision Australia discusses this denial of rights and laws protecting blind people with service dogs.

However, The Guide Horse Foundation reports that many people expirience better acceptance of horses as opposed to dogs. This is because a dog may be perceived as a pet or be an animal that was denied access before. A horse may not have this problem.

Some Places Service/Guide Horses Are Recognized

Canada - with laws and protections varying by province and definitions differing slightly from the U.S and Australia. However, this site specifically mentions guide horses as service animals.

Australia - with laws varying by state, but wider protections in place, which you can read more about at Vision Australia and Australian Human Rights Commission. Australian Human Rights Commission also defines a service animal as a dog or any other animal, leaving horses as an option. According to this page, miniature horses are catching on in Australia, where people generally prefer dogs. The page lists similar reasons to those I included below that someone might want a miniature horse over a dog.

The U.S - According to this page, miniature horses are the one animal that is allowed to be a service animal other than a dog. They are required to be trained and are expected to behave as well as a service dog would. The requirements listed differ little from those required of service dogs.

The U.K - This page reports that miniature horses are making their way as service animals, but I could not find any other sources about this topic, such as official recognition.

I tried searching and could not find proof that miniature horses were catching on in other places, though I found many, many places where guide dogs were popular. The point is that guide horses exist as well, and I think this can help people understand what makes a service/guide animal with more clarity.

Why a Miniature Horse?

Here is an article that discusses this in detail:

A Brief History of Miniature Horses And the ADA

According that article, a major reason people might prefer a horse to a dog is for balancing purposes. The DeafBlind community often includes people with balance difficulties (which I discussed a bit in my last ask) and miniature horses are better able to provide support, having more strength than a dog. They can steady someone when walking or help someone stand from a chair.

Other reasons someone might prefer a horse:

They live in a rural area

They or a member of their household are allergic to dogs

They live in a place where dogs are not favored, seen as dirty, or religiously unacceptable

They or a member of their household has a fear of dogs

They want a guide that lives and works longer than dogs (who work for about 6-8 years)

According to the website for The Guide Horse Foundation, horses have high stamina, do not get fleas or shed as often as dogs, and are conscious about safety.

Qualities Your Guide Animals Should Have

Using the dog and horse guides as references, here are some qualities I think your creature should have:

Trainable, both for commands and so they don’t pee where they aren’t supposed to

It should be specifically trained for this purpose, preferably by a group of some kind - this is your equivalent of a guide dog school

Good eye sight, good hearing, and strong memory at least

Relatively small, but not too small (you can use Labrador dogs and miniature horses as a reference

Good stamina for walking

Not territorial, aggressive, or dangerous- dogs can possess these qualities so I think it is okay if a wild version of your guide has these qualities. However, your guide specifically should not have them. For example, wild dogs may be aggressive, but a trained guide dog would not be.

Your guide should not be used for protection, hunting, or attacking others who may be a threat. While the presence of the animal can certainly act as a deterrent in real life and in the story, that is not the animal’s function.

Your guide should be calm, docile, and able to bond with your character

Your guide animal should generally not be seen by the people in your world as frightening, dangerous, or religiously unclean. Note that sometimes guide dogs fit these qualities in certain cultures and so they are not used there. If possible, give your world and its cultures a good working relationship with a few different animals. Pick one or two of these as possible guides people can choose from. You can possibly draw from your own culture and history for this if your culture has had good working relationships with animals.

Your guide animal should be able to be harnessed (a leash is not enough) and possibly wear something that alerts others that they are working (such as a vest)

The animal should have good navigation skills and possibly natural guiding skills. Because you are creating a species, you can possibly make these qualities innate. From what I read, horses guide by nature, able to act as guides for other horses in the herd if they are blinded.

Your guide animal should probably not fly, unless people fly or float in your world. Since it should be small enough to enter buildings and not accidentally crush children, I don’t know if having it be big enough to fly on would be a good idea anyway, as fun as that sounds.

Small enough to enter buildings and sit at the character’s feet, such as at a restaurant if your world has those

It should be able to be trained in “babyhood” and work into adult life. Dogs typically work 6-8 years and horses have a much longer lifespan and thus work longer. Create an animal that can live at least as long as a dog and thus work for some, but not all of that time. Give it a retirement phase in life, if your book ever got to that. Basically, use dogs and miniature horses as a base and work from there.

The animal should be domesticated on your world and not strictly wild (such as a lion in our world).

The animal should be comfortable on land. The ability to swim is fine, but it should of course be primarily a land animal.

The animal should have a common, available food supply and vet care even if you don’t go into this. If your guide is domesticated and possibly kept as a pet in your world (or a neighboring world, however your story is structured), this will be much easier and being easy to care for will probably be implied.

It should be allowed anywhere, including hospitals, and it should be well-behaved in those areas

It should not run away from your character and leave them alone

That’s all I can think of at this time. Generally, I think if this were set on Earth or an Earth-like fantasy place, I might suggest creating a dog- or horse-like creature, or possibly another domesticated animal that the culture favors in real life. However, since this is on another planet, I feel okay with getting creative with the type of animal, provided it has the same qualities and can serve the same purpose as a real-life equivalent. Some of this you can create with your world-building and some with research on real-life animals to use as inspiration. If anyone with a service animal disagrees, please add your opinion. It would be beneficial to me and hopefully to the asker as well.

Thank you again for the question and if you need more help, feel free to send me another ask or a message. I hope this can benefit you in some way. Good luck with your story!

Edit: I wanted to add this sensitivity reader, who can read for working with guide dogs and other blind stuff.

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wizardofpawswildlife · 7 years

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Service animals, ESA’s, & Therapy animals

Many of you who follow me or pop in from time to time know that I’ve been an animal trainer for over 20 years. I lost my Service animal a few years ago because she was attacked and killed by someone with a fake service animal. I miss her dearly and wanted to make sure that people everywhere have the right information.

I know I normally post photos of my animals but today I want to touch on a bit of a grey area with service animals. A few weeks ago a man on Facebook was trying to claim his f0x was a service animal when she cannot legally be a service animal; service animals can only be dogs, mini horses, & cats (depending on state laws). He also proceeded to post photos of his fake certificate saying she was a ‘certified’ service animal. It takes 2 years or longer to go through training a service animal and his f0x was only 5 months old at this time.

BUT any animal including a domesticated f0x CAN be an emotional support animal.

Here are a few things you should consider before you go claiming your animal is a service animal.

Do I qualify for a service animal?

The answer to this question may be more complicated than you expect. First, there are different definitions of disability in different federal laws. The definition for Social Security Disability Income is not the same as that in the Americans with Disabilities Act (which determines whether you qualify to use a service animal in public places where animals are not generally permitted). It is possible for an individual to qualify for SSDI and not qualify for a service animal and vice versa. You must evaluate your situation separately for each context.

The definition of disability under the ADA is a legal, not medical, definition. Since a lawyer generally can't diagnose medical conditions and a doctor generally can't interpret the law, you may get stuck somewhere in the middle trying to figure it all out.

You may want to review the legal definition as written by Congress for yourself, or review the entire Americans with Disabilities Act which includes some additional fine points you may need to know.

Ultimately, what we recommend is that you take a flow chart or the written definition with you and discuss it with any doctor who is treating you or has treated you for your disability to get his opinion and to have his opinion entered into your permanent medical records.

What's the difference between "work" and "tasks" in the ADA definition of "service animal"?

There is overlap between the two terms. Legally it is not relevant which the service animal does, so long as he does one or the other or some of both. A service animal’s legitimacy is not determined based on whether he does one or the other or both. It's a little puzzling why I get so many requests for an explanation of the differences between the two when the differences aren't what matters.

First, what they have in common:

1. Must be individually trained (not natural behaviors of animals such as needing to be walked or turning their head when they hear a sound, emotional support, or companionship)

2. Must mitigate the person's disability (ie be something the person's disability prevents or substantially limits them from being able to do for themselves)

A task is an individual, discrete (a complete stand alone unit), specific thing that needs doing. It has one cue and one result. It might be a simple behavior or a complex one with multiple steps, but there is always a single objective. Examples of tasks include: opening doors, picking up dropped items, and notifying the handler of the sound of the doorbell.

Work is a broader term that may include any of the following:

1. A group of related tasks (such as hearing work consisting of signalling for several different individual sounds with a different response for each sound)

2. A trained behavior that has a decision ladder/tree where the outcome is not always the same but requires the animal to evaluate different options and choose the correct one (such as guiding around obstacles)

Here are some examples to demonstrate the differences:

Housekeeping tasks include: doing the dishes, taking out the trash, washing the windows, doing the laundry, doing the dusting, cleaning the toilet. When you take all of these tasks together or some random assortment from the list, you call them "housework." The term "housework" is more broad than "house keeping tasks," but they're both still about the same thing which is cleaning the house.

Secretarial tasks include: filing, answering the phone, typing, making appointments for clients, sending out billing statements. Secretarial work is some combination of the above. It describes generally what a secretary does during the day without listing off what that secretary did on that one specific day in detail.

Notice the item "making appointments for clients?" Depending how that is executed and viewed by the person making the appointments, you could make a case that it is a task with a single result (an appointment is made) or that it is work because it involves a decision ladder/tree (when the appointment is made is going to depend on several different factors unique to each appointment that is made). That's because there is no concrete, black and white, hard line between the two terms. They are similar and they overlap. And that's why it makes very little sense to try to determine whether an individual service animal does work or does tasks. The vast majority probably do some of each along a spectrum that has guide animals doing work nearer one end and wheelchair animals doing tasks nearer the other.

What's the difference between a therapy animal, psychiatric service animal and an emotional support animal?

A psychiatric service animal is individually trained to perform tasks that the owner cannot perform because of a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Psychiatric service animals, like all other service animals, assist their disabled handlers by performing these tasks for psych illnesses. These animals have access rights.

However, while the owner of an emotional support animal must also be disabled by something like anxiety for example, the emotional support animal is not trained to perform tasks to mitigate the owner's disability. These animals do NOT have access right but DO have housing rights.

Therapy animals are sometimes confused with psychiatric service animals or emotional support animals. However, therapy animals are something entirely different.

A therapy animal is one that is trained, tested, registered, and insured to visit people in hospitals and nursing homes. A person with a therapy animal has no particular right under the ADA to take their animal anywhere pets are not permitted. If the owner wishes to visit a facility like a hospital or nursing home, they must first seek out and receive the permission of administrators at the facility they wish to visit.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, which regulates and enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA):

"The Department is proposing new regulatory text in § 36.104 to formalize its position on emotional support or comfort animals, which is that ''[a]nimals whose sole function is to provide emotional support, comfort, therapy, companionship, therapeutic benefits, or promote emotional wellbeing are not service animals.'' The Department wishes to underscore that the exclusion of emotional support animals from ADA coverage does not mean that persons with psychiatric, cognitive, or mental disabilities cannot use service animals. The Department proposes specific regulatory text in § 35.104 to make this clear: ''[t]he term service animal includes individually trained animals that do work or perform tasks for the benefit of individuals with disabilities, including psychiatric, cognitive, and mental disabilities.'' This language simply clarifies the Department's longstanding position."

The ADA gives the disabled owner of a service animal the right to be accompanied by his or her service animal to most places where the public are permitted, even if dogs are not generally allowed.

However, the owner of an emotional support animal has no particular right to public access and must ask permission of the management to enter with an emotional support animal.

Under the Fair Housing Amendments Act, a qualified person with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation in the form of a modification of rules against the keeping of pets in order to keep EITHER a service animal or an emotional support animal.

Under the Air Carrier Access Act, a qualified person with a disability may be accompanied in the cabin of an air craft by either a psychiatric service animal or an emotional support animal if they have the proper documentation from their doctor.

I often get asked; How do you certify, license or register a service animal?

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Certification means that the animal has been tested and shown to meet certain minimum standards.

Most countries only recognize service animals from approved programs. In those countries the programs certify their own animals.

There are ABSOLUTELY NO standards or procedures for certifying a service animal under U.S. federal law.

Certification is NOT required as a condition of using an animal as a service animal.

Disabled people CAN go through training their own service animals.

However, the person using the animal must meet the legal (not medical) definition of "disability" and their animal must be individually trained to perform tasks that mitigate the owner's disability.

They must also have sufficient training to behave appropriately in public (no barking, making unwanted contact with other members of the public, or disrupting business by misbehaving). Service animals who pose a direct threat to others by growling, lunging, or otherwise menacing people CAN AND SHOULD be barred from public access.

Fake certification is for sale over the Internet. You can check whether a certificate is from a legitimate service animal program or a scam business selling fake certification by doing a Google search on the name of the certifying agency. If it's a scam, it will be apparent from a quick review of their website because they will sell their certification to anyone for a fee without ever actually training or evaluating the animal themselves. These organizations prey on the disabled, selling them something they don't need for $40-$250 that they could produce at a copy center for under $5 (if they did need it, which they don't).

They are a haven for pet owners wanting an easy way get a pet into motels, on planes, or to take Fifi shopping on a lark.

These businesses do a great disservice to real service animal teams by bluffing business owners into accepting ill-behaved pets as trained service animals and by taking money out of the pockets of the disabled themselves. These fakers in turn diminish the reputation of real teams by behaving inappropriately.

Real service animals don't need certification. A business may verify an animal is a service animal by asking whether it is required because of the person's disability and what the animal is trained to do to mitigate that disability. They may ask this regardless of whether a animal is "certified," and an owner who refuses to answer can be barred from the facility.

A pet license is something that most all animals are required to have. Individual states, counties or cities may provide licenses in accordance with their own laws or ordinances. Service animals are not exempt from any licensing requirements of local authorities. If dogs residing inside the city limits are required to wear a city license tag, then this also applies to service animals. In some states, counties, or cities, special service animal licenses are available in lieu of a regular animal tag, but they cannot be required as a condition of access. Some localities also waive the licensing fees for service animals, but this varies.

Service animal registration is a scam. It is a for profit business. It's purpose is to make a profit at the expense of gullible people with disabilities and those who just want it easier to break laws. Registration means nothing because the animal is never evaluated, never even seen by the agency issuing the registration. It's just a piece of paper that any idiot can buy for between $40 and $250 dollars and that could just as easily be printed on a home computer for a few cents. Registration scams exist primarily to help pet owners pass off their pets as service animals so they can get them on airplanes, into motels, and into stores with them. Real service animals don't need this kind of registration.

FOR THE RECORD I APOLOGIZE FOR TUMBLR AUTOMATICALLY CHANGING SOME OF MY WORDS TO EMOJI’s. It doesn’t give me the option to turn it off and I didn’t even notice it changing them until after I hit post. When I edit the post they become words again.

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growingupguidepup · 4 years

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Airlines Have Double Standards for Canines? – GUGP- Part - 2

The last flight I took with Penny back in the beginning of October, we encountered a slight issue. We traveled on an airline that we have used several times in the past with four different puppies without any issues. We checked in and boarded our first flight out of Minneapolis without any issues other than our plane was delayed. No questions asked about her, or “paperwork” for her. Penny was a super good girl and waited in the terminal very patiently. We boarded the flight during the pre-board time so we could get her all settled in. She slept almost the whole flight to Denver where we had a plane change. Because our flight was delayed we basically had enough time to get off the first plane and walk to to gate to the next one where they were already boarding, so no chance to pre-board.

We get in line and the agent at the desk calls out to us and asks if we are on the flight. Why yes, of course we are. She then asked to see our tickets because she has nothing in her paperwork that a dog was scheduled on that flight. We were pulled out of line (in front of everyone) and questioned about how we booked our flight, where our “paperwork” for Penny was, and why didn’t we have clearance from the airline’s “medical” department. When we stated that we had already been on one flight that day with the airline the agent was quick to say that whoever checked us in at the Minneapolis airport messed up.

Long story short, it took over 20 minutes of this agent telling us that we needed paperwork and were supposed to get pre cleared through their “medical” department for Penny to fly with us. She said that it stated very clearly on their website that these were the necessary steps when you fly with a service dog. I admit I was not fully honest with them in letting them know that Penny was still in training, But they didn’t ask either. They never asked what she was trained for or if she was a service dog or an emotional support dog. I was terrified that they were only going to allow her to fly in cargo and if that was the case we were going to have to rent a car and do a two-day drive home from Denver, I will not put one of my puppies in cargo, so I did leave that detail out.

At one point, another agent expressed concern that the flight might not leave on time because of the situation and the agent in charge said, “Don’t worry, we can put them on the next flight.” Well that isn’t fair, we hadn’t done anything different booking this trip than I had in the past with previous puppies. The last thing I wanted to do was sit in an airport longer than I had to with a young puppy just trying to get home. We talked with a supervisor and then on the phone with this so called “medical” department and we were finally allowed to board the fight.

When we got home, I went to the airline’s website and nothing that the agent claimed was written as policy was there. And what was Penny doing throughout this stressful ordeal? Laying quietly at my feet being a model example of how a service dog should behave. Not a single sound out of her, not a single tug on her leash, barely a change in her position the entire time. On top of that when we went to our seats two other people had decided to sit there because the seats were next to each other and their assigned seats were not. We had to walk down the aisle past our seats and wait with Penny in the aisle as they shifted seats. Penny was then forced to walk backwards to our seats because there was not enough room in the aisle for her to turn around. She did so without a problem or fuss. She backed up down the aisle, into our seats and laid right down. I heard a few passengers behind us talking about what an amazing dog she was. We had never trained for this specific scenario, but because we had been working with her in stores with shopping carts and tight spaces and restaurants learning how to settle under tables she was able to adapt in this less than ideal situation. But she is the dog that was almost denied boarding a plane.

Now most puppy raisers are raising for specific organizations, and those organizations have their own policies about whether or not they will allow their puppies travel by plane. As an example, when I was raising for Guide Dogs for the Blind, I had to submit a travel request form before we went anywhere out of our home area with a puppy. We had to get that approved by our group leaders first and then approved by our community field representative. People above me had to make the final decision on whether or not the puppy in question was ready to travel, and airline travel required even more thought before approval. They keep very close tabs on the progress of their puppies.

We flew with Ricki on a very short flight to southern California when we were raising her and because she had a little bit of anxiety on the flight there and back, nothing major just a little panting, shaking and unsettled behavior, but enough that we were not allowed to fly her on our following trip to Las Vegas. We drove instead. Now not every organization is as stringent as this, but many organizations will not allow one of their puppies to be put into a situation like airline travel if they are not ready to do so. This is another factor in why I don’t understand why it is so hard to fly with a puppy in training when it is so easy with an ESA. There are safe guards in place for many puppies in training, but the airlines are not aware of these either.

Every time we have traveled with a puppy, the airline crew was always so happy to see a well-behaved dog on their flight, like it is a refreshing change. They must be used to stressed out, out of control ESAs. I would be willing to bet that the chances of a puppy/dog in training being better behaved or better prepared to fly than most ESAs on flights is almost a guarantee, but it is the puppy raiser traveling with a puppy or dog in training that has a higher chance of not being allowed to fly. No one ever talks about this. This is something that I think really needs to change. I’m not saying that ESAs should be banned from flying either. I’m sure many people do benefit from them, and that many dogs do behave appropriately on planes. But to allow any dog with just a note from a doctor is not enough. There really should be some sort of regulation put into place to protect these animals and the people that encounter them. Proof of canine good citizenship at the bare minimum, but more would be better. Each time I travel with a puppy, on a plane or not, it has always made a big impact on that puppy. They grow so much on these trips and travel is very valuable in their training process. I’m sure that is helps them to become better service dogs.

Not every puppy will be ready to travel by plane while it is with a raiser. Many puppies we have raised I would never have put on a plane. There is no way that it would have been in the puppy’s best interest. I will also be the first to admit that traveling on a plane with a puppy can be very stressful for me, but my puppy’s needs always come first. I pick flight times that I think will work best for my puppy. I will plan for layovers if I think that flight length will be took long without a potty break for my puppy. I will pay extra for more foot room some my puppy will be more comfortable. It is usually not a relaxing flight for me because I am always watching and ready to reposition my puppy if needed or respond to anything my puppy may need to keep them stress free and comfortable for the flight. During Penny’s first experience flying I spent a good portion of the flight moving her feet out of the aisle and keeping her from touching the person next to us. She didn’t mind that I kept repositioning her, but I wasn’t able to relax at all during the flight. I need for my puppies to have a good experience or it may leave a lasting bad impression for the puppy and possibly anyone else on that plane.

I do everything I can to prepare my puppies for flight. We practice lying quietly under seats for long periods of time. We take trips on crowded loud mass transit. I take them to the busiest shopping centers I can find. Anything that I can do to simulate going through an airport and sitting on a plane. The more I can get them used to these things the better.

Do all people who travel with ESAs think about these things or just that they want the beloved animal along and/or think the trip will be too hard to do without them? Is there anyone coaching ESA travelers on how to make the trip easier on their pet? I don’t think people really think about all of this when they decide to travel with an animal. I know that when I have been prepping and making plans to travel with my puppies by plane my coworkers often make comments of “I never thought of that” when I talk to them about the prep work I do to make the trip a successful one for all involved (that includes the flight crew, other passengers, the puppy and myself and anyone in my traveling party).

So who is advocating for the puppy raisers or trainers trying to travel while training with their puppy or dog? Service dog users have the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) to fall back on when in public, and the ACAA (Air Carrier Access Act) protects service dog teams and ESAs in the air. But puppy raisers don’t have anything in place, and neither do owner trainers. The foundation these raisers instill into these puppies is the reason why so many dogs make it through the training process to become fully functioning service dogs. Without all the hard work puppy raisers do and all the situations they expose and work these puppies through, there would be a lot fewer service dogs. But for some reason, the airlines don’t recognize this. The airlines can really help in the training process and the benefits that these puppies can receive by allowing them the access.

Some of the larger service dog organizations do have certain agreements with specific airlines for their program puppies. SouthWest Airlines allows Canine Companions for Independence puppies on their flights with permission and proper paperwork from the organizations. But what about the smaller, lesser known organizations or owners who train their own dogs? They may not have the resources to make these same arrangements. Does that mean that the raisers in these situations can’t have the same opportunities for their puppies? Or that the dogs they place are not as entitled or important as the larger organizations? How about the number of raisers who don’t live close to an organization where the formal training happens? There are a number of organizations that allow their raisers to live anywhere in the U.S. as long as those raisers will be willing to transport the puppies to and from the organization when needed. Think how much those organizations and people with disabilities would benefit if transporting puppies on flights were allowed. It would be a win-win for everyone. The organizations who depend on these arrangements would get more raisers, potentially, and therefore be able to produce and place more service dogs with people who need them, and the puppies would get valuable training in the process. I can guarantee that the people who receive these dogs from even the smallest organization or who owner-train think that their dog is just as important and should have had the same opportunities as a puppy or dog from a large organization.

So I ask you the public, service dog users, puppy raisers, or just someone who uses airline transportation: Who would you rather sit next to on a plane? Or better yet, airline executives! Maybe you should ask your flight crew about who and what they would rather have to deal with at work before you write and implement a policy. A person with a puppy who is being raised and trained to behave appropriately and to be comfortable with air travel—or someone with a pet dog or, in some cases, a turkey, iguana, monkey, parrot, or anything else, that is traveling with that animal either because they need it for their own mental health or faking it to avoid the extra fees involved or the requirement to put their dog or other animal in cargo for transport. A pet that may or may not have been conditioned or mentally able to handle the stress of being on an airplane. Maybe it is time to speak up not only about the dogs who should not be on planes, but the ones who really should.

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growingupguidepup · 4 years

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Airlines Have Double Standards for Canines? - Part - 2

Some of the larger service dog organizations do have certain agreements with specific airlines for their program puppies. SouthWest Airlines allows Canine Companions for Independence puppies on their flights with permission and proper paperwork from the organizations. But what about the smaller, lesser known organizations or owners who train their own dogs? They may not have the resources to make these same arrangements. Does that mean that the raisers in these situations can’t have the same opportunities for their puppies? Or that the dogs they place are not as entitled or important as the larger organizations? How about the number of raisers who don’t live close to an organization where the formal training happens? There are a number of organizations that allow their raisers to live anywhere in the U.S. as long as those raisers will be willing to transport the puppies to and from the organization when needed. Think how much those organizations and people with disabilities would benefit if transporting puppies on flights were allowed. It would be a win-win for everyone. The organizations who depend on these arrangements would get more raisers, potentially, and therefore be able to produce and place more service dogs with people who need them, and the puppies would get valuable training in the process. I can guarantee a large that the people who receive these dogs from even the smallest organization or who owner-train think that their dog is just as important and should have had the same opportunities as a puppy or dog from organization.

For more details on our products and services, please feel free to visit us at: psychiatric service dog, veteran dog, medical alert dog, puppy, puppies.

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growingupguidepup · 4 years

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Do Airlines Have Double Standards for Canines - Part 2

For more details on our products and services, please feel free to visit us at service dog education, service dog in training, sdit, service dog in training acronym, service dog

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