#sd registries are fake

[booksandbrainsandsoftthings]

Not so friend reminder that

Being a veteran does not exempt you from service dog laws

Being disabled does not exempt you from service dog laws

If your dog is not trained to perform tasks that mitigate and help manage a disability, and it does not know how to behave calmly in public, it is NOT a service dog.

If your dog is not a service dog, it does not have the right to be in places pets are not allowed.

Following trained service dogs with your untrained pet is not okay.

Being a jackass about it does not change the laws either.

Leave. Your. Pets. At. Home.

[kindasortastimmy]

Golden retriever Service dog in training stimboard with red and gold for me!!!

Service dogs are super cool (as someone who is hoping to get my own prospect in October, I may be a bit biased) and I would like to take this opportunity to share some information about service dogs and disability! (Keep in mind I live in the United States)

ESAs and Service dogs. What's the difference?

ESAs provide comfort to their owners and have access to housing that does not allow pets. They require a doctor's note in order to have that ability. They are NOT allowed in public places that do not allow pets.

Service dogs provide a service, be it either a task or work that is specifically designed to mitigate a disabled person's disability. They are required to be given access to non-pet-friendly public places by law (as per the ADA). They do not need any documentation to be considered legitimate.

2. You do not need to register your SD online!

Some states have a voluntary SD registry, but they are not required in order to have public access. The majority of online "registrations" (with the exception of some government registries) are in truth scams designed to take advantage of disabled people for their money, or to give false validity to fake service animals.

3. (Most) Disabled people do not want to be spoken to about their SD constantly!

While some SD handlers are more than happy to discuss their service animals with anyone who happens to come across them in a Walmart, most are not. So while it is generally okay to ask politely "Hi, may I have a moment of your time to ask you a question about your dog?" It is also crucial that you are respectful if they decline. Try to be understanding, many of us do not have the "spoons" or energy to explain the same thing multiple times a day.

4. Service Dog Etiquette

Do- politely walk past the animal, avoiding any behaviors that may be distracting to the dog.

Don't- Speak to the dog, make eye contact with the dog, or pet the dog. Please, do NOT pet the service dog.

Do- Go about your day as normal, ignoring the animal and handler.

Don't- Treat the handler any differently, take this as an opportunity to bombard the handler with questions.

I hope you found this helpful!

[mandana-the-service-pup]

Welcome to Hellmart

The service dog community is in an uproar. Walmart has started selling service dogs vests in their physical stores and the marketing for the product is reckless. Walmart is one of the most dangerous stores you can take a service dog because employees are directly instructed not to interfere with fake service dogs.

Legally in the United States businesses are allowed to ask two questions to dogs coming in:

1. Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability?

2. What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?

When employees are instructed not to interfere with ANY animal coming into their stores they are putting real service dogs at risk of being attacked (emotionally traumatized, physically maimed and sometimes killed).

This product they are selling is by a company called Paws & Pals

It is advertised as being a “Service Dog Jacket Support Harness” The product description says it comes with two side pocket sleeves to “Display their service registry certificate and tags.” The description also says it’s “Best for physical assistance & emotional support dogs – Also great for dogs with tactical and military experience” It is advertised as a “TRAINING VEST: Animal harnesses and vests are great for training regular, service, and working dogs alike – Designed for service animals but can be used for all dogs and puppies”

If you can’t tell how hazardous this marketing is let me spell it out for you:

It is clearly being marketed as a service dog jacket/vest/harness. It is not illegal to sell service dog gear. It is illegal to fake a service dog and depending on the state punishable by fines and jail time.

It is highly unethical to put this type of gear on a dog without proper research into if that dog is physically and mentally suitable for going into public. It is also highly unethical to put any gear on an animal without ensuring that gear is safe for them to wear and work in. This is advertised to the general public and gives the impression that it is safe to use for these purposes when in reality it is not.

Websites that advertise service dog registration in the United States are scams. There is no governing body that registers service dogs for the United States and the ADA clearly states they do not require registration. Most SD handlers do not have any certification/registration papers. It has been proven time after time that when people present these papers for their fake service dogs to businesses it causes these businesses to deny access to real SD handlers who do not have them.

This harness is being advertised as suitable for mobility assistance. This is extremely dangerous. This harness type is ABSOLUTELY NOT SUITABLE FOR MOBILITY TASKS and can cause very dangerous injuries (especially if that dog is untrained and has not been cleared by a vet to perform mobility tasks)

This marketing blurs the line between Service Dogs and Emotional Support Animals (ESAs). ESAs do not require public access training and thus do not have public access rights. It is not safe to bring an ESA into a non-pet friendly place (I think the recent airline changes are enough proof of how much damage that can cause)

This marketing blurs the lines between service dogs and dogs trained in personal protection work (aka chase & bite people). Real professional handlers of military/police/personal protection dogs would not risk the ethical and legal implications of bringing their dogs into stores under the guise of being a service dog. That leaves people who are ignorant and inexperienced bringing their home-trained attack dogs into stores. It already happens. It’s not safe for the public or for service dogs and yet this product crosses that line?

The product description literally says it’s designed for service dogs but can be used for all puppies and dogs. They are claiming this hazardously designed mobility harness with the SERVICE DOG label and “registration pockets” can/should be used for any dog or PUPPY?! There is so much wrong with this product but just to make it clear, dogs should not be doing mobility tasks unless they are old enough for their growth plates to be closed and their joints and physical health has been cleared by a vet. Why advertise this to puppies?!?!

CONCLUSION

Any well-intentioned ethical person would have done enough research to recognize this product is highly faulty, but that type of person isn’t their demographic.

They are marketing towards someone who would walk into Walmart, see this on a shelf and buy it for $24 so they can slap it on their dog (or puppy) and bring them into stores.

Maybe that person just wants to bring their pet with them.

Maybe they are legitimately disabled but are uneducated and think that alone qualifies their pet as a service dog.

Maybe they are actually in the process of owner-training their own service dog and are gullible and uneducated enough to believe the dangerous claims for this product.

In any case it’s not safe, it’s not ethical and it puts people, pets and service dogs in danger.

And just as a side note, how many legitimate service dogs do they expect are coming through Walmart and buying this harness? It takes 2-3 years on average to train a service dog and program trained dogs cost thousands of dollars. Do they really think each Walmart would have a whole end cap worth of service dogs in its vicinity?

[duggardata]

Looks like Duggar-Spivey wedding is April 16th 2021!

Many, many Anons also sent this in.  Yes, indeed!  There’s a confirmed registry for Justin + Claire’s Wedding...  Here’s the link, for those who are curious.  (We know it’s legit because it’s linked on Justin and Claire’s Instagram bios.)

As for the date...  Y’all are right, the listed date is April 16, 2021.  However, I’m hesitant to conclude that that’s the actual wedding date.  The Duggars’ typical practice is to use a false, stand–in date on wedding registries.  (This contrasts with baby registries, where the listed due date is usually the real one.)  Maybe y’all remember Joy + Austin’s Wedding?  Their registry used Joy’s Birthday as the “Wedding Date,” prompting rumors that they rescheduled from October to May at the last minute.  John + Abbie also definitely used a fake date.

Beyond the history of fake dates...  Justin + Claire (and Hilary) haven’t been at all open about the wedding date.  They’ve been directly asked about the date via Instagram comments, and haven’t answered or given vague answers.  My suspicion of the listed date will grow even more if Justin, Claire, and/or Hilary continue to dodge the question:  “What is the date?”  (Because if the real date is already on the publicly–shared registry, why not just tell people who ask?)  

Finally...  A lot of items are purchased off of the registry.  As a person who has gotten married and bought wedding gifts, I can tell you that registries typically don’t look so picked over until closer to the Wedding Date.

For all these reasons, I’m skeptical about the April date.  We’ll see!

Oh, also...  The data!  Almost forgot...  If Justin + Claire did tie the knot on the 16th of April, they’d have been engaged for 157 Days.  Currently, your typical Duggar Couple weds after 98 Days, and it varies by a Standard Deviation (SD) of only 16 Days.  A 157 Day Engagement would be 59 Days and 3.7 SDs from that average, which is definitely an outlier.  (But not impossible, obviously!)

[queerautism]

yes about the people not knowing SD laws. Where I live there is a government PAT and ID (I am ambivalent about that because I want a test to prove myself to myself but don't like that it costs money) but the sheer number of people who think there's some sort of registry is *staggering*. the law where I live isn't even National... Its provincial. Also, the only people hurt by fake spotting are disabled people - normally invisibly disabled but all of us fall victim to it.

Is it Canada? I know they have different rules there, so I can totally imagine it's just trading one set of frustrations for another tbh

A lot of people seem to confuse "how I think the law should work" with "what the law actually is"

[coca-coola]

My SD Needs Supplies!

My name is Zayne; I’m 19, intersex, NB, bi, and ace (yeah I got a list lmfao)

I’m also disabled and unable to work.

I have both physical and mental conditions that prevent me from being able to live alone or even really be alone at all.

When I was 5, I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety, and the diagnosis's built up from there. At 6 I started having severe body pain, but my doctors were never able to give us a reason why. The diagnosis changed from growing pains, to rheumatoid arthritis, to “faking it”, to cancer, then just settled at “chronic pain” for a few years because they just didn’t know. At 19, I was finally diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and chronic back pain related to PTSD. I’ve also been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, BPD, C-PTSD, Major Depression, Generalized Anxiety, and Panic Disorder.

All my life I’ve missed out on playing with friends, going out to events, spending time with family, and amazing opportunities such as concerts and meet-and-greets, because of my mind and body. My body is also starting to degrade, and so is my mental abilities for an unknown medical reason.

It’s been obvious for years that I’ve needed a service dog, but I come from a poor family who could never afford it. The expense of food, the dog itself, and training were too much, soI’ve had to go without. Now that I’m an adult, that’s no longer an option. I am married to a wonderful, loving husband who takes care of me the best he can, but we can’t afford for him to stay out of work, and he can’t be with me 24/7.

So we went out and found ourself a dog. Her name is Nala, and she’s a the friendliest and smartest dog I’ve ever had. She was rescued from a bad situation, but she’s bounced back so fast. Hi

She’s being trained for mobility, blocking, “checking”, DPT, alert, and retrieval. She’s already tasking and is doing PA!

The problem is, we can’t afford gear for her.

She’s set for food and mandatory vet work, but she only has one service dog vest (that doesn’t actually fit), a ripped head lead, a tattered leash, and a collar. We have nothing for her feet, for mobility/guide work, or even toys.

I’m posting this in hopes someone may be able to help us out.

In exchange, I can make cards with your SD’s tasks, photo, and laws.

We have an Amazon wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/1HLVMFWTBSEWM

A Cashapp: $Zasharii

And we’ll happily accept used/damaged gear! (I’m pretty handy)

If you can’t afford to help, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE reblog and share with your family and friends!

Thanks so much for reading!! Much love from the Lovik Family!

[theservicedogchronicles-blog]

The Service Dog

What is a service dog? By definition, “A service dog is a term used in the USA to refer to any type of assistance dog specifically trained to help people who have disabilities, such as visual impairment, hearing impairments, mental disorders, seizures, mobility impairment, and diabetes.” Me? I have a service dog. Am I in a wheelchair? No, nothing like that. Do I have seizures, or diabetes? No, none of those things either. Well, then what’s wrong with me? I have anxiety.

Now, I bet you’re wondering how that classifies me to have a service dog. I have had anxiety since I was in middle school, but it got worse, and finally clinically diagnosed when I was in high school. Now, at 20 years old as I’m writing this, I have been on medication for 4 years and had a service dog for almost 2.

Still, how does anxiety make me qualify for a service dog? Well, first, let’s go into what makes a service dog a service dog. Do service dogs have to be registered? No, they don’t. There is no official service dog registry, certificate, or training class. Anything that tries to say or sell you otherwise is a scam. Sure, you can buy a piece of paper or an ID offline, but you can also make something with the same amount of authority on your computer at home. Don’t service dogs have to be professionally trained? The answer to this is also no. There is no ‘official’ training program that a SD has to go through, however there are some programs that can produce them, but it is not required for them to go through specific training. I trained my dog myself, but that’s another story.

Back to how I, a 20 year old with anxiety and depression qualify for a SD. Well, as I said before, there is no official registry or certification. Technically, you don’t need anything to have a SD, which is why there are so many fake ones out there. However, I have a doctor’s note from my physician saying that my anxiety was bad enough, that I could use a SD. After 2 years on my anxiety medication, I had graduated high school and was in my 2ndsemester of college, and I was not doing well. I had no motivation to do anything. I skipped classes, I stayed in bed, I slept all day long, and I barely ate. I was in a bad place, and I started talking to my doctor about upping my medication.

Then I started looking into getting a dog. I have been an animal lover (especially dogs) my entire life, but that’s a story for another day. I started looking for a dog for myself, thinking it would cheer me up to have one, and knowing if you got an emotional support dog paper you could have one in the dorm room. (ESA vs SD will also be discussed at a later time.) However, I endured heart break after heartbreak of dogs not working out until I found my girl, and then I discovered psychiatric service dogs. It was exactly what I needed. And after almost 2 years with her, I’m in the best mental state I’ve been in in years, and I’m even about to start going down on my medication dose. 

This Service Dog series is for me, to share my story and document my time with Attie, and I hope I can share, inspire, entertain, and mostly educate others on this. So if anyone ever takes the time to read this, thank you.

[followthebluebell]

We actually see something very similar to this already happening in the US with service dog handlers.  We’re not required to carry any proof that our dogs are actually task-trained, nor are we required to register them on a national level*.  Some of us opt to carry our doctor’s notes that basically state, ‘yeah, this dog is a medical device’, but many of us don’t. 

HOWEVER, there’s a huge thriving industry of fake service dog registries online, that claim to be totally legit.   Because of this, rich people have little trouble faking service dogs.  It’s become a big enough problem that I know several SD handlers who have gone ahead and thought, “Fuck it” and ‘registered’ their dogs into these fake registries, simply because it’s easier to have fake papers than to not have papers at all since more and more businesses expect us to have some sort of evidence.

It’s not a perfect 1-1 analogy, but I think it paints a picture demonstrating that this sort of policy could have a very real effect on disabled people. 

*there are some county registries, but these are entirely optional.  Most SD handlers don’t really opt for them because of the time it takes to register.  You have to make an appointment, your dog has to task appropriately (which can be a huge problem if your dog is a response dog or is a seizure alert dog; they can’t perform their tasks unless you’re actively going to have a seizure or just had one), you have to keep meticulous records of all the hours of training you’ve done, etc, etc. 

[actuallyservicedogs]

Is going after the Drs and Airlines more reasonable then whatever ppl are trying to do now to stop fake SDs? Most efforts I've seen seem to go after the disabled and want to take our rights, but rarely do i see ppl actually trying to make sure airline employees know the law, be considered with doctors selling fraudulent RXs, and everyone seems to know someone faking but doesn't call them out on it. It seems most would rather have disabled people hidden away then hold able-bodied ppl accountable.

Yeah I agree with that. I don’t think registries or anything should happen. I think that we should educate airlines, doctors, and business of the laws and their rights. If they know the laws and their rights, the system that we have in place would work. I don’t think we should make service dogs even more inaccessible for disabled people. 

Chelsea

[booksandbrainsandsoftthings]

I'm deeply over people assuming that they can take their dogs in public just because they have a bare minimum of obedience training and they see fake service dogs in the wild.

Your dog being able to walk on a loose leash some of the time does not equal service dog training. Seeing other people break the law does not suddenly make it OK to break it yourself. Seeing stressed dogs in public doesn't make it OK to stress your dog out in public.

Yes, task trained service dogs often look like they are "doing nothing" except walking or lounging in a heel next to their handler. No, that does not mean they are the same as an average pet. My dog is not vested for clout. My dog is not with me because it's "fun" to take a whole animal with me everywhere. My dog (and other real service dogs) saves my life on the daily. She is trained to assess and react appropriately to stressful, loud, crowded public situations. On good spoon days, we will happily answer legitimate questions about how to go about researching and obtaining a service dog to assist with a disability. But do not get all huffy when we tell you that not every dog is destined to become a working dog, and indoor restaurants in the US are never pet friendly.

[countcockulaaa]

I second that last comment and want to add something;

It is illegal to misrepresent your pet as a service dog and to fake a disability (which you are doing by saying your un-task and public access-trained pet is a SD) to get around rules. There are fines and potential jail time, depending on your states laws. But it is illegal everywhere. And even if it weren’t, it’s incredibly shitty and makes actual SD teams lives so much harder (but that rant is for another time).

Your pet may be an emotional support animal but has no public access rights- the only extra rights you get when you get an emotional support animal are on planes and with housing. Your ESA is not allowed in public places that don’t allow animals, as it is not trained to perform a task for your disability and it has not had public access training.

There is no registry for service dogs or emotional support animals. You get documentation from your doctor (that it is task trained for SDs or provides emotional comfort for ESAs) and that’s it. Many SD teams use vests to help identify themselves and avoid people distracting the dog while it’s working, but that’s not a requirement. Any registry you find online is a scam.

Here’s the link for the ADA regulations per the Dept of Justice;

https://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm

(via meanboysclub)

[airbnbfestivals]

I'm a Host & Service Dog owner/trainer of 9 years & just had Guest with fake Service Dog check in...

Um... I'd like to think I'd be a good um, person to ask this question to, but am choking because it's my place.10 mos. old puppy (by comparison the 1st of my 3 Service Dogs, got him as a puppy, was a VERY high achiever and officially got the upgrade to Service Dog at 16 months and after EXTENSIVE testing and training).1st interaction was dog (puppy) running in the house, off-leash, and peeing on my dining room floor, then tracking pee prints on my yoga mat (I cleaned up and kinda got a picture to document. Why do people with ANY dog enter a stranger's home with it off-leash?)has the dog "registered" aka paid a company to make something official/document looking (you need a doctor's note, that's the "magical piece of paper," all of the registries are bogus and ALSO hurt real SD owners because it confuses the general public)she doesn't know the 2 questions a business is legally allowed to ask about a potential SD... and cannot answer them (the "what tasks is the dog trained to perform" part, anyone can bs that believably... except her, apparently?)the dog lacks basic obedience to the extent that, as a trainer, I would recommend a basic puppy obedience class to get the pup around similar aged doggos and learn basicsshe told me the dog sleeps on the bed with her. I do not have a specific rule against this because my idiot self thought common courtesy would dictate one wouldn't do that in a rental, but what do I know, I try to set good examples with my Service Dog.So... legally a Service Dog has to be house-broken. Legally it has to perform a disability mitigating task. And um... paraphrase... "act like a fucking working dog, not a pet."I know the laws, I teach the laws, and I know Airbnb does NOT know the nitty gritty of them like me. This girl literally missed her checkin by 9 hours and ignored Airbnb calling her.I have her for 2 nights and have asked her twice to keep the dog on a leash (it doesn't stay with her, it's a 10 month old puppy that wants to eat my yoga blocks). She is the epitome of the "Service Dog" owner/handler that makes life difficult for legit folks like me.She's literally already asking about a month-to-month lease because she "gets along with me so well" and "I can totally train her dog for her!"I don't know if I can handle this situation for 2 days.Note: her 10lb "Service Dog" "posing a threat" to my 110lb Rottweiler real Service Dog should work, too, despite how stupidly ironic that sounds. Mine shouldn't have to be subjected to all that comes with a fake working dog that's really a puppy with a guest trying to dodge a pet fee.Please advise.Edit: details Get $20 off your first AirBnB stay.

[kyivus-blog]

@myservicedogadventure You're right about the other custom vests; and I didn't mean to say it as 'all cape vests', It just seems that most of the fake service dogs I've encountered (including two of which have tried to attack my SD.. my city has fake sd issues) have had the thin cape vest offered by most fake registry websites. At this point just seeing those cape vests put me at edge..

[theextraspoon]

Like your needed a reason to hate an ignorant, rich kid... Now, apparently failed Disney stars now need to resort to not only faking a service animal compelete with fake registry certificate, being shoved in a carrier, eating food off a chair, misbehaving and then pooping on the floor of the airport. Thanks for making a mockery of the medical devices since of us need to function. Let's hope you actually have the dog vetted so you aren't causing other dogs harm too. When you do this, we look bad. When your PET represents our MEDICAL DEVICES, we have a big problem with that. This is sick and I truly hope you lost whatever contest you're begging for votes for... To a handler. Please ff to 2:00 and end it at 10:00... Don't give him watchtime. https://youtu.be/AMW1MgDJuQ0 SHAME ON YOU @LoganPaul! #jakepaul #YouTube #viners #faileddisneyactors #teamsavage THIS ISN'T JUST AN INSULT IT'S A FELONY! #servicedog #Servicedogteams #servicedogs #servicedogintraining #workingdogs #esa #sd #sdit #dog #contest #dogs #disabled #adalaw #FAKESERVICEDOGS #FAKESERVICEDOG #FAKES #FAKErs #pets #disabled #spoonies #spoonie #chronicallyill #chronicpain #stressed #stress #servicedogblacklist #YouTube #YouTubers #fail #viners #paul

[mandana-the-service-pup]

I want to discuss something that was recently brought up in this thread (I’m not going to reblog the exact convo because I don’t want things being taken out of context and no hate to anyone who comments/reblogs)

For context, I posted this question a year ago because I was unsure how I felt about the service dog registration debate in the US. I wanted to hear different opinions and arguments so I could come to some conclusion and it really did help me.

Mandana and I have been training together for almost two years now. Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong because I’m sure I would have posted about it, but during that whole time I don’t think I’ve come across any fake SDs in public?

My husband saw one at a store but based on his description I don’t think it was fake. It was an adolescent golden that jumped on the checkout counter to greet the employee. It sounds like it could have been a SDiT who probably wasn’t ready for public access or had an inexperienced handler.

So if it’s not fake service dogs then what have been our biggest concerns?

Off leash dogs

People doing inappropriate things around my SDiT

Dog attacks in public access absolutely happen and can have devastating consequences. There’s also access issues that can come from misinformation or bad behaving dogs that shouldn’t be in public access. All that being said, I’m starting to realize that people bringing pets into stores and claiming they are service dogs isn’t the common occurrence it was made out to be (so far based on my own experience).

I don’t agree with the registration debate. In my opinion, the burden it would create for disabled handlers is guaranteed and the benefit is only theoretical. I think there would be much greater benefit to the SD community if there were sponsored outreach programs dedicated to spreading service dog awareness to kids, adults and businesses.

People need to know that service dogs are an option for different types of disabilities. I don’t know which is more upsetting, people who think only guide dogs for the blind are valid or disabled people who are unaware that there might be a service dog for their disability whose tasks could greatly improve their quality of life.

People need to know how to keep service dogs and their handlers safe. It goes beyond etiquette. Off-leash dogs are dangerous. Kids running up and throwing themselves at service dogs are dangerous. Bringing reactive dogs into public (even pet friendly) places CAN be dangerous if not done under the guidance of a professional (which is another hot topic, I’m not saying don’t train, I’m saying there’s a way to train that keeps both the dog and the public safe). These things and more should absolutely be as common knowledge as Stop.Drop.Roll

People need to know what public access training is and what is acceptable behavior from service dogs. This goes beyond fake spotting. Even legit service dogs should sometimes be pulled from public access temporarily or permanently for the welfare of the dog, handler and public. Businesses SHOULD be allowed to remove ANY dog/SD who is out of control and maybe if the standard of behavior was common knowledge then the people who bring their pets into public would be more discerning (NGL, there are some pets who are not SD but their training/behavior would not cause an issue for any service dog in the vicinity).

TLDR // Don’t waste funds on a registry program that hinders disabled handlers. Invest resources into educating the public as a whole.

What are your thoughts on creating a mandatory service dog registry in the USA?

[booksandbrainsandsoftthings]

Do people who drag their Fake Service Dogs everywhere not realize the danger they put their dogs in?

Obviously they don't care if they endanger the legitimate teams using service dogs to keep ourselves alive, but what about their own dogs?

If your aggressive or fear reactive dog bites another dog(especially a service dog) or a person (heaven forbid a child)

YOUR DOG CAN LEGALLY BE REQUIRED TO BE EUTHANIZED

Is it really worth dragging a stressed and misbehaving dog through the grocery store for your "emotional support" just to get them put to sleep because of your bad(and highly illegal) choices????