[Karebru]

At a family gathering today, I met a nephew’s fiancee for the first time. Her and her mother are involved in training service/companion dogs. She is working with an 11 month old, Black Lab. that stays with her 24/7. The dog goes to class with her... To the supermarket... They said it barked in church this morning. ( Has never happened before. The girl was embarrassed.)
I’m sure some here are familiar with these training programs, but I found it fascinating.

Maybe if we got Sadie one of those blankets to wear that says "Service Dog", we'd be able to take her anywhere. /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
If we could only get her to act like she was somewhat "trained"... :doh:

 

[BookerMoose]

Quote:Originally posted by Karebru:
Maybe if we got Sadie one of those blankets to wear that says "Service Dog", we'd be able to take her anywhere. /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
If we could only get her to act like she was somewhat "trained"... :doh:

Exactly! We've often thought that if only we could pass the hounds off as service dogs they could come into restaurants, fly on planes and do all the things they unfortunately can't do with us now. Except that we don't think anyone would even remotely believe a beagle as a service dog!!!

 

[jassy]

I actually know someone who did this. She got a service dog blanket for her dog and takes it everywhere. It is not even close to being a service dog. It is very shy, doesn't like people and snaps at anyone who gets to close. This dog was at a family birthday party on Saturday and I saw it growl at a 3 year old girl. The woman who owns the dog takes it into the mall, restaurants, and has even brought it to church. I know the dog will bite someone and I wonder what kind of legal issues there might be with passing it off as a service dog?

 

[Karebru]

Quote: I wonder what kind of legal issues there might be with passing it off as a service dog?

Kind of like parking in a handicap spot?

 

[BeagleBabe]

Violators of the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) can be required to pay money damages and penalties.

Though Businesses may ask if an animal is a service animal or ask what tasks the animal has been trained to perform, they cannot require special ID cards for the animal or ask about the person's disability.

So...chances are you probably won't be caught if you're smart and your dog is appropriately behaved, unless your dog causes something to happen (like a bite).

http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/svcanimb.htm

 

[martiknox]

Although not a "service dog" beagles can become the type of dog you can take to visit hospitals and nursing homes...companion dogs. They must pass the good citizenship test and then they qualify. As Cecil is a gentle touching beagle I had told the trainer at Petsmart that when I retired, this is something I would be interested in; however, we can't seem to get passed the beginner level with the girls and have tried twice. She told me that we could do this, especially if I just trained them one at a time. I plan to do this with Cecil. They won't wear the blankets like service dogs, but a different thing and can go visit the shut ins. Beagles are so good with people that I think this to be a good goal.

 

[BeagleBabe]

Having been visited by a companion dog while in the hospital I think beagles are well suited for that!

Good luck Marti :thumbup:

 

[LuckyBeagle]

Well, I don't think my Lucky could ever pass for a service dog, but he is doing very well in training class. We are two weeks from graduating. Last night, I taught him to shake in just 30 minutes. He hates when I touch his legs so this was amazing!

 

[Murphys Dad]

I have often thought how great it would be if Jersey was certified as a service dog. There are lots of reasons why you could have a dog as a service animal. When I started having all these problems with Jersey's separation anxiety, my boss told me to spend a few thousand dollars on a therapist and have them say that I need to have Jersey with me to help me cope with anxiety. That way I could bring her anywhere with me, including work. There is a guy who comes into the Sam's Club where I work that always brings in his Sheltie. He says she can predict seizures. She's well behaved, so there's really nothing we can do to stop him. You can't ask for any sort of proof. You can actually only ask the person one time if it's a service animal.

And Marti, I've thought of doing the Canine Good Citizen with Jersey so that she could be a therapy dog as well. The day care where I take Jersey is starting a training class for the certification. I've thought about enrolling Jersey. I think that she's just a little too energetic still to pass though.

 

[sherocks]

Quote:Originally posted by BookerMoose:
Except that we don't think anyone would even remotely believe a beagle as a service dog!!!

Lets not forget Belle. The service beagle who called 911 when her owner had a seizure.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13439261/

 

[martiknox]

Cecil is not ready yet either. I think in maybe a year or so. Brandy is really sweeter and cuddlier, but Cecil is more gentle in her ways. She is more independent than Brandy, but when we are around people they tend to gravitate to Cecil more. Brandy does not realize her own strength like Cecil does and that is why I think Cecil would be better with elderly and ill people.

 

[xfileluv]

My son is a National Geographic Channel junkie and has Dogs with Jobs on our Tivo. If you've never seen it, definitely check it out. You name the type of dog, and it's been trained as some sort of service dog!

Here's a link to the show's site:

http://tinyurl.com/2zcg8w

jennifer

 

[cheerio]

I actually own a certified service Beagle. So yes, they can do the job. It all depends what job. My Goss tracks and does therapy work. Beagles can also snif food for customs, bomb and drugs. They are also beginning to be used to snif tumors.
As to "borrowing" a vest to take a pet everywhere, there are good reasons why this is not a good idea. We have fought hard to have dogs other than see4ing eye dogs recognised as service dogs with all priviledges. If people with untrained dog start playing the person in need of their dog, they are likely to end up being noticed for the bad behaviour of their dogs, which will have the negative effect of having all priviledges denied to the real and well needed service dogs.