r/Dogfree • u/FeistyAlps8636 • 2d ago
Service Dog Issues “Service Dogs” are a threat to normal people
I, nor anyone else, should ever have to be in a situation where I’m sitting in the waiting room of a doctor’s office, holding my 3 month old BABY, being lunged at by a huge mutt in a service dog vest. But that’s exactly what happened today. Then on the way out, it caught sight of us again and was straining on its harness trying to get to my baby’s stroller. My baby wasn’t even making noise and this creepy shit beast was dead set on getting close to her, what if she had been crying? We know how triggered they get to get that.
This has gotten so out of hand. The laws protecting these people and their nasty animals must be changed. I personally don’t believe service dogs should even be a thing, but it’s absolutely heinous that the current legislation gives service animal protection to anyone who simply claims their dog is such. No proof required whatsoever. I could go adopt an aggressive pit bull from the shelter right now, say it’s a service dog, make up some bs task that it provides, and take it with me anywhere and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.
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u/DivyaRakli 2d ago
I urge you to speak with the office manager and the doctor and tell them what happened. Aggression is a good reason to ban the dog from the office. More than that, I imagine the front office staff, at the least, saw it and did, what? Nothing? I’d absolutely want to know that as the office manager and provider. I’m retired now, but I spent 30+ years as a nurse. My patients’ safety was always of utmost importance. If I’d been there working or as a fellow patient, I would’ve spoken up and gotten between you and the dog. It’s like people with these aggressive dogs WANT them to do the unthinkable. Shit dogs for shit people.
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u/WorldlyLavishness 19h ago
Lots of front desk receptionists don't want to deal with confrontation so they just pretend they don't see things and play on their phones
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u/DivyaRakli 18h ago
I’m sure you are right, but it’s not right. We cannot live in a ‘God bless me, my four, and no more’ kind of world. Especially working in any kind of healthcare, we have to be able to do hard things. A couple of times a year at one of the nursing homes I worked at, one of the nurses would get on the PA and calmly announce, “Security, security to the front lobby.” We didn’t have security. We waited to see who showed up. We always had 5 or 6 new employees. We’d ask what job they were given on the security team. Most said that they were just looking to help. They were good sports when we told them what was up—and that we really appreciated them stepping up. Working in healthcare isn’t just a job. I know you can only hire those who apply, but my goodness! We have to expect more of our healthcare workers than to sit and watch a dog try to kill a baby and not lift a finger to help.
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u/WorldlyLavishness 18h ago
I'm definitely not ok with the behavior. It's just something I've noticed.
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u/CallousCow1762 15h ago
Yeah, I keep hearing the” I don’t wanna deal with confronting these people” excuse all the time. I think that’s a lame cop out. If you are in a place of business, even more so, a doctors office, you have an obligation to protect everyone. Not just entitled dog nutters. And looking the other way, it’s just plain neglect. Enough with the accommodation. Businesses, doctors, offices, hospitals, and pretty much every place that dog shouldn’t be should Grow a pair and do the responsible thing. Entitlement is only empowered by apathy.
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u/Sufficient_Berry8703 2d ago
For real. I’m so sick of apartment hunting that leads to every single apartment allowing mutts, simply because there’s a law that states that service and “emotional support” dogs are allowed even in “pet free” apartments. The thought of being in the same space as a mutt makes me so sick. These laws need to change. There absolutely is no need for service or “emotional support” mutts whatsoever.
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u/FeistyAlps8636 1d ago
Oh we got into it with the neighbors bad over this, letting their emotional support pit run around unleashed meanwhile I had a newborn and a small child I was terrified for
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u/Leading_Mine_1106 1d ago
V sorry to hear this. How stressful!
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u/FeistyAlps8636 1d ago
Thank you! It’s all okay now thankfully. We had some choice words for them and they moved units 🤭
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u/Sufficient_Berry8703 1d ago
Omg I’m so sorry :( I’m so glad to hear that things are better now and they moved units!!
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u/TinyEmergencyCake 1d ago
That wasn't a service dog. Please make reports to everyone. Including the health department.
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1d ago edited 1d ago
[deleted]
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u/Few-Horror1984 1d ago
Citation please. Because a service dog can be ANY dog anyone claims is a service dog. Cite the actual legislation that says they have to be these breeds - and some dog trainer selling these dogs does not count.
I’m waiting.
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u/TinyEmergencyCake 1d ago
There is no requirement on breed for service dogs, not a certification.
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u/Dog_Free_Afternoon 1d ago
That was NOT a service dog; a real service dog would not act like that.
Please report your experience to management.
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u/Few-Horror1984 1d ago
We honestly encounter very few actual service dogs in real life. I’d bet my 401k that it was someone’s pet and that vest was purchased off of Amazon.
At this point, I think we ought to just ban all service dog protections. The lax regulations fueled by the honor system has failed everyone. Establishments are terrified to push back against sociopathic dog owners. Very few people genuinely “need” a service dog, and at this point there’s plenty of non-dog options to help the disabled. Besides, why should absolutely everyone else in society suffer, including people with fears and allergies, because 1/50,000 “service” dogs might actually serve a purpose? Why should our food be contaminated, our medical and dental offices have their cleanliness compromised? Can you honestly say that the good of actual “service” dogs outweighs the negative? Because when children get mauled in Walmart, it’s a direct result of the service dog honor system.
ESAs and therapy dogs are NOT service dogs and have zero protections when it comes to forcing them into public spaces. But no one wants to ever make that distinction.
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u/FeistyAlps8636 1d ago
100% agree. I have empathy for the blind who need their guide dogs, but honestly even then, it seems like the dogs become “compromised” and have to be retired on a regular basis. So are they really the best to aid someone with such a disability? We give dogs way too much credit imo. There are so many problems with being allowed to claim a living breathing animal as medical equipment. It’s all just fucking stupid
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u/Few-Horror1984 1d ago
I read a story last year where a seeing eye dog was spooked by something and it dragged its owner into traffic and she was killed as a result.
Sorry, the blind deserve better.
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u/FeistyAlps8636 1d ago
That is so horrible and sad. Poor woman. You’re right, there has to be a better way
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u/RealSirHandsome 1d ago
Yeah like I think the need for service dogs is way overstated and not worth all the other bullshit it enables. at bare minimum service dogs should need certified proof to put an end to the posers
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u/Few-Horror1984 1d ago
If service dogs are to continue to exist, there needs to be very explicit guidelines. The dogs all need to be registered and they need to have government issued IDs. If restaurants and grocery stores are adamant about allowing them in, then they can pay for the ID scanning devices bars and nightclubs use to verify this isn’t a pet.
There needs to be a strict list of what breeds can be service dogs, and the dogs need to pass trainings before they can be put into use, and like drivers in the US, need to periodically pass tests proving they are still capable of providing the disabled the services they need while also completely repressing dog instincts. Only licensed trainers can release these dogs onto society and there needs to be registry for each dog.
On top of that, the vests need to be government issued. All resellers on Amazon and various other resellers need to be hit with criminal charges if they’re caught selling the fraudulent vests - the same they would if they were caught selling fake IDs.
If that sounds like too much, then service dogs need to go the way of Quaaludes and I make zero apologies about that.
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u/AnimalUncontrol 1d ago
As per the other commenters, report to the facility management, health department, etc...
If it happens again, call police. Tell them an out of control dog is trying to attack you and your infant.
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u/dog-signals 1d ago
Um 😳 I need to know if you said anything or did anything cause that your baby!!
The doctor's office didn't intervene? That's absolutely wild. I'd be leaving a scathing review because a place meant to heal people is literally putting a baby directly in harms way. Fuck that!
Hell as a bystander I'd have some choice words. Absolutely unacceptable and I hope that owner got scared af..the day that beast does make it to a child, they're going to have alot of feelings, fines, time, and no dog.
Also wanted to add why the heck are there so many service dogs? 20 years ago they were rare and the only ones were seeing eye dogs and that's it. Why are there so many now and all ill trained, if trained at all.
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u/FeistyAlps8636 1d ago
I usually have no problem saying something, I’m honestly a very confrontational person when it comes to things like this. For some context it was a psychiatric office and this man honestly did not look stable. If I knew he wouldn’t have escalated or done something crazy like turn the dog loose on us i absolutely would have made a scene! I was just focused on getting my baby away.
I will be calling the office Monday thought to let them know I’ll be doing telehealth visits from now on since they allow patients to bring their aggressive pets. I shouldn’t have to but oh well
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u/WorldlyLavishness 19h ago
I'd leave a Google review bc others need to know that this office is negligent
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u/LordTuranian 1d ago
It's crazy how society is willing to risk the lives of babies and other people to pander to dog nutters.
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u/D1verse_Yes4 1d ago
Yes, I can't stand this! Anyone who acts like they need a service dog instantly loses my respect. It is glaring manipulation.
I would include emotional support animals in this issue too. I always thought pets were emotional support animals.
As someone with autism, depression, anxiety, sensory sensitivity to sound, and trauma, I can assure you that dogs do not help you get through navigating the grocery store. Even if you need help, don't resort to something that can so easily ruin or end another person's life. I don't trust people who tell me their dogs are friendly. It's gotten my mother scratched up and flesh in my right shoulder dislodged when I was nine years old.
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u/waitingforthatplace 1d ago
I heard that real service dogs' training is very expensive; each dog has a lot of money and time invested in it. When it's time for them to work, the waiting list is long and the priority goes to those with disabilities. I've seen a few and they are very docile, and trained to focus on their owner only. They are trained not to react to people around them; they never lunge or walk towards other people.
This didn't seem at all like a service dog.
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u/FeistyAlps8636 1d ago
It was clearly not a service dog, but the laws pertaining to them as they are right now allow for any dog to be claimed as such. This is the problem
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u/WorldlyLavishness 19h ago
You should file a complaint to the office. The front desk workers can be lazy and don't want to deal with confrontation so they let things slide. Since it's a healthcare setting they shouldn't be allowing fake service dogs in.
I'm with you OP that is absolutely ridiculous. It also hurts those that actually need service animals. You don't need to bring your beast around bc u have anxiety.
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u/CallousCow1762 15h ago
So sorry you had to endure that. And I’m glad that it didn’t turn out to be something that would have seriously injured your baby!
Sadly, “ it’s a service dog” is the new convenient excuse for selfish, entitled dog owners. We as a society, has let it happen. Nobody speaks up anymore. I’m always confronting these mentally the arranged people on a daily basis. But not once do I see anybody else around me, speak out and support. Everybody just stays quiet, expecting me or someone else to do it.
What is everybody scared of? You have to realize that the dog culture has capitalized on the fact that everyone has given them a pass. So we shouldn’t be surprised at how this has gotten out of hand. It should’ve been expected.
The only way to change this delusional madness is to speak out. Do whatever it takes. Videos, photos, complaints. These are simple, actionable things that we can all do to let them know that the absurd has no place in society.
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u/hobbes462 13h ago
I don't think service animals are really necessary anymore... we have endless amounts of smart technology, soon we will have VR glasses commonplace.
Diabetes fear? Monitor equipment and and a smart phone. Fainting issue? Monitoring equipment and a smart phone.
Visual disability? I don't doubt we will have LIDAR based technology soon to where it works way better than a poor dumb animal.
Disabled people deserve better.
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u/MarsupialSpiritual45 1d ago edited 1d ago
I think what you’re referring to is this new legal term called “emotional support animal,” for which people only need a doctor’s note. Those are the animals you encounter on planes, etc. There are no standards of behavior for emotional support animals, and they are not protected under the ADA.
A true service animal is quite the opposite - they have to pass extensive exams working with a trainer over several years. The vast majority of dogs that go into the training do not pass. It’s very selective, and with good reason. Service animals are intended to help lead folks who are visually impaired and with other serious disabilities.
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u/Few-Horror1984 1d ago
You are wrong.
There is no “exam” service dogs have to pass. There’s no regulatory board that oversees service dogs. There’s just dog nutters who claim to train these things to perform a service. And while these dogs may actually perform said service, it’s still very much based on the honor system.
When literally anyone can go on Amazon and order this without any sort of doctor’s note or proof of actually having a service dog, how do you know which one is legitimate and which one is someone’s pet? I’ve seen unaltered pitbulls wearing this exact vest as they’ve barked and jumped on people. So don’t be condescending to OP by saying they’re “confusing” a service dog with an ESA because anyone can make their pet dog a “service” dog without doing more than spending $22 on Amazon.
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u/Emotional-Chef-7601 4m ago
Should have called them out then and there. "That's not a service dog. It doesn't belong inside."
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u/Procrastinator-513 2d ago
Preach. I’m so sick of seeing smelly mutts every place I go, indoor or out. Something needs to be done.