Service Animal or Emotional Support??

[retiredgram]

3 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

I am not a fan of dogs on cruise ships, but I do feel that this sort of "public shaming", without knowing the facts, and posting someone's photo on Cruise Critic without his permission, is a bad idea.

 

Anyone else?

IMO, when in a public area, you may well be photographed. As far as shaming, I am sure the person knew people were probably questioning if his dog was a service animal or emotional support. It will be interesting to see what happens after April. Just Google service animal vests and certification docs. For a cost, you can get documentation for your pet.

 

[MJSailors]

    On a recent Southwest flight, there were two small dogs being held by their masters while boarding the plane. The dogs were not in carry bags designed for pets.

When we returned home, I called Southwest to ask why the dogs were not in a carrier.

    The explanation was that the dogs were emotional support dogs and that the person requiring such an animal had to provide proof of necessity. The proof was a letter from a doctor with the letterhead showing the address of the physician’s practice  and the diagnosis,either physical or emotional, that caused a person to need the emotional support dog to accompany them during travels.

    The requirement to produce such proof may limit such animals to be on a flight. 

     I MHO, there are two perspectives to this situation. One of the comfort level of a person having the need for an emotional animal to be with them during travel .

The other of a person who would be uncomfortable sitting next to a person holding the animal on their lap for the duration of the flight.

I would think that it would be enough for a person to have the dog in a carrier near their feet instead of holding the animal. But, thankfully, I am not in a position that requires an emotional support animal.

[Bailey & Sophie]

Allergies come to mind.

[trivia addict]

Agree with Marion_Mom. Not a fan of public shaming or posting pics on line without permission 

[Mapleleafforever]

19 hours ago, LilBlackDress said:

 

You tell me... Pool Bar drinking wine on Serenade 3/2/20 sailing

 

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

 

 

 

The guy is a Vietnam Veteran and has seen some sh$% and lives with some pretty bad PTSD. The dog helps him get through the day and helps get him back to the moment when he's about to downward spiral. 

 

I don't know if that's true or not but no one knows his story. Never judge a book by it's cover I was always taught. 

[LittleMissMagic]

If you're curious about the logistics of bringing a service dog on a cruise ship, blind Youtuber Molly Burke recently went on the Celebrity Edge with her guide dog, Gallop. She shows you where he goes to the bathroom, and also talks about cool accessibility features (and lack of accessibility when it affects her). If you're interested - 

 

[LMaxwell]

It's a pet.  Plain and simple 

[ryano]

13 hours ago, retiredgram said:

. For a cost, you can get documentation for your pet.

 

 

Which is a BIG ripoff because that documentation is not only NOT worth the paper its written on but is not required under the ADA.  As far as vest goes, service dogs are not required to wear one 

Edited March 9, 2020 by ryano

[hallux]

19 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Now, whether a diabetic should be drinking is another flag.

That's a discussion for the person and their doctor.  I know a diabetic that drinks, not heavily but beer and wine.

[mayleeman]

3 hours ago, hallux said:

That's a discussion for the person and their doctor.  I know a diabetic that drinks, not heavily but beer and wine.

I am mildly Type 2 diabetic and can drink (moderately) low-carb beer and hard liquor (which has no carbs). I react pretty quickly though, to the sugar in wine, and high-sugar cocktails like margaritas are a poor choice and something I miss.

 

Type 1 and Tyle 2 diabetics are different and all diabetics may react differently. Body chemistry just isn't something other people should judge because your assumptions can be very wrong. (Even some doctors are ill-informed: the doctor who first told me I was pre-diabetic also said "Now, this means you can never eat fruit again.")

[cured]

On 3/8/2020 at 3:20 PM, LilBlackDress said:

 

You tell me... Pool Bar drinking wine on Serenade 3/2/20 sailing

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

 

 

 

Hard to say.  A service animal is an animal trained to do a job. An emotional support animal does not do a job just provides support. As mentioned above, smaller dogs like this are often diabetic alert dogs or seizure response dogs. They can also be psychiatric service dogs trained to alert to various things like a PTSD panic attack, hearing dogs, or allergy detection dogs.  There are many types of service dogs that are actually trained to do a job and are completely different than emotional support dogs. 

 

If this dog was yapping or seemed untrained (service dogs are highly trained in both obedience and in their job) then it can be assumed it is a fake emotional support dog.  Since this dog does not have any baby clothing on and there doesn't seem to be a stroller close by, it is hard to tell. Although lack of a collar without rabies vaccination tag and licensing/identification would have me guessing emotional support which can be just as valid as a service dog. Not everyone takes advantage and claims Fluffy is an ESD.  

Edited March 9, 2020 by cured

[BKKA]

On 3/8/2020 at 4:49 PM, SandiLynn said:

Where do they do their business? That's really my only concern. Service dogs are usually better behaved than most children. Sometimes cleaner too. Would rather sit next to service dog than most children. I love kids, I am a teacher, but don't want to go into teacher mode on vacation. To those of you who parent your children, I am not talking about your child.

on RCCL, the 'relief area' has always been located on Deck 5 (port side/aft) under the stairs.  The relief box is 4' x 4' and has sod/mulch.

[LadyShiva]

2020 thread being revived.

[cured]

7 minutes ago, LadyShiva said:

2020 thread being revived.

The good old days, right before the world turned upside down and all we had to worry about is whether a dog being held was a service dog, an ESA or a pet.

 

I would give anything right now to return to that world and be happy to see the dog on board 😁

[whyrlygig]

The was a bulldog on Odyssey last week. 

[shortyy2k00]

There was a shituz diabetic dog on our Independence cruise we just got off of. We actually met the couple and there is a lot they have to do to even be able to have a dog.

[RobInMN]

I fully believe in true Service Animals (most of which a dogs). To the best of my knowledge, these animals are very well trained, usually costing tens of thousands of dollars. When you see them in public, in area's that are otherwise off limits to animals, they are working and they know it. This is why most have vests. When their vest is on, they are in work mode. If it's off, it's like their off duty.

 

While I am sure there are some well trained "emotional support" animals", my outside observation is that it has been totally abused and corrupted by selfish a**, and a whole unscrupulous industry that enables them. At this point, I seriously doubt any/all "emotional support" animals I see. I'm sorry if you are one of those that truly need one, but the fakers have totally ruined it for you, and you should be fighting back against them, not justifying yourself to me.

 

I think there should be some sort of registration/certification for service animals. That's probably easily done due the training involved. As for "emotional support", I'm not so sure, but there's got to be something better than someone just going to the pet store and buying a random dog and claiming that they give you "emotional support".

 

If you haven't read it before, there's a story referenced in this article about a woman whose untrained pet she initially tried to play off as a service (then emotional support) animal attacked a true service dog on an elevator. I feel bad for that guy and his dog.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/10/29/several-states-crack-down-fake-service-animals/807676001/

 

 

Edited September 27, 2021 by RobInMN
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