Petition Seeks to Stop the Sale of Service Dogs Products for Fraudulent Use

One of the biggest and oldest providers of service dogs for people with disabilities other than blindness, Canine Companion s for Independence, posted a petition urging Congress to take action against the Sale of fake service dog products.They need 10,000 signatures.
Read & Sign Petition

Wired Magazine Article Encourages Service Dog Fraud

A reader brought to my attention this week  that Wired Magazine published an article, The Cheat Code to Life, encourage their readers to pass off their pets as service dogs to gain entry to places and avoid fees. 

BRING MR. FLUFFY ANYWHERE: SERVICE DOG VEST ($33) 
Make every day Take Your Dog to Work Day and go everywhere—the coffee shop, the grocery store! How? Simply dress him in a vest that just happens to be bright orange and slap on a “Service Dog” patch. VIP status: confirmed.

My response: "I can't believe Wired Magazine is so desperate for content that your editorial team has decided that encouraging people to commit federal fraud by claiming that they qualify as a person with a disability under the ADA and that their dog is a service dog under the definition found in the same law. As a person living with a disability who has worked service dogs for over 12 years and has to deal with aggressive dogs, unhousebroken dogs, and off leash dogs in public all being passed off as service dogs causing  the community of legitimate service dog experience additional requirements such as current letters of medical necessity for people experiencing psychiatric disabilities to fly, the necessity to add to the definition that a service dog must be unhousebroken, under control, not aggressive and more. I urge Wired readers and editorial staff to consider the damage passing off their dog as a service dog does to people who require the assistance of a service dog to live their life considering legitimate and legal ways they can ask for their dog to accompany them and avoid fees such as developing a pet resume for them, or simply asking permission from the business they wish to enter. For a more on how serious the effects of service dog fraud have on the service dog user community visit http://servicedogsawayoflife.blogspot.com/search/label/community%20issues.
Sincerely,
Melissa Mitchell
Service Dogs a Way of Life

Whole Dog Jounal- Dog Care When You're Down

The latest article from  the Whole Dog Journal, Dog Care When You're Down, gives its readers a glimpse into living with dogs when a person is sick, injure or recovering from some sort of medical procedure. As the population ages and people must figure out how to care for their furry companions with less physical capacity I am sure we will see more of these articles. Don't miss my article,

Dealing with Low Energy,Illness, or High Pain Days, which deals with setting up supports and plans for those of us living with chronic issues to ensure our dogs are well cared for.

News: Oregon Bill Defines Service Animal as Dogs

ORTLAND, Ore. – A proposed change in Oregon law would make it clearer what's a service dog and what's not.

If the Oregon bill becomes law, it would more closely match the changes in federal law when it comes to service animals. It would narrow the types of dogs allowed in places like grocery stores, boutiques and even apartments.

For someone like Patricia Kepler, who has been blind since she was 17 years old, a dog's not just a pet but a necessity. The increasing popularity of allowing dogs in stores and on MAX trains and buses, she says, puts her and her working guide dog, Nisha, at risk.

"My dog has been lunged at, especially in the MAX is the biggest problem," she said. "People bring their pet dogs on the MAX because there is no train operators in each of the cars and she's been lunged at and barked at. It's been an issue."Read More/Watch video