(KCPW News) Many consider them to be mans best friend, but just how meshed into society should dogs really be? Many stores in Utah, including PetsMart, Petco, and even the Home Depot welcome four legged companions, but as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, more and more non-service dogs are turning up at the grocery store and other food places, and that has the Health Department and some other Utahns concerned.
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Customers absolutely should complain about dogs in places of public accommodation and work to create tightened restrictions. Service dog handlers will get right down in the muck with you, because these untrained pets in stores present a danger to our dogs, and our dogs aren’t pets – they’re our lifeline for basic independence.
However, the woman who stated she ejects people unless they have their service dog’s “papers on them” is in violtion of the ADA, because there’s no such thing as “service dog papers.” The ADA doesn’t require any type of certification or identification on service dogs, and not all service dogs are trained by programs. The only questions the woman is legally permitted to ask are “is this a service dog?” and “what tasks does the dog perform to mitigate your disability?” If the answers to both questions are not credible, then a storekeeper can and should remove the dog.