Understanding ADA Laws and the Importance of Service Dog Education

Service dogs play a vital role in assisting individuals with disabilities, yet many people remain unaware of the rights and responsibilities outlined in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Under the ADA, service dogs can accompany their handlers in public places, including restaurants, schools, and stores, ensuring equal access and independence for those who rely on them. This also includes the dog being under verbal control, off-leash, or often seen with a leash tab or e-collar to better perform its tasks more safely.

Service dogs are specially trained to perform tasks that mitigate their handler’s diagnosed disabilities. These tasks can include but are not limited to, guiding individuals who are blind/dizzy, alerting people who are deaf, detecting seizures, high heart rate, and blood sugar levels 10-15 minutes before an episode, and providing mobility support like bracing & forward momentum pull, and assisting individuals with psychiatric disabilities where the dog is trained to interrupt harmful behaviors, such as interrupting panic attacks or providing deep pressure therapy. It’s important to note that service dogs are not pets—they are working animals with a crucial job.

Many people confuse service dogs with therapy dogs or emotional support animals (ESAs), but they serve different roles. Therapy dogs provide comfort and companionship in settings like hospitals and schools but do not have public access rights under the ADA. ESAs offer emotional support to their owners but require no specific training and are only granted housing rights under the Fair Housing Act. ESAs have no public access rights. Only service dogs are legally protected to accompany their handlers in public spaces at any given moment. But there are times when handlers may choose to leave their dog home depending on their needs and activities that day.

Despite legal protections, misinformation and public interference can create challenges for service dog teams. One common issue is people attempting to pet or distract a service dog while it is working. This includes any form of petting, staring, taking photos/videos without asking, and talking to the dog. To support service dog users, the public should respect these animals by not engaging with them without permission.

Education about service dog etiquette and ADA laws can help create a more inclusive and accessible society. Schools, businesses, and communities can all play a role in spreading awareness and ensuring that service dog teams can navigate public spaces without unnecessary obstacles. By understanding these laws and respecting service dogs, we can help provide a safer and more accommodating environment for everyone.

Oftentimes individuals who are accompanied by service dogs have public access issues due to the consistent number of reactive/aggressive dogs being brought into public spaces they are not legally welcome. If a dog is lunging, growling, barking, or not under the verbal or physical control of the handler, the business can legally ask them to leave the property. If a service dog team were to be attacked that may result in the team having to retire early or start their training over.

Service Dogs typically take 2-3 years to become trained and can be any breed, age, or size. They are specially trained for environments like concerts, theme parks, trains, planes, and any environment that comes their way during their normal workday. Be sure to understand that just because a service dog is labeled fully trained, it doesn't mean their training is over. Most teams will continue to brush up on their skills and take the optional testing to ensure that everything is up to par, but at times the dog may still make a mistake here or there.

Remember, service dogs cost their handlers time, money, and dedication toward their needs. These dogs can be professionally trained or owner-trained and cost anywhere up to $60,000+. Service dogs also don’t have to be vested or labeled under the ADA, but it’s recommended. This is why it is important to always ask before interacting with any dog as they may be working!

Service dogs are NOT robots and are trained to love their jobs. Handlers can utilize two service dogs trained in separate areas to help better balance the tasks that need to be performed. Along with this, there are possibilities of having a service miniature horse or service cats (outside of the US only). Certain countries and states have different laws and regulations so making sure you're well-rounded in the education aspects and laws is always a great way to help handlers feel accepted into the community.

I am personally a tandem team handler on campus and oftentimes we are seen as a trio walking around campus or on our lunch breaks. Typically, Nala and Bradley are running around trying to say hello! If the dogs are unvested and you ask me directly, I am happy to let you say hello! But when they are working, any interaction creates the risk of the dog missing a life-saving alert. Nala is trained in medical and seizure alert and Bradley is trained in mobility and guide. As a trio, we strive to better educate the surrounding areas and community on what a true service dog does and acts like. This includes how the public should acknowledge that having a service dog is not fun and not easy, but it's more rewarding in the end knowing that they have your back 24/7/365.

If you have any further questions regarding the general education about service dogs, please see ADA.gov for further details or send me an email! With this, if you ever see a dog acting out in public, please say something! This might save a team thousands of dollars and time put into their training just to retire and end a career that the dogs love but also the handler losing their best friend.

Courtney Breur is the newest Club member of The Cyclone Chronicle. This is her very first article to be published! Congratulations and thank you, Courtney.