How to interact with a service dog and handler.

You don’t.

I wish I could say it was that simple, but it seems so many people out there just don’t get it.

I could go into how dangerous it is for you to stop me while I am moving with Ash. As when I turn my neck to talk to you, my back has to turn slightly as well, causing Ash to try and counter the movement, and now, suddenly, the direction we thought we were going, ends up with me on the floor.

I could go into how dangerous your kissy sounds that you make at Ash are. As when he turns to look at you, he changes the tension on the leash, causing me to slightly turn, causing Ash to try and counter the movement, and now, suddenly, the direction we thought we were going, ends up with me on the floor.

I could even explain that your child freaking out because there is a dog in the store is dangerous.. As.. Well.. I hope you got the hint.

Yet, I will put this another way.

Every day I am in public, I am stopped not once, but at least 6 times in 1 hour by someone. Either they say how amazing Ash is, or ask me what breed he is, or thank me for training him for someone else.. oh yeah, that one I just love… It just goes on and on.

That means, every 10 minutes I am having to say “Thank you.”, “No.”, “He’s working.”, and in the extreme cases, “Go away.”.

Which of course garners the reaction that I am rude.

Imagine this. Let us remove the dog, and I want you to just think about this. Imagine, we are talking about a child.

Imagine, it is your child.

You have your bundle of joy, that has been keeping you up for hours on end. The vomit and stink being around so much, that you have learned to ignore it, but still know it’s there. The preparation you have to go through just to go out in public. The stroller, the diaper bag, the extra clothes, the … It just goes on and on.

Now, imagine every time you finally get out the door and to the store, some random stranger stops you to compliment your child, or talk to you about their kid, or makes kissing noises at your kid.

Your nerves are already frayed. Your attention is on your child’s safety and your own. Your now being pulled off the task you wanted to complete.

Even when it’s positive, it’s negative.

You didn’t see the wet floor sign, because you turned your head to see who was interacting with your child out of the blue, and down you go.

Stuck, on the floor, in pain, and unable to tend to your child.

Let that sink in for a moment. The feeling of helplessness. The inability to just go about your life.

Now imagine if you had a disability, and that child is actually what makes it so you can even go out in public with some sense of normalcy.

Sure, the dog has training. It doesn’t make messes in public. It rarely grabs random things. It actually has some comprehension.

It has one job, and your actions interrupt that job.

Just like with the child, you turn your head because someone is meowing at your dog, you don’t see the wet floor sign….

So, how do you interact with a service dog?

You don’t.

If I am sitting down, not in a conversation with someone already, and just trying to relax, maybe you can. Yet, that is me.

Some people can’t even have the distraction then, as their disability is different.

You have questions about them, go online. Read the ADA FAQ. (Linked on the side of this blog.) Join some groups and ask away.

Just realize, when you don’t follow my advice and interact with me or my dog, about my dog.

You are that one person every 10 minutes.

Finally, I want you to think about something else.

Back to the child. Do you know how creepy it can get if someone follows you around the store, making baby sounds at your child?

Yeah. Don’t do it.

As one of my friends who uses a cane said. “Is it ok to randomly walk up to someone and ask them about their cane?”

-Z

movealong

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.