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| Cesar with Junior, displaying the USSDR paper and patch |
Junior gets his Service Dog certification!
(My comments in Blue- Heather Gerquest and Rowena, SD-c)
Junior recently received his Service Dog certification...
(USSDR is simply a service dog registry. It does not certify a dog at all.)
...from The United States Service Dog Registry (USSDR), an independent registry service that offers self-identification for Service or Assistance Dogs.
(A disabled person who uses a service dog does not have to register or certify their service dog with anyone.)
(USSDR is simply a service dog registry. It does not certify a dog at all.)
...from The United States Service Dog Registry (USSDR), an independent registry service that offers self-identification for Service or Assistance Dogs.
(A disabled person who uses a service dog does not have to register or certify their service dog with anyone.)
"I'm so proud of Junior," Cesar said. "He's been an amazing helper to me...
(which is what a service dog does)
...and so many dogs, and now he can continue to share his balance with the rest of the world in his service (which is NOT what service dogs do)."
(which is what a service dog does)
...and so many dogs, and now he can continue to share his balance with the rest of the world in his service (which is NOT what service dogs do)."
Do you think your dog has what...
(Maybe you do, but you must be disabled to have/ use a service dog. It is not the dog that has access, but it is the disabled person that has the public access.)
...takes to be a Service Dog?
(Maybe you do, but you must be disabled to have/ use a service dog. It is not the dog that has access, but it is the disabled person that has the public access.)
...takes to be a Service Dog?
Although not required by law, your dog should be trained to follow both specific and basic obedience commands, as well as display non-aggressive and sociable behavior in order to be considered an effective Service Dog.
(Some service dog programs make it mandatory to train the dog to perform at least 3 tasks or specific work that help mitigate your disability which you need to even qualify for a service animal).
It is recommended that any potential Service Dogs undergo at least 120 hours of professional training to obtain the necessary skills and demeanor.
(Service Dog trainers and handlers recommend that anyone training a service dog should keep a diary that tracks your dog's progress and training.)
USSDR suggests that every candidate complete the Public Access Test created by Assistance Dogs International, Inc.,
(There are other public access tests available as well... some more strict than ADI's. Look to the left and click on one of the public access tests links listed in Rosie's Favorite Links.)
...to fully assess your dog’s ability to function as a Service Dog.
(Some service dog programs make it mandatory to train the dog to perform at least 3 tasks or specific work that help mitigate your disability which you need to even qualify for a service animal).
It is recommended that any potential Service Dogs undergo at least 120 hours of professional training to obtain the necessary skills and demeanor.
(Service Dog trainers and handlers recommend that anyone training a service dog should keep a diary that tracks your dog's progress and training.)
USSDR suggests that every candidate complete the Public Access Test created by Assistance Dogs International, Inc.,
(There are other public access tests available as well... some more strict than ADI's. Look to the left and click on one of the public access tests links listed in Rosie's Favorite Links.)
...to fully assess your dog’s ability to function as a Service Dog.
(It is not so much that I don't believe Cesar has a disability that would necessitate the use of a service dog as much as the information the article put out to the public is misleading. One would initially believe that Cesar had some part in the writing of this article and thus the false information would have been okayed by him. That is what really got me most.)
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WHAT?
I'm confused. I didn't know that Cesar was disabled, let alone disabled to the point that he even needed a service dog.
People, this article is very misleading.
The legal definition of a service dog (read the updated definiton on the "What is a Service Dog" page, tab is at the top of this blog page) is any dog that has been trained to do work or tasks that help mitigate a person with a disability. A disability is any medical or physical condition that greatly limits one or more daily life functions. A service dog is allowed by law to go anywhere the general public can go. The disabled handler with a service dog is protected by state service dog laws and also Federal service dog laws which can be found in the ADA or Americans with Disabilities Act. They are NOT considered pets, but are considered adaptive equipment. It is the disabled person who is given the access, not the dog. It is like a person with a wheel chair. You never see a business say "Sorry, we don't allow wheel chairs around here. You'll have to leave it outside". As well, the service dog helps the disabled person to function better and access goods and services in the community that otherwise they would not be able to do so.
The legal definition of a service dog (read the updated definiton on the "What is a Service Dog" page, tab is at the top of this blog page) is any dog that has been trained to do work or tasks that help mitigate a person with a disability. A disability is any medical or physical condition that greatly limits one or more daily life functions. A service dog is allowed by law to go anywhere the general public can go. The disabled handler with a service dog is protected by state service dog laws and also Federal service dog laws which can be found in the ADA or Americans with Disabilities Act. They are NOT considered pets, but are considered adaptive equipment. It is the disabled person who is given the access, not the dog. It is like a person with a wheel chair. You never see a business say "Sorry, we don't allow wheel chairs around here. You'll have to leave it outside". As well, the service dog helps the disabled person to function better and access goods and services in the community that otherwise they would not be able to do so.
Whether Cesar has an invisible disability or not is not for me to decide. It is possible. However it upsets me that this article was written so poorly. It makes it hard for me to believe Junior is his service dog. At some point he is going to have to come clean with the public and come out of the closet and disclose that he does indeed have a disability, and same rules apply, he doesn't have to tell a single soul what that disability is. Them's the rules!
So as you can see from my intro paragraph, it takes more than a good dog to become a service dog. The person owning or handling the dog must actually have a disability. Some training facilities also want the service dog to learn to perform 3 tasks that assist their handler with his or her individual needs as a disabled person. Examples might be the work of a Guide dog, a medical alert dog (alerting to seizures etc), a "hearing" dog, a dog that works with a child or adult with autism, as well as a dog that helps people with psychiatric disabilities to alert and other priceless tasks. These are not dogs that are well behaved and get a certification to visit people in hospitals and nursing homes. That is called a therapy dog.
Please do not read Cesar's article about his now "certified service dog" and go out and sign Fifi up with USSDR. Also it is merely a registry. It doesn't certify your dog to be anything. There are (federal and often state) laws against people who fake a pet dog as a service dog, and some of the fines are large. And the worst part of it is that it makes it even harder for those of us that really need the use of a service dog. I know my service dog is a life saver and life giver. Without her assisting me on a daily basis I don't know if I'd still be here.
To check out the United States Service Dog Registry, click on this link-
https://www.usservicedogregistry.org/register.php/
Read what USSDR's REAL mission is and click the above link.
THIS IS FROM THE USSDR SITE: Please note: Only individuals who are qualified to use a Service Dog under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) are eligible for registration. Therapy Dogs and other working dogs are not able to be included.
UPDATE!
The Friends of United States Service Dog Registry on FB wrote....
"Thanks for posting this! We're very honored to have Cesar and Junior as part of this Registry. Cesar does have ...an invisible disability and it is a private issue. He also knows quite a bit about Service Dogs and the ADA. He's worked with dis...abled individuals and Service Animals on training for tasks and completing Minimum Training Standards and Public Access Tests both privately and publicly. However the writer on his staff has used some incorrect language in this post. We'll contact Cesar's assistant tonight to make sure this is corrected."
THANK GOD THE ARTICLE WAS JUST MISLEADING. WHEN THE CLARIFICATION ARTICLE IS WRITTEN I WILL POST IT HERE.
Friday, 9/3/2010 USSDR UPDATE Regarding Article about Cesar and Junior:
"... ugh. It's been a busy day here! I've been on the phone with Cesar's assistant and she'd having the writer fix the blog's wording. Thank you for drawing our attention to this. I didn't even know about it until you posted it."
Later on Friday:
"USSDR: It's confirmed. Cesar usually reviews blog posts but was not given the chance to see this one before it went live. We have been promised this will be fixed tonight. Thank goodness!"
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9-12-2010
I have heard that a new article was posted on Cesar's blog and then was pulled. To my knowledge a new article has not been posted and this issue remains unresolved. Cesar needs to take this as an opportunity to educate people about what service dogs really are... like you must be disabled.
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7-19-2011
I have waited a very long time now and have not seen any kind of retraction or correction from the article written about Junior becoming a "Registered" or "Certified" service dog. This is an irresponsible decision on Cesar Milan's part.
Here is what I had to say about that today:
So, to sum it up... (from Sept 2010) USSDR tells the public that CM is indeed disabled (invisible disability). However, CM has in no way tried to clarify the mistakes his assistant made in the blog entry that announced Junior becoming "certified" as a service dog with USSDR. CM can be asked what his service dog does for him and that is not a violation of his rights, yet he has not responded to that either. Instead, whatever articles had been written were pulled. Whether CM is disabled or not, that is not the issue right now as much as he did not try to responsibly post another entry to correct the misinformation his assistant (or whoever) posted which, at least to me, leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth and still in question as to how honest CM is regarding this whole thing.
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9-12-2010
I have heard that a new article was posted on Cesar's blog and then was pulled. To my knowledge a new article has not been posted and this issue remains unresolved. Cesar needs to take this as an opportunity to educate people about what service dogs really are... like you must be disabled.
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7-19-2011
I have waited a very long time now and have not seen any kind of retraction or correction from the article written about Junior becoming a "Registered" or "Certified" service dog. This is an irresponsible decision on Cesar Milan's part.
Here is what I had to say about that today:
So, to sum it up... (from Sept 2010) USSDR tells the public that CM is indeed disabled (invisible disability). However, CM has in no way tried to clarify the mistakes his assistant made in the blog entry that announced Junior becoming "certified" as a service dog with USSDR. CM can be asked what his service dog does for him and that is not a violation of his rights, yet he has not responded to that either. Instead, whatever articles had been written were pulled. Whether CM is disabled or not, that is not the issue right now as much as he did not try to responsibly post another entry to correct the misinformation his assistant (or whoever) posted which, at least to me, leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth and still in question as to how honest CM is regarding this whole thing.
9 comments:
Thank you so much for posting the corrections and clarifications to Cesar's PR/blog. I can just see this causing a landslide of fraudulent "certification." I really hope they correct it ASAP and do some damage control.
Hey there, I would like to say this article is well written as too being informative.
I would like to make one statement though. While it is customary for a dog to be able to provide at least three works and/or tasks, ADA requires only one. Of course as you and I (and every other service dog owner know) our dogs provide much more than even the three customary tasks.
For me it is not hard to believe that Cesar could have an invisible disability. Many of us have the ability to hide them well. (I guess that is the reason why it is called invisible disability.) ADA's definition of a disability is not as strict as other agencies. They are not as strict as what programs require... and for that matter, what other owner trained SD handlers believe is long enough training.
Keep it up with keeping on ;-) Your blog is not only your voice, but ours too.
As of today I still can't find any information on this(3 years after this happened?) - and yet C.M. has been filmed recently using this 'status' on Junior to fly! Wow. Just Wow.
I'm not sure why you guys feel the need to rip on Cesar about this? Junior's vest has "Service Dog" and "PTSD" on it. Considering the fact that he tried to commit suicide after his dog died and his wife left him, it fits. Anyone who tries to kill themselves after their life comes crashing down needs help. Service dogs for PTSD are common and greatly benefit their owners.
Patches do not make a dog a service dog. The training the dog receives makes a dog a service dog. What bugs me about this whole thing is that the original article on one of Cesar's newsletters online, was pulled when people questioned the validity, and Cesar never made an effort to clarify. Cesar does not have to explain it, but it would help his case and validity. I am pretty sure Junior was only a puppy still when he supposedly got his service dog certification (which through USSDR is not a certificate, because that organization is simply a registry of self reported SDs). Not all people with psychiatric problems qualify as disabled, and one needs to be disabled to use a fully trained service dog. And Emotional comfort is not a Service dog task. Cesar needs a therapist.
As the law stands today it doesn't matter how well a dog is trained a dog has no rights when it comes to public access.
The disabled handler has the right to have his/her fully trained service dog accompany them into public (minus gov/surgical/religious locations without their permission)
As the ADA stands today I could cover my dog in patches, ribbons, metal crafted wallet plaques. If my mother, sister, friend (none of which are disabled) took the leash from me, my dog would just be a dog. The power of access lies in my own needs and rights to by accompanied by my service dog.
If Cesar is disabled under the ADA and his dog is trained to assist him in one or more major life activity then so be it.. if not, the law will catch up to him. I for one report fakers that cross my path, and in the 17 years I've been in the SD world the list is made up of more than I can count.
Well. I am a retired vet. I look very healthy. Until extensive testing documented my tbi (traumatic brain injury). I now have service dog. She helps me with my inability to hear certain sounds at the same frequency of alarms. She also helps me with tbi related focuse and memory issues most people would not be able to see. She performs physical tasks to achieve these things. You could talk to me and never know my Injuries. I did 20 years in NSW. You can look that up if you do that know what it is. I hate the fakers with bs service dogs. You should not judge others though if you do that know. It's not your place to ask. You can ask 2 things is she a service dog and what tasks does she do. I dont know Caesars issue. It not my bussiness. His medical condition is his bussiness. I care about does his dog behave and do its job. People forget my dog is even with me at restaurants and on flghts. Wish you all the best stop judging and if you wouldn't want me to ask you the question do the ask me. I do think ask about your medical history leave other people's alone. Merry Christmas. Also if you are a faker for having a service dog stop. If you feel it's your job to interrogate so.someone e with a service dog you stop too. I know there may be errors in this I'm typing in my phone.
Watching it all... if I am out in public and my dog is not behaving appropriately and I am not taking proper action to correct her, if then you wonder if she is a real service dog, then ask away! Since my dog is actually a service dog helping me with my disabling condition, I am not afraid of the question "Is your dog a service dog?" Also, the customary 2 questions one can ask is actually 2 questions a business can ask. The average joe public doesn't have to follow that rule. You can actually tell joe public it is none of his business if my dog is a service dog, and what she does for me to assist. A business who must accomodate you with your service dog DOES have the right to ask those 2 questions. They are the ones who get into trouble if people bring their pets in and they sell food. They are the ones who can be held liable if a pet goes after another customer or even a service dog. When there is a dog misbehaving in a public place, I tell the person that even a service dog can get kicked out for behaving like that. Often the person is surprised by this little tidbit of information (because their dog is only a pet, and because they really know very little about what a service dog is and how they must act.) I usually don't care too much if someone brings a dog in and it minds its own business. No problem. Keep your dog away from mine, but no problem. It is the people who bring in their under socialized and ill behaved dogs into public places that really get me. The woman with the blood hound she could not even keep a hold of the leash as it bellowed at us in a Rite-aid, whose cashier says "There is nothing I can do. We are dog friendly." And I say "If MY service dog behaved like that, we can be asked to leave." You can't just allow any dog into the store (which sells food btw). Someone could bring an attack dog in here and you would stand there and just say "There is nothing I can do..." as the dog bit a customer, or a disabled person's service dog, rendering it unable to continue it's job as a service dog. $20,000 service dog! This hound was easily 100 lbs. My dog is 35 lbs. I could barely keep the dog away from my dog. Imagine the damage that dog could do to mine just climbing on top of her. Body slamming her (it has happened)! At that point, do I have a right to ask the lady questions, like why the h--l she brought her under socialized dog inside a store? YOU bet I do. And the store will hear from me on this more.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a service dog is only required to do one task (work or job) for the disabled individual. Some programs raise that to three. However, if a service dog's main task is a medical alert, that is sufficient under the law.
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