Service dogs represent a series of great benefits for people with disabilities. Most states give out free licenses for service dogs as long as the dog has received all of the appropriate vaccinations. Service dogs are also considered as a legitimate medical expense and can be deducted for federal income tax purposes. States such as California also give a monthly allowance of dog food to people who qualify. In some cities such as San Francisco and New York City, pooper-scooper laws do not apply to service dogs’ owners who cannot be fined. In the case of a creditor winning a lawsuit against a disabled person, the service dogs can never be seized. Certain states have special laws when a service dog gets injured: the fines can be doubled; an owner can be sentenced to jail, etc.
Service dogs can represent up to 68% fewer expenses each year for disabled people who were spending a lot of money on hiring private assistants.
Sadly more and more people, especially in San Francisco, take advantage of a sometimes “confusing” legislation. As we mentioned before, service dogs are not forced to carry any special ID or tag which facilitate an extensive fraud from people that just want to take their pet dog everywhere they go. It is in fact really easy to obtain a fake identification or a service dogs’ vest.
On the one hand, dogs are initially prohibited in food facilities (for example) for a good reason: to prevent the spread of allergies and potential diseases. On the other hand it contributes to the creation of a really negative image towards service dogs. Indeed, non-service dogs are not trained and therefore are sometimes really poorly behaved in public places, which contribute to an increase in unnecessary discrimination. Such behaviour is frustrating and unacceptable for a legitimate service dog owner who actually needs the service dog to be fully independent.