Standing Up and Shutting It Down

This is a difficult post to write. I get riled up every time I think about this topic. There will come many times where you must stand up for your own space and access, AND when you'll need to protect your service dog. Some people think that it is acceptable to pet service dogs or to distract them because they are so cute/beautiful/well behaved. These people forget in their compulsion to pet all animals that your service animal is a working dog and shouldn't be distracted. It doesn't occur to them that in their pursuit of the pleasure of doggie softness they are preventing a working animal from doing their job. I know this wouldn't happen with a bomb or drug-detecting dog. But somehow some people think that it is acceptable to impose their affections on a service dog of unknown tasks.

This has happened many times to Hippo and me. I haven't always been as strong in speaking up. It is hard, demanding people leave me and mine alone. Here are a few examples of how people have imposed upon us. (They have mostly happened in Costco on the weekend.) A family was walking through the store, mostly following the same shopping path that we were walking on. The mother encouraged her child to sneak a pat from Hippo. (It should be noted that I live in Las Vegas, and the mother was speaking Spanish to her child. I can only assume that she didn't think myself or my spouse didn't understand her. Unbeknownst to her, my spouse is fluent in Spanish. Though this time, I understood enough of her words to know what she was saying.) The child snuck up and rubbed Hippo when I had turned to pick up an item, and then ran back to his family. Now, this is problematic for many reasons. One, Hippo is not his pet. What parent tells their child to pet a strange dog that they don't know? That is begging for an injury and an innocent dog being killed. Two, Hippo was wearing her vest, which clearly says in large letters DO NOT PET. Whether the kid could read or not, logic dictates that an animal wearing a vest that has lettering on it should not be disturbed. For all he knew, we were running a drug sting on the store and my dog would have bitten him as a perp. Three, Hippo was attached to me in by a leash that wears like a sash. There is no universe where an animal attached to a person like that should ever be approached without permission. She could have spooked and dragged me around/made me fall. He didn't have information for WHY she was so attached to me, or even what her tasks were. He didn't ask.

THBBTTTT on distractions

On a different occasion, again while shopping in Costco, I was waiting in line to pay for purchases and the man in front of us kept trying to get her to come up and lick his hand. He'd complimented Hippo on how beautiful her coloring was, and mentioned loving the breed. I thought he'd be able to contain himself. I was wrong. "Hi cutie, <kissing noises>, come here..." He held his hand out, as though he had a treat in it. I was so ticked off and tired that I walked away. I didn't feel like talking. Instead, I left my spouse to pay and took a time-out. When I returned to the line, I purposefully placed my husband between us and this man. This was problematic because it was in close proximity to us. There were carts and lots of people blocking us. It wasn't easy to maneuver out to claim our space. He really scared me.

The third event I'm going to share was the first time I'd spoken up. As we were making our way to the exit of the Costco, someone behind us was making kissing noises and trying to entice Hippo to come over. This was actually the scariest for me. Hippo is ALWAYS in the sash style lead. I'm always "wearing" her. Had she wandered away from our exodus, I would have been harmed. I would have been pulled over on the slippery floor. Instead, she maintained her training and stayed by my side. I called back to the people I couldn't see "Please stop trying to distract my service dog." This was a big deal for me. It may seem small, but I struggle with expressing my needs to other people. In the past, I have unknowingly walked on 2 broken bones in my foot until they healed because I didn't want to cause a fuss. This time, I was so incensed that some stranger wanted to undermine the hard work that Hippo had done. I was pissed off that they didn't consider MY need for a service dog, in the presence of their desire for warm doggie kisses.

She LOVES her avocado.

It is difficult, having to stretch beyond your comfort zone to assert your rights and demand your space. I get very anxious whenever it comes up. But shutting down any distraction to your service dog is paramount to their success, especially when they are in training. People mean well. They love dogs and think that they are being supportive when they give their approval for seeing your dog in public. The ignorance surrounding service dogs is epic in proportions. That is why I feel like a teacher/lecturer every time we go into public spaces. SOME person has a question or incorrect paradigm that must be addressed. I don't mind informing people about my new normal, aka life as a service dog handler. I just can't stand when people distract Hippo. She's MY service dog. Everyone else can just get their own. <wink>