'Fake' service dog & veteran kicked out of restaurant

[Hum]

When James Glaser stepped into Big I?s Restaurant in Oxford, Massachusetts with his service dog Jack, he was quickly told to leave in no uncertain terms. Glaser, a 41-year-old Air Force veteran, was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder in November of 2011 when he retired and says that he does not leave his house without Jack by his side. The veteran explained what happened to WHDH 7 News, ?I hear, ?Get that fake service dog out of my restaurant!.?? Big I?s owner, Russell Ireland didn?t consider the canine a true service dog and said, ?This is a post-traumatic stress dog. It's to give him emotional support. How much emotional support do you need when you are eating breakfast?? :huh:

James grabbed Jack?s paperwork to show the doubting owner that he was indeed a legitimate service dog but was still given a fight. He told WFXT FOX 25 News, ?I said, ?I have his certification paperwork right here. He?s not fake, he?s 100% legit.? He like, ?I don?t give a [expletive]. I don?t have time for that. Get out of my restaurant.?? So James called the police and Sergeant Anthony Saad with the Oxford PD confirmed the dog?s paperwork and attempted to convince Ireland. While no charges were brought, the Iraq Vet says he will file a complaint with the Americans with Disabilities Act which states that businesses must, ?allow someone with PTSD to bring in a service animal that has been trained to calm the person when he or she has an anxiety attack.? James said, ?Got 21 distinguished years in the military. After everything we?ve done, we just shouldn?t be treated like that.?

Many others agree with James and vow not to support Ireland or his dining establishment and a Facebook page boycotting Big I?s has over 25,000 likes. Ireland has received angry phone calls, honks from passing cars in protest, and threats to burn down the restaurant. Former patron Bill Haseotes said, ?I used to go in there and eat but now I'll never give him a penny again after what I heard." Despite public sentiment Ireland is not retreating and says he apologizes only to veterans with ?legitimate? service dogs, not Glaser.

Bart Sherwood, Program Director for the service dog training program Train a Dog Save a Warrior, rescued Jack from a Florida shelter, then helped train and certify him as a service dog. Sherwood said that dogs like Jack and other PTSD service dogs don?t look like the typical service dog breeds that people are used to, like Labrador retrievers or German shepherds, so their legitimacy is doubted. He advocates for better education about the matter.

source

[techbeck]

I see a restaurant going out of business soon.

[Art3x]

To be that combative about a service dog, something must have happened previously.  I would hope he wouldn't go that irate for no reason.

[Hum]

I can see the point, that he doesn't really need a dog, to eat in a restaurant.

 

 

Plus, other customers may bring their regular dogs in, feed them under the table, pet pee & poop, noise, etc.

[He's Dead Jim]

I can see the point why he needs a dog to leave the house, He has a mental condition which prevents him from functioning normally like you or me, and he has been prescribed a dog to help him deal with the rigours which the mental condition causes him to suffer from.

 

I would serve him before any "able minded" customers

[Hum]

^ How 'smart' do you need to be to eat food ...?

 

I know of a PTDS guy around here -- he was in Iraq, but never saw any combat.

 

He gives the distinct impression of simply trying to milk the system.

 

I'm fairly sure his mental problems go back to childhood.

[techbeck]

^ How 'smart' do you need to be to eat food ...?

 

It is not how smart you are.  Dogs have been proven to help people in many ways to cope with difficulties and obstacles in their lives.  The guy is not stupid, he just is suffering from a condition.

[Hum]

^ It seems to me, that if you have emotional difficulties, you would avoid going out in public.

[ILikeTobacco]

^ How 'smart' do you need to be to eat food ...?

 

I know of a PTDS guy around here -- he was in Iraq, but never saw any combat.

 

He gives the distinct impression of simply trying to milk the system.

 

I'm fairly sure his mental problems go back to childhood.

What does it have to do with being smart?

 

?allow someone with PTSD to bring in a service animal that has been trained to calm the person when he or she has an anxiety attack"

 

The dog is there for when he has an anxiety attack. That can happen randomly and anything can trigger it. Restaurants are not somehow anxiety attack immunity zones.

[Buttus]

he has a dog to help him with anxiety PTSD, and he goes to a restaurant to eat a nice calm breakfast, and what does he get?   anxiety!

 

why would the owner fight with him about it?   i mean, unless the dog was being a nuisance?  it didn't say it was

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

Hum... It's not your call to argue whether he needs a dog or not.  That has been decided and granted by people with the qualification to do so.  Under US law, nobody has the right to disallow him service based upon this.

 

HOWEVER

 

I find intrigue in what someone above said that something must have previously occurred for such a reaction.

[adrynalyne]

^ How 'smart' do you need to be to eat food ...?

 

I know of a PTDS guy around here -- he was in Iraq, but never saw any combat.

 

He gives the distinct impression of simply trying to milk the system.

 

I'm fairly sure his mental problems go back to childhood.

I'm sure your misunderstanding of disabilities also goes back that far.

 

 

 

 

^ It seems to me, that if you have emotional difficulties, you would avoid going out in public.

Hence the service dog.  

[Hum]

Hum... It's not your call to argue whether he needs a dog or not.

 

 

Anyone can have a dog if the want.

 

Just no need of a dog to eat in a restaurant.

 

He isn't blind.

[Lord Method Man]

 

 

He gives the distinct impression of simply trying to milk the system.

 

 

I can't speak for this guy, but far too many people exploit the VA system for benefits  :/

 

When I left the military several years ago we all had to go through TAP (2 day class on leaving the military) and we were told over and over again to claim as many disabilities as we could in order to get benefits.

[adrynalyne]

Anyone can have a dog if the want.

 

Just no need of a dog to eat in a restaurant.

 

He isn't blind.

What an ignorant comment.  Since when are service dogs restricted to sight impaired individuals?

[ILikeTobacco]

What an ignorant comment.  Since when are service dogs restricted to sight impaired individuals?

No joke. I want a server dog for my diabetes. Type 1's get them because a dog can smell a low sugar level coming on long before a human can feel it or before tests can detect it. Since I have to give myself insulin every time I eat, every time I run the risk of passing out from an accidental overdose. A dog would be needed mostly in a restaurant environment. Thinking service dogs are just for blind people is just showing his ignorance towards the subject.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

Just no need of a dog to eat in a restaurant.

 

He isn't blind.

 

Wow, I considered you a respected member of this forum, but with that one ignorant comment you undermine yourself.  Dogs are used for many forms of support, not only the blind.  Deaf people are assigned dogs, who are trained to gesture in certain ways to certain noises.  People with emotional issues are assigned dogs because they have a specific reaction when the owner becomes anxious that in turn relaxes the owner.

 

Either way, again - not your call is it.  It's the call of the medical professional who's job it is to assign against such needs.  And legally you are not in a position to question this.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

As I said, Maybe i need a special dog to help me deal with being ignorant then.

 

Not until you've been assigned one by someone much more educated on the matter than either you or I.  But at least now you accept their role, so you're growing as a person.  Congratulations :)

 

Lets all take our special dogs everywhere with us, and just be some special happy feeling world.

 

Being happy and having respect for feelings is a bad thing to you?  I suggest you definitely need to talk to someone about this.

[Vykranth]

There are plenty of programs for veterans with PTSD that provide them with dogs to help them cope with basic life.

- The Veterans Service Dog Program http://theveteransservicedogprogram.com/index.html

- Paws for Purple Hearts http://www.pawsforpurplehearts.org/

 

It is not because these dogs are not German shepherds or golden retrievers that they are not as valuable and as helping to these people who suffer greatly.

 

There are answers in this thread so inhumane that want me want to puke. If you want to continue, next time you see a veteran, kick him in the balls, that will be the same thing.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

There are answers in this thread so inhumane that want me want to puke. If you want to continue, next time you see a veteran, kick him in the balls, that will be the same thing.

 

I think it's just ignorant people who don't understand something so they attack it.  And let's be honest, a lot of people refuse to even try to understand mental or emotional issues, because it's seen as a weakness (generally by the weak).

[Zidane]

Gotta say Hum, I am shocked. I read all the news threads you make because you make whitty or "right on the mark" remarks.

 

This time, you seriously are way off base. It doesn't matter if I or you or anyone else on this thread feel having the service dog is silly. He was officially granted the service dog to help him cope with PTSD and we are not qualified to question who should and shouldn't have one.

 

Don't like it? Write up a letter to the appropriate organizations and voice your concerns.

[Charisma Veteran]

"Ignorant" not even being inherently negative here--although I dislike human tendency to attack something they do not understand. Simply not understanding is not bad, though, it's an opportunity to learn. So let's not attack each other here either, let's just discuss and learn :p

 

I have often wondered how the need for service dogs collides with the need to keep animals out of certain places for sanitary/allergy reasons. Not really the same situation but last time I was on a plane (couple of weeks ago) I was sat next to a lady who had a cat with her, in a carrier under the seat. The cat was sedated and sleeping and I actually didn't even know she was there until near the end when we had a rough landing and she woke up. But had I been allergic to cats, this could have been a problem. I guess these things are dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

 

At any rate, the owner didn't have to be rude about this. Perhaps they could have reached some compromise, like letting the dog stay outside and the man sitting at a table near the window where they could see each other. Or the man just going someplace where his business was more appreciated. It's what I would have done.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

I have often wondered how the need for service dogs collides with the need to keep animals out of certain places for sanitary/allergy reasons.

 

Generally dog breeds are chosen that don't shed so as to mitigate the issue.  Eg: Some breeds are cross-bred with poodle genes to remove the shedding.  See, being educated on a matter leads to reasoned debate.  Being blind and acting like jerk leads towards, well, staying blind and acting like a jerk.  The owner = the latter.

[Charisma Veteran]

Generally dog breeds are chosen that don't shed so as to mitigate the issue.  Eg: Some breeds are cross-bred with poodle genes to remove the shedding.  See, being educated on a matter leads to reasoned debate.  Being blind and acting like jerk leads towards, well, staying blind and acting like a jerk.  The owner = the latter.

Aha, see, that makes sense. Hypoallergenic dogs :)

 

Also, service dogs often have a little "jacket" on that asks people not to pet the dog or engage him/her, because the dog is working and needs to focus on other things. I'm sure it wouldn't have been a problem for anyone else in the restaurant, the owner should have seriously chilled out. It's basically discrimination at that point.

[tytytucke]

NO Dogs Allowed.

 

Some people just don't like animals and eating around them.

They can find them disgusting and everyone needs to be taken into consideration. 

especially the majority of the people in the restaurant over the guy who brought the dog.

A dog is a dog no matter how well bread, dressed and trained it is.