Fake Service and Companion Dogs

In California now there is a law that forces landlords in residential units which have a no pets policy to accept tenants pets when they are either service or, much more dubiously, companion dogs. Everyone I’m sure knows what service dogs are and they are very essential for people who actually require them. No arguments there. But then, when one goes into a mall and sees some asswipe losers who clearly are not disabled, with their dogs accompanying them, one realizes how screwed up things are.

I even saw one person’s pitbull literally pawing the counter at a Starbucks in the mall. The store is on the sub-level food-court area of a mall downtown, immediately adjacent to the entrance to the underground subway terminal, where they apparently had been able to take their dog on public transit because it had a tag. Anyone can now get these tags.

And I now routinely see people with their pitbulls and tatoos all over their arms walking right through stores like Nordstrom and other places.

In my own apartment building, there are now multiple tenants with “companion” dogs which clearly are just their pets. The one that is near my unit I hear barking every day.

You can go online and find step-by-step instructions on how to abuse the law, lie, and get a doctor to sign off for a companion dog:

Get a Doctor’s Letter

In order to prove that a dog is a service or support animal, you may be asked to have documentation from a licensed professional (doctor, nurse practitioner, psychiatrist, other mental-health professional or social worker) stating that the animal is an essential part of treatment for a disability. A doctor’s letter must have two essential components.
1. It must state that you have a disability. The disability does not need to be identified.
2. It must state that it is the professional opinion of the provider that is it essential for you to have a service/support animal.

Regardless of whether you are asked to show a doctors letter, it is very helpful to have one on file just in case. (Click for Sample Doctor’s Letter.)

source: pawssf.org Getting a Doctor’s Letter – Sample Doctor’s Letter

There are all kinds of things that people can find to provide them with positive support, if that is what they truly need, without forcing places to accept animals on their premises.

More info:

nbcbayarea.com Frustrated by Fake Service Dogs