Kim is a
re-homed service dog who is in advanced training to serve a veteran with post-traumatic
stress. Under Virginia State Law and
supported by the Americans with Disabilities Act, a trainer with a service dog
over the age of 6 months is afforded the same public access as the service dog
and its owner. That means that the
trainer and the dog are allowed anywhere the public is generally allowed. If asked, the trainer must answer the two
legally allowed questions: 1) is that a
service dog (yes) and 2) what tasks does it perform (list the tasks).
Just a few
days apart, Kim and her trainer visited two restaurants in different parts of
her city but all part of the same restaurant group. In the first restaurant – at the height of
the lunch rush hour – the visit was a non-event. She and her trainer entered the restaurant,
bought their food at the counter, found a table and Kim tucked under it. With the exception of some poorly informed
people who tried to pet Kim, there was no problem with lunch that day.
However, in
the second restaurant, Kim entered with her trainer – food was purchased, taken
to their booth, and again Kim tucked under.
Within a few minutes the restaurant manager came over and said, “some of
my customers are having a problem with a dog being in here … is that a service
dog?” Not the most polite way to start a
conversation, but he did ask the right question. The trainer answered yes without elaborating. Now, keep in mind that the dog was under the
table in a booth and could not be easily seen by anyone unless they were on all
fours.
Now, here is
where it gets interesting. The manager
looked at Kim’s trainer, made an ugly face, harrumphed loudly and walked
away. In about 5 minutes there was a
very loud ruckus near the self-serve trash cans, banging of dishes, flinging of
chairs at a nearby table and all in all quite the commotion. The manager was clearly trying to make enough
noise and disturbance to engage the dog in a negative way. The dog didn’t blink an eye and lunch
continued without incident other than the manager continuing to be visibly
unhappy.
Sadly, the
poor behavior exhibited by the manager cost the restaurant a customer – or two
or ten. Even without a service dog in
tow, the trainer won’t likely be frequenting that particular restaurant … and it’s
likely that the boycott will extend to his family and friends as well.
While business
owners may understand their legal obligations under the Americans with
Disabilities Act, they may be unaware of how their managers or front desk
personnel are handling the situation. And,
they may be unaware that they are driving customers away with their poor
attitude. These owners, together with
those who are unaware of their obligations, are opening themselves up to the
possibility of negative media attention or even a lawsuit. And, I can assure you, no one wants their
business to be in the media bullseye.
If you would
like information about how to improve, retain or increase business by creating
a service dog friendly environment, please contact Service Dog 411 to schedule
a staff education session today. Or, please
feel free to share your story about dining or shopping with your service dog!
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