I may chat about my books, what I'm writing or reading, or just general thoughts. You may read posts about my cats or just my crazy life in general. Comments are welcome, if anyone wants to interact with me. Maybe we can share war stories, whether it's writing related or just about life in general.

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Is it really what it looks like…or not?



Working sure does open my eyes to the behavior of people.  Whether we’re busy or not something always comes along to amaze me.  The things people will do for free food samples will make your jaw drop.  Most of the time, we’re too busy to think a lot about this behavior at the time.  And luckily, there are some very nice people out there, but there’s also some that show just how bad humans can be.

However, I’m not going there in this post.  I have a question for all of you about service animals.  Do any of you know if service dogs eat on the job?  I’ll explain below.

Lately, I’ve noticed an influx of people with service dogs in the store over the last couple of months.  I think service animals are great and do great work for impaired individuals, but I have a lot of doubts if all of these animals are really service dogs.  I think anyone can go into a pet store (such as Petco and Petsmart) and buy a service vest for a dog.  My issue is that these people come into the store with the “service animal” on a leash and they eat, and feed the dog as well, while standing in the store with other shoppers also partaking of the free samples.

A very heated argument took place last week over this issue between a shopper and an older man with his “service dog.”  Now this older man is in the store all the time eating free samples and feeding his dog in the isle beside/or in front of our food carts.  Management had to intervene as the argument escalated between the two men as they made their way down the isle.  They stopped right in front of six of us with samples so there were a lot of witnesses to this incident along with the other shoppers in the store.  The man confronting the person with the dog was so red with the veins bulging in his neck that we thought he’d have a heart attack.

None of us needed that bit of excitement happening right there.

I think that there should be a way to check this type of situation.  Only real service animals should be allowed to come in the store.  I hope a way to remedy this will be implemented soon.

Once the men were taken upfront to cool off, the gal beside me told me about an incident that happened a few years ago with a man and his service animal.  The dog was allowed to wander under the gal’s sample table eating up any crumbs that had fallen and then it lifted its leg and peed on her cart.  She had to shut down and take everything to the back and sanitize all the equipment and throw away the food.  I don’t think a service dog would do this.


There are never too many dull moments in the food sample business.  Any thoughts anyone?

8 comments:

  1. There is always much discussionhon the Prescott Facebook page about service animals or not one. I don't think a service animal would eat on the job. I know the legit ones I have seen in public have a vest and usually something else like dont pet them since they are working, etc. I just think more people want to bring their dogs with them so they pass them off as service ones.

    Betty

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Betty,

      That's exactly what I think. Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.

      Sunni

      Delete
  2. That's like making your own "handicapped driver" placard so you can park in handicapped spots, even though you're in perfect health and just too lazy to walk a few extra feet. I know people who have legitimate need of a service dog, and many others who train service dogs, but from what you're saying these people are neither and just went to Petsmart and bought a "service dog" jacket so they can bring their dog everywhere and take advantage of the hospitality. Jerks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. John,

      I have no objection to actual service dogs and the people who need them, use them and train them. I think this situation was a man eating and feeding his dog. He comes in often too. I do object to that and so do some of the shoppers who can see right through this little escapade he has going on.

      Thanks for reading and your comment.

      Sunni

      Delete
  3. There should be some way to check about service dogs. Most of the time, the dogs I see in stores are service dogs in training, and their vests say as much.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Liz,

      I agree. There should be some way to check if the dogs are actually service dogs. They shouldn't make it so easy for the public to obtain these vests for their animals. They take advantage of a system that's designed to help the people who really need it.

      Thanks for your comment.

      Sunni

      Delete
  4. First I must say that the owner/handler of a service animal is not required by law to present any certification and it is against United States Federal Law to discriminate against service dogs or their owners. That being said, there are always people who take advantage of any situation. I have a relative who has an emotional service dog (she suffers from bipolar depression among other emotional problems), but she is careful where she takes her dog and her dog is very well mannered and always by her side or in her arms. I've noticed a huge difference in my relative since she got the service dog, so I have no doubt that emotional service dogs do help and are legit. People need to take responsibility and use common sense. A service dog should always be near its owner and never let lose to run around a store.
    As far as the older man abusing his sampling privileges, I have to say, never deny anyone food, because you never know what that person is going through at the moment, especially an older person living on a fix income. However, the store can establish rules regarding how many samples a person can have in a day, and if the service animal is not behaving appropriately someone of authority could have a word with the owner of the animal in a professional manner. I've seen this type of behavior from many people without service dogs. I actually think there's a bigger problem with parents allowing their kids to run wild in stores, touching everything and knocking things down. People just need to be more responsible and more considerate of others.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Vashti,

      I hear you. And I would never not allow a person to go without food as we never know a person's circumstances, but we have many that abuse the system. There are regulars who come in the store to eat free lunch daily.

      As far as the dog is concerned, he was in the store again with the guy, but this time the guy was careful to take him down the isle to feed him due to the uproar last week.

      Parents do let their kids run loose all the time and they run in front of carts, etc. I stop it when I can can and ask then to please not run in the store and ask them where their parents are. Most times parents are so oblivious to any situation concerning their kids. And there's a sign at the entrance asking parents to control their kids at all times. Nothing seems to be enforced unless a shopper throws a fit about it.

      I agree that people should be considerate of others but I'm afraid we see the worst of human kind at work. This is unfortunate, but it sure opens your eyes.

      Thanks for your comment.

      Sunni

      Delete

Thank you for stopping by to read and
comment on my posts. I appreciate it.
Sunni