I’ve been writing about service dogs a lot lately, and I’ve noticed a few things throughout my service dog experience. First and foremost, taking your service dog out in public comes with lots of hidden setbacks that I hadn’t faced before incorporating my service dog. Here’s a bit of insight on what it’s like to have a service dog, and how you can be a better ally to service dogs and their handlers in public spaces.
1. Public Misunderstanding & Misinformation
Many people don’t understand what service dogs do or how they should behave around them. I’ve done an article in the past about service dog related misconceptions, but for a quick review, common misconceptions include:
- Believing only guide dogs for vision impairments qualify as service animals. There are service dogs for all kinds of disabilities.
- Assuming that only certain breeds of dogs can be service dogs. Any kind of dog can be a service dog.
- Assuming service dogs need to be wearing official vests or paperwork to be legitimate. Service dogs do not need to be labeled in public. The only two things you can ask someone with a service dog is “Is that a service dog for a disability? And what tasks is it trained to perform?”
- Thinking it’s acceptable to pet, distract, or talk to a service dog while working. Please don’t. It’s hard enough to keep newly trained service dogs focused. Please don’t make it any harder.
These misconceptions can lead to uncomfortable interactions and, in some cases, denial of access. Please be respectful.
2. Denied Access & Legal Battles
Even though the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects service dog handlers, businesses sometimes unlawfully deny them entry. Common scenarios include:
🚫 Restaurants claiming health code violations as an excuse to refuse service dogs. That’s not true, service dogs are allowed in restaurants.
🚫 Hotels attempting to charge pet fees, even though service dogs are not pets. Once again, not legal because having your service dog there is a part of your accommodations.
🚫 Drivers of rideshares refusing service dogs, despite policies requiring them to allow access. Not legal, but very awkward all the same.
Handlers often need to educate staff or threaten legal action to gain access—an exhausting burden they shouldn’t have to bear. Fortunately, most people tend to back down after hearing that the dog is a service dog and has a legal right to be there.
3. Disruptions & Untrained Pets
Another major challenge is uncontrolled pets in public spaces. Handlers frequently encounter:
- Aggressive or reactive pets lunging at service dogs.
- Off-leash dogs interfering with trained tasks.
- Businesses allowing emotional support animals (ESAs) in restricted areas, creating confusion about service dog legitimacy.
While emotional support animals provide comfort, they lack the rigorous training that service dogs undergo, sometimes leading to public skepticism about all working dogs. Please be respectful of service animals in public spaces and keep your pets away from working dogs. My service dog may be friendly, but he is working.
4. Lack of Disability Awareness
Beyond access issues, handlers often face ignorant or invasive interactions, including:
❓ “Are you really disabled?”
❓ “What’s wrong with you?”
❓ “Can’t you just leave the dog outside?”
These questions reinforce ableist attitudes and put handlers in uncomfortable positions where they must justify their need for a service animal. It is no one’s damn business about what disability I have, or why I need my service dog. Remember that you do not need to defend your right to exist.
So what should you do?
I’ve gone through a lot of these scenarios already in my first few months of training Trace, so here’s a few things I would love to see happen in the future.
Ignore me and my dog like you do everyone else. I know it’s hard, and I’ll never get mad at anyone for staring at us. However, the number of times I’ve had to answer uncomfortable questions about my disability, and even Trace’s disability is mind-blowing. I don’t want to tell you about how he lost his leg, or why my blood pressure sucks, or if he’s happy as a Tri-pawed dog. It’s a little invasive. Imagine if every time you went out in public someone wanted to know about your health history? It’d be weird!
DO NOT PET HIM. Seriously what is wrong with people? You should never, ever, pet someone else’s dog without their permission. I know he’s cute and you have the best intentions, but for all you know, he could be a killer with 9,000 teeth. Don’t invade his personal space or mine. And this isn’t just for our comfort (although that is part of it), but your safety as well as mine! If he is distracted while working, I could miss an episode and have a severe blood pressure drop. And if you overwhelm him, he could get reactive! Please, please, please keep your hands to yourself.
If you still really, really want to help, you are welcome to hold doors open for us, but that is about it! I really truly appreciate the thought, but we can function on our own just fine. If you would like to ask if we need help, you are totally welcome to! But don’t include any statements about my disability or the presence of my service dog when asking. If you wouldn’t ask anyone else this question, please don’t ask me.
Educate others. If you see a friend do some of these less positive things, please save me the trouble of educating them! They are much more likely to take you telling them not to pet my dog better than they will take me saying it. If you see us out in public, take the extra second to make sure your friends and family are being kind to us.
In conclusion…
Service dogs are trained to perform critical tasks that allow their handlers to live independently. Yet, societal barriers often make accessibility difficult. By spreading awareness, advocating for better enforcement of laws, and fostering inclusive spaces, we can help reduce these daily struggles for service dog teams.
Hopefully this article has been educational and maybe a little entertaining!
With all my love, Trailblaze on!
–Kaya and Trace
Trailblazing Unleashed 
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