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Can a SD in training only go into pet stores?

The Service and Therapy Dog forum is for all service and therapy dogs regardless of whether or not their status is legally defined by federal or state law, how they are trained, or whether or not they are "certified." Posts questioning or disputing a person's need for a service or therapy dog, the validity of a person's service or therapy dog, or the dog's ability to do the work of a service or therapy dog are not permitted in this forum. Please keep discussions fun, friendly, and helpful at all times.

  
Haven, SDiT

1282509		 
 
Barked: Fri Jan 18, '13 2:26pm PST 
Hey all. I just got the puppy who is going to be trained to be a psych SD for me (I'm doing basic training, commands, etc. and maybe a few of the smaller task training things), and a friend who is very experienced in working with and training service dogs is going to REALLY train her starting in the summer.

I know she's too young right now (three months) so I'm not going to bring her in anywhere anytime soon, but my friend said that once she gets a bit older and is definitely housebroken (she has a good temperament, so no worries about barking, aggression etc. in public), I should get her a vest that says service dog in training and take her into stores with me. I do want to get her a vest soon, because probably within the next month or two, I want to start teaching how to walk without interacting with/being distracted by dogs and other people. I don't want to start that right away because I think she needs to learn how to interact with people and dogs so that when she's not working, she can kind of be a normal dog.

Wow, this post is turning out to be really long... but basically, I'm wondering if as a SD in training, if she's only allowed in pet stores or can go other places. Some people have told me that she can go in places with me provided she doesn't cause disturbances, etc. And others have told me she can only go in places if I have permission from the owner... other people have said she can only go into pet stores. I live in Ontario, Canada and I'm not sure if my location makes a difference in that or not...
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Isaac

1278829		 
 
Barked: Fri Jan 18, '13 6:56pm PST 
I'm not sure about the laws in your area. I tried doing some googling but couldn't easily find it. In the US, SD's in training are covered by state law, not federal law (not by the ADA). In some states, SDiT's can go anywhere an SD can go. In other states, they can't. I'm in Ohio, and in Ohio only a trainer working with a recognized service dog program that is training a guide dog, hearing assistance dog, or mobility dog can take a SDiT into public places without getting permission from the business owner. So in my state, owner trainers must get permission from each business (unless it's a pet store or other pet friendly place where any pet can go) and programs that train dogs for psychiatric disabilities or seizure response dogs or things like that must get permission.

It will be a while before your puppy is old enough to start public access training anyway, so you've got plenty of time to research the laws in your area.
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Ginger DSA- ThD TT CGC - &hearts

My Angel
 
 
Barked: Fri Jan 18, '13 10:04pm PST 
From what I understand, as a puppy your dog would be considered a service dog candidate, not a service dog in training yet. So yes they would only be allowed in pet stores, unless you got express permission from a store owner.
When they are older and in advanced training to be a service dog, they are a SDiT and in that case, it is up to the individual state laws whether they have public access or not. You also have to check your state's requirements for service dogs in training as they may have special requirements, such as must have a special tag or must be accompanied by a trainer, etc...
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