SiriusSummer

Sometimes it's just easier to tell people that you're married. My fiance started telling people I was his wife before we even got engaged, and I'll call him my husband.

Why? Not because it's a cutesy thing, but because there are people who don't consider boyfriend/girlfriend or an engaged level of relationship to be serious and will try to flirt, grope, or get you to break up.

If you tell them you're married, however, that sets up an invisible line few are willing to cross. The few who DO try to cross that line, however, usually get told off by their friends or even strangers if they continue to harass you.

Overall, it's just easier, more peace of mind, and less of a headache when you can just tell people, "yeah, I'm hitched" instead of having them buzz around you like a fly while you try to enjoy time out with friends.

Edit- I accidentally a grammar.

Psychiatric Service Dogs can be trained to perform tasks for people with psychiatric illnesses. They ARE NOT therapy dogs.

A service dog to help with panic attacks and severe anxiety can be trained to:

• provide balance support when the person gets light-headed from an episode
• alert before an episode
• distract to prevent/reduce an episode
• ground during an episode
• lead the person out of/away from a stressful situation
• seek help
• fetch meds

A therapy dog is a well-behaved pet that is taken in to provide comfort to other people, such as at schools and nursing homes. It IS NOT a service dog and will not get access to public places.

An emotional support animal is a pet that provides comfort to its owner by its presence. No training. It is not allowed public access, though, if the handler is disabled, they MUST be permitted in some housing and on transportation (airlines, buses, etc.).

As it states, if it's just there for comfort via is presence, it's an emotional support animal and has no right to be in a restaurant (though has to be permitted in housing and on public transportation).

If it's actually trained to perform tasks to mitigate the psychiatric disability, it's a service dog and has to be permitted unless it's being disruptive.

This is longer than I planned, sorry, but hopefully it will be helpful.

Due to various reasons (cost, limited travel, availability of training organizations) I've trained my own.

I'm not an insider in an organization, but when I first started looking into getting a psych dog about 15 years ago, when they were practically unheard of, I asked around quite a bit. Unfortunately, that experience led me to dislike service dog training orgs, even, and especially, the big, well-known ones.

I won't go into all the details, but if you're looking for a psych dog, find an organization that specializes in them and, yes, you're going to need to do some research because none of the orgs are truly regulated and you can find groups that take your money and run or leave you with a poorly trained dog.

Things to look into:

• Google "psychiatric service dog" and find support groups that can help answer your questions and give you advice. (http://www.psychdogpartners.org/ seems like it has some decent info, though I haven't talked to them). A lot of people self-train because we've had no other viable option through the years and some service dog organizations have fought tooth and nail to make sure that service dogs were only for those with physical disabilities, including trying to get the federal (ADA) definition of service dog changed to only physical.

Next, if you want to go the organization route, there are things to consider:

1. Do they train psych dogs?
2. How long have they been training? A short time of a few years (especially for psych dogs) isn't necessarily a bad thing, but DO make sure they have some experience training.
3. What psych disabilities do they train for and what do they teach the dog? A place that can teach multiple tasks for multiple disabilities will have an easier time customizing your dog's training to your needs. Some places only teach 1 command, just enough to get the dog considered a service dog! Even alert dogs can be trained to do more! (I'm using the term "task" to cover responses to both intentional and unintentional cues, though "work" would be more of an appropriate term for the dog reacting to non-intentional cues.)
4. Are you able to see several of their dogs in a working situation? If so, watch them: How do they behave in public? Around distractions, children, small animals and other dogs they don't know? (There have been organizations that had "FULLY TRAINED" and working dogs attacking other dogs and children!) Are the dogs well-mannered? Ignore food that's not theirs? Respond without much prodding?
5. Can you talk with other clients, see reviews? You'll be more likely to hear about quirks and make sure they're not just going to take your money and disappear.
6. Where are they located? Will you need to pay for travel & lodging or will they come to you? How long will they/you need to stay? How often will you need to return for "refresher" training?
7. How much does the dog cost? Some donate the dog, others want $3,000-20,000, depending on the organization and the training involved. What does that include? Training, capes, ID? Vet and food costs are generally not included; that will be your own responsibility.
8. What breed(s) do they train? Shedding, allergies, exercise, size, health, life-and-workingspan, and food and vet costs are all things to take into account.
9. What happens with the dog on retirement? Do you get to keep them or do you have to give them back?

Add any other questions you feel may be important ("Am I allowed to have other pets?") and call up or email the orgs you're interested in. The answers will help you weed out the ones that might be better for you. Expect to be asked questions, as well.

As for the ID, cape, and all that, it is ILLEGAL for a business to request to see them. You do not need them. DO make sure you have a record of your health issues and how they severely impact your life (ie, you have a disability, as defined by the ADA), AND make sure your dog is trained tasks to specifically mitigate those issues. You want the health info and record in case you ever need to go to court, and here, yes, an organization-trained dog will have proof it was trained, however, if you've worked with a professional, private trainer, they can provide testimony, or you can have your dog perform on command, as well, if you didn't have a private trainer. If you self-trained, keep a log of training sessions, methods, and progress made; this can be used as proof, as well.

While it is illegal for businesses to demand your dog have/wear identification, for your own sanity (and the business's), I DO strongly recommend having some form of cape or leash that identifies your dog as a working dog. This will reduce the number of people trying to pet/play with/distract your dog, businesses won't give you as much of a hard time, and businesses will appreciate fewer customers coming to them and complaining about a dog being in the store. (Unfortunately, it will not necessarily stop full grown men in armor from squealing like little girls as they run over to hug your dog. (Yay, Ren Faire!)

I stopped giving mine treats because instead of going, she'd just squat and pretend, then expect the treat. She'd be more focused on getting the treat than in going, which, of course, made her forget she had to go. (Smells in the yard will also distract her mid-potty and she'll forget to finish.)

After being outside with her about 10 minutes waiting for her to go and her just pretending and trying to get a treat, I'd give up and take her in (planning to take her our again within 30 minutes). Then she'd come in, realize she had to still go, and go on the floor.

That was as a puppy. She's learned to hold it like a champ when inside since then, but she's still super-easily distracted when she goes out to potty. I have to correct her off smells she fixates on to keep her focused on going, or pull up on the leash to keep her head up when she finally does go or else she'll start walking mid-poop or pee.

When working, though, she's focused on her job. She's our little idiot-savant.