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Stormyw2000 · 05-23-2012, 02:07 PM

I only intended him to be just a pet when I got him, but since he's showing a tendency on his own, I'm developing it. I need all the help I can get. It's more than emotional support - he's learning to retrieve things I drop, like my keys. I hadn't considered him being labeled as a service dog until the Target incident.

It was Target's nasty attitude that really bothered me. I've brought him to other stores (Walmart, Rite-Aid, TJ Maxx for example) as a pet. I stop on the way home from the park, groomer, etc. No one has ever asked if he was a pet or a service dog or cared. Target didn't ask if he was a service dog or not until AFTER I was done shopping & paying. If they are so hung up on only allowing service dogs in the store, why didn't any of the umpteen employees I saw around the store say something? Why did they wait until I had paid & was leaving to give me a hard time? They were really nasty about it. btw - the dog is very well behaved. He doesn't bark, snap, isn't hyper, disruptive, destructive, or dangerous. And we were LEAVING the store when they stopped me. Instead of demanding that I prove he was a service dog after they had my money, why not just tell me pets aren't allowed when I was walking in the door? Especially if they thought he was just a pet?

I admit that I'm overly sensitive to discrimination around disabilities. So when I got home, I read the ADA definition and I didn't think they could ask me to prove it either. As it happens, I am legally & permanently disabled. I also have a legal HP parking placard & often get harassed when I use it. (seriously - people yell at me, accuse me of using my granny's placard, leave nasty notes on my car, someone even took a box cutter to my new mustang and caused $2,000 damage before I even made the first payment on it.) Not all disabilities are visible. You can't tell by looking at me that I have lupus. I feel it 24/7, but I look normal. It drives me crazy that I'm constantly being harassed or have people demand that I prove I'm disabled. (Sorry, it's a huge peeve of mine. I've been dealing with this kind of discrimination for 30 years. Sometimes I need to vent and I warned you that I was overly sensitive to this!)

Maybe I'll get him an ID/vest and hang out at Target just to annoy them...

05-23-2012, 02:07 PM	#15
Stormyw2000 Yorkie Talker Join Date: May 2012 Location: Salem, MA Posts: 23	I only intended him to be just a pet when I got him, but since he's showing a tendency on his own, I'm developing it. I need all the help I can get. It's more than emotional support - he's learning to retrieve things I drop, like my keys. I hadn't considered him being labeled as a service dog until the Target incident. It was Target's nasty attitude that really bothered me. I've brought him to other stores (Walmart, Rite-Aid, TJ Maxx for example) as a pet. I stop on the way home from the park, groomer, etc. No one has ever asked if he was a pet or a service dog or cared. Target didn't ask if he was a service dog or not until AFTER I was done shopping & paying. If they are so hung up on only allowing service dogs in the store, why didn't any of the umpteen employees I saw around the store say something? Why did they wait until I had paid & was leaving to give me a hard time? They were really nasty about it. btw - the dog is very well behaved. He doesn't bark, snap, isn't hyper, disruptive, destructive, or dangerous. And we were LEAVING the store when they stopped me. Instead of demanding that I prove he was a service dog after they had my money, why not just tell me pets aren't allowed when I was walking in the door? Especially if they thought he was just a pet? I admit that I'm overly sensitive to discrimination around disabilities. So when I got home, I read the ADA definition and I didn't think they could ask me to prove it either. As it happens, I am legally & permanently disabled. I also have a legal HP parking placard & often get harassed when I use it. (seriously - people yell at me, accuse me of using my granny's placard, leave nasty notes on my car, someone even took a box cutter to my new mustang and caused $2,000 damage before I even made the first payment on it.) Not all disabilities are visible. You can't tell by looking at me that I have lupus. I feel it 24/7, but I look normal. It drives me crazy that I'm constantly being harassed or have people demand that I prove I'm disabled. (Sorry, it's a huge peeve of mine. I've been dealing with this kind of discrimination for 30 years. Sometimes I need to vent and I warned you that I was overly sensitive to this!) Maybe I'll get him an ID/vest and hang out at Target just to annoy them...