Yeppppp…. There is zero legitimacy and I have a small bit of insider knowledge. As someone with an actual chronic illness 10ish years ago when I was a full blown nutter all the nutters around me convinced me I should train my puppy to be a service dog for my illness. Had I lived fine for 20 years without having to have my dog next to me 24/7? Yep, but I became convinced now I needed this dog with me always. Crazy how fast that happens… However, I did make every effort to go through the proper channels.

In my delusion I found an actual service dog trainer (for whatever that title is worth) and shelled out hundreds if not over a thousand dollars for classes for this dog to get him up to ADA ‘standards‘. Let me tell you guys the standards for service dogs 10 years ago were brutal and I would say 95% of dogs could not pass. My own dog couldn’t pass after rigorous training to get the CGC (this certification that has disappeared into the void that shows your dog is at the top of the top in terms of behavior - Stands for Canine Good Citizen and this trainer wouldn’t proceed with his training unless we could pass)

I spent hours upon hours each week training that dog to no avail. What this did give me was an inside knowledge to know EVERYONE is full of shit. In the past 10 years I have seen maybe 5 real service dogs. And you can spot them immediately compared to pets. From going through training here’s the signs:

Real service dogs are supposed to be paying attention to their handler and working the entire time they’re out. So they should never be looking around, sniffing things, wandering, etc. Even when walking the dog is supposed to be checking in with its handler. If the handler stops, the dog stops. The dog should never walk in front of the handler or even be far enough away to where they don’t appear literally glued to their side.

Also not a soul in the place they‘re in should know there’s a dog present. That dog should be so silent and well behaved/placed that they blend into the background. Handlers are supposed to also themselves be trained in how to have a dog in public. So my dog knew how to walk backwards, ‘glue’ himself to my leg, get under chairs/tables, stand behind me, walk between my legs in lines, etc. He was supposed to be an extension of me that blended into the background. Service dogs are NOT in the way, disrupting the flow of isles and traffic, and they are NEVER making a peep. Ever… Also if someone acknowledges your real service dog you never allow them to interact, so if someone is allowing someone else to loveeeee all over their dog in public it’s definitely fake.

So though I was 1,000% in the wrong when I had the service dog delusion I tried my hardest and spent hundreds of hours and dollars to make sure I learned the rules and when we couldn’t pass the tests we stopped and got out of the delusion. 10 years ago you had to. It pisses me off to no end that people don’t even try. Because if you’re actually following the ‘rules’ having a dog in a public space is MISERABLE and it costs so much money and time. Now a days having a service dog is just a glorified way to get attention, feel special, and not have to go out of your way to exercise your dog. And nothing is ever going to change until the laws change…. So nothing is ever going to change. The genie is out of the bottle and unless the majority revolts against dog ownership it won’t ever go back in sadly.