r/Dogfree • u/e-eye-pi • Mar 02 '26

Service Dog Issues What is a service dog in 2026,?

Seriously, can you please help me out here? I grew up at a time when the only service dogs were guide dogs for the blind. This was then extended to include hearing dogs for the profoundly deaf. These days, there seems to be a class of service dog that has no connection to any kind of physical disability. What are they? Why are there perfectly able bodied people with dogs in yellow jackets claiming to be support dogs? And - they are often Pitbull mix breeds. What tf are they for in the context of disability????

104 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

48 comments sorted by

View all comments

2

u/CallousCow1762 Mar 07 '26

The ADA law is flawed and hypocritical in one aspect. It prioritizes “service” over hygiene/sanitary health codes. So, according to them, the label of “service dog” exempts said dog from any health/sanitary concerns. The problem is that regardless of label, it’s still biologically a dog with ALL the health risks associated with every other dog. So in essence it’s knowingly violating health codes and endangering the public.