My RIGHTS to keep my Hearing Dog....

Pet deposit fee for service hearing dog

Ok, I can't find it any where that I must (or do not pay) for pet deposit fee for renting apartments or house even tho I do have a hearing service dog.
I do understand the damage it may cause, which I can't think of any that she would do other than her nails scraping the wood deck, which does make marks. That is the only flaw...

But as to my question...I need an answer.

Thanks!!:deal:
 
LilleJ,

I couldn't find any specifics under the ADA or the Fair Housing Act, but I found several printed references on the Internet including the following:

Fair Housing: Service Animals

I'm concerned that my disabled tenant's service dog is going to damage the apartment and disturb other tenants. Is it okay to ask for a pet deposit?

A service animal is not a pet and you cannot lawfully require any additional deposits. The tenant is responsible for the actions of his/her animal and can be held accountable for any damage to your property. Additionally, the tenant must comply with any of your established policies such as cleanliness and maintenance of the unit as well as leash requirements and noise guidelines.
 
I would like to know if law has changed recently...last I knew a service/hearing dog (not a pet) did not need to be "certified". Training schools will tell you they need to be and sometimes people will scare you into thinking its necessary but its not. We need to know the law and inform everyone of exactly what it is. Otherwise we will get ourselves into trouble. And believe me its easy to do even when you're following the law. Sad.
 
The law has not changed. Agencies that try to convince you that you need certification want your money. It is VERY costly to train a service animal. People (esp businesses or uneducated) will tell you this because they don't want to be bothered by upholding the law. People are so strange.

The ADA defines a service animal as any guide dog, signal dog or other animal individually trained to provide assistance to a disabled person. If they meet this definition, animals are considered service animals regardless of whether they have been licensed or certified by a state or local government.
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JennyJo said:
I would like to know if law has changed recently...last I knew a service/hearing dog (not a pet) did not need to be "certified". Training schools will tell you they need to be and sometimes people will scare you into thinking its necessary but its not. We need to know the law and inform everyone of exactly what it is. Otherwise we will get ourselves into trouble. And believe me its easy to do even when you're following the law. Sad.
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In Florida I don't think dogs need to be "certified" or landlord can require deposit as "pet" (I don't know Lilles state).

From The 2007 Florida Statutes - 413.08 Rights of an individual with a disability; use of a service animal; discrimination in public employment or housing accommodations; penalties.--

(d) "Service animal" means an animal that is trained to perform tasks for an individual with a disability. The tasks may include, but are not limited to, guiding a person who is visually impaired or blind, alerting a person who is deaf or hard of hearing, pulling a wheelchair, assisting with mobility or balance, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, retrieving objects, or performing other special tasks. A service animal is not a pet.

(a) Documentation that the service animal is trained is not a precondition for providing service to an individual accompanied by a service animal. A public accommodation may ask if an animal is a service animal or what tasks the animal has been trained to perform in order to determine the difference between a service animal and a pet.

(b) A public accommodation may not impose a deposit or surcharge on an individual with a disability as a precondition to permitting a service animal to accompany the individual with a disability, even if a deposit is routinely required for pets.

(c) An individual with a disability is liable for damage caused by a service animal if it is the regular policy and practice of the public accommodation to charge nondisabled persons for damages caused by their pets.

(d) The care or supervision of a service animal is the responsibility of the individual owner. A public accommodation is not required to provide care or food or a special location for the service animal or assistance with removing animal excrement.

(e) A public accommodation may exclude or remove any animal from the premises, including a service animal, if the animal's behavior poses a direct threat to the health and safety of others. Allergies and fear of animals are not valid reasons for denying access or refusing service to an individual with a service animal. If a service animal is excluded or removed for being a direct threat to others, the public accommodation must provide the individual with a disability the option of continuing access to the public accommodation without having the service animal on the premises.

(4) Any person, firm, or corporation, or the agent of any person, firm, or corporation, who denies or interferes with admittance to, or enjoyment of, a public accommodation or otherwise interferes with the rights of an individual with a disability or the trainer of a service animal while engaged in the training of such an animal pursuant to subsection (8), commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.


HTH.
 
OpheliaSpeaks said:
The law has not changed. Agencies that try to convince you that you need certification want your money. It is VERY costly to train a service animal. People (esp businesses or uneducated) will tell you this because they don't want to be bothered by upholding the law. People are so strange.
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People are strange is an understatement! You ought to see what they do when Snickers and I come into the mall or any store. :jaw: Then they ask security why they can't have their pet with them. :roll:
 
pek1 said:
People are strange is an understatement! You ought to see what they do when Snickers and I come into the mall or any store. :jaw: Then they ask security why they can't have their pet with them. :roll:
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Lol Or if, they want to have their pet with them anywhere like you do with Snickers, then they better find a way to make themselves DEAF. :whistle:
 
Maria said:
Lol Or if, they want to have their pet with them anywhere like you do with Snickers, then they better find a way to make themselves DEAF. :whistle:
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Yeah, :roll: ain't that the truth!
 
I had/have an "incident" or story...however you want to phrase this. We had a family reunion weekend up in Nebraska. We city slickers didn't want to camp out in tents, so my wife and I, along with her father and his wife all chipped in for a nice Holiday Inn Express hotel real close to the campground for the weekend. My father in law got to the hotel earlier in the day and reserved a room for 4 people and a dog. The clerk said "ok..it will be X amount for the 4 people and $25 dollars for the dog."
Father in law - he's a hearing redneck, but a "well-informed" redneck in the way of his daughter being deaf and having a hearing service dog. Father knows sign language as well. Father told the clerk "so its 25 for a hearing service dog..hmm..Ok ..cancel my reservation..I will go elsewhere." The clerk couldn't speak up fast enough, but the clerk said "I'm sorry..we do not charge anything for service dogs. My mistake. Here's a free (something..I cant remember what it was).
Later in the day..wife and I came to the hotel after a LONG LONG drive with my dog. Walked in the hotel and the clerk jumped out in front of me and asked "Is this Amya?" Said yes it was. "Oh how so cute for a service dog" and the usual ohhh ahh oooh ahh's ya know? I accepted it and just went about my bizness.
Next evening after being out in the HOT HOT sun, wife and I and our nephew and wife wanted to go swimming in the indoor pool. Naturally..where I go..the dog goes. We walked in and BAM...everybody started looking at us like "what kinda stupid people are we?" ya know? I saw 1 lady go off really fast towards the office (probably to rat me out). Sure enough about 10 minutes later..the clerk (different clerk) approached my wife who was holding my dog. Wife was looking in opposite direction and Amya (my dog) nudged my wife that some one was speaking to her. Wife turns around and made the usual "I cant hear you" sign/gesture. Nephew and wife jumped out of pool (hearing folks, but knows signs) and told the clerk "service dog". Man...the clerk's attitude changed SO FAST you couldn't blink. She apologized and I saw the clerk looking at every body and said "deaf service dog..dog is allowed in pool area". I took a look around...what do I see? I see such embarrassment on every body's face and then they all came over to "kiss ass" and apologize.

My only WISH is, why cant folks give me a chance to explain why I have a dog with me even tho I know its against the rules. If they are not satisfied, ok fine..escalate the issue. Geez!! I know it is WIDELY accepted for a seeing-eye dog. When people see a seeing-eye dog, its accepted and EVERYTHING is dropped. Whereas when we do the same for our service dogs, we have to fight tooth and nail to convince it ACTUALLY IS a service dog with or without proper documentation. I guess maybe the other "services" is undiscovered and will be a WHILE before we get the same treatment as seeing-eye dogs? I do not have anything against the treatment of seeing-eye dogs. I actually applaud it for the visually impaired to be independent of themselves. I just wish we could get the same. Maybe in another life time.
 
perhaps you should purchase a cape with the words SERVICE DOG emblazened on the side of it. Anytime you are out in public this will drop the issue right away. Any guide dog Ive seen had a cape on it showing that it was a guide dog.
 
Dixie said:
perhaps you should purchase a cape with the words SERVICE DOG emblazened on the side of it. Anytime you are out in public this will drop the issue right away. Any guide dog Ive seen had a cape on it showing that it was a guide dog.
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Dodge Trucker,

I received my blaze orange cape that says "Hearing Dog" from Gary at Nu-Capes Tell him Pete & Snickers sent you.

On another note, I don't always have the cape on Snickers, but when I do, people usually gawk and stare, which is why she doesn't wear it all the time.
 
From what I've managed to read of all this the case went to court, the dog stays (yay!!), and the landlord is very embarrassed. Since it has been a long time since this thread started I would like to know if the landlord's attitude has changed or if there has been any kind of harassment. I am so happy that Coloravalanche stood up for the right to keep the dog. It is an outrage the way some people ignore someone's rights because they think the person is disabled and will not fight for themselves. It breaks my heart that so many of the people being denied their rights just accept it as a part of life. Until more people start demanding fair treatment in the courts and newspapers and calling attention to the problems it will continue to be a part of life and never change. The landlord was nothing but a bully and the way to stop a bully is to stand up for yourself and refuse to be a helpless victim.
 
arachyd said:
From what I've managed to read of all this the case went to court, the dog stays (yay!!), and the landlord is very embarrassed. Since it has been a long time since this thread started I would like to know if the landlord's attitude has changed or if there has been any kind of harassment. I am so happy that Coloravalanche stood up for the right to keep the dog. It is an outrage the way some people ignore someone's rights because they think the person is disabled and will not fight for themselves. It breaks my heart that so many of the people being denied their rights just accept it as a part of life. Until more people start demanding fair treatment in the courts and newspapers and calling attention to the problems it will continue to be a part of life and never change. The landlord was nothing but a bully and the way to stop a bully is to stand up for yourself and refuse to be a helpless victim.
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I agree! :h5: By the way, arachyd, :welcome: to alldeaf.com!!
 
What do we do with the deaf people who buy these "capes" for their untrained pets just so they can take their doggie into restaurants, etc? There are ALOT of cheaters out there!

If a dog is to be qualified as a Hearing Ear Dog, then they should be professionally trained, just like the Seeing Eye Dogs.

MY CAT tells me when someone is at the door! Does that mean I have to take her every place I go?

Just sign me "curious" and a little disgusted at dishonesty.

Lantana
 
Thank you for the welcome, pek1. I don't see how a guide dog for the blind can really compare with an assistance dog for the deaf. The duties they perform are completely different. People who can't hear or have limited hearing have very different degrees of independence and different needs and lifestyles from one person to another so how would you standardize a certification for their dogs?
 
There IS a standard; I just don't know how to find it. Maybe it's a State by State thing....
 
arachyd said:
Thank you for the welcome, pek1. I don't see how a guide dog for the blind can really compare with an assistance dog for the deaf. The duties they perform are completely different. People who can't hear or have limited hearing have very different degrees of independence and different needs and lifestyles from one person to another so how would you standardize a certification for their dogs?
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Everything is governed under the ADA. Every state has their say on service animals, but, when the rubber meets the road, federal law supercedes state law.

Referring to "certification," I am 100 percent opposed to it.

If I was blind, I would want a totally trained dog to be with me, but if I knew how to train a seeing eye dog, I'd do it myself, just like I did with Snickers. To think of the problems that the deaf have gone through by hearing people, not to mention the problems blind people have gone through, I don't put any credence on hearing people to train my dog or tell me what I need, when I know what I need. I'm not being faceious or snotty about this. Hearing people have done their damage for centuries and now, all of sudden, they want to be the deafs best friend and dictate. I know of two people on these forums: the writer of this thread and LMM that both train their own dogs, including myself, and we all take our dog training very seriously. No one steps between us and our dogs.
 
Reba said:
Assistance dogs are NOT "pets." They are trained to perform specific tasks.

Assistance dogs have access to facilities that "pets" do not. They are allowed in public buildings and transportation that pets are not allowed.

Just because some Deaf people don't need or want assistance dogs why criticize or restrict the choices of the Deaf people who DO want to use an assistance dog?

This is beginning to sound like another CI v. no-CI, oral v. ASL, etc., controversy. I don't understand why people just don't accept the fact that "one-size" DOESN'T fit all, and allow for a variety of choices, or even a combination of choices.

If even members of the Deaf community can't understand and support each other, how on earth do you expect the hearing world to understand or be supportive?
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:gpost:
 
Some of you are missing the point. If hearing people cannot bring their pets into a restaurant, a bank, etc. why should the deaf be allowed to do so?

What can a pet dog do for a deaf person out in public?? 'At home, I fully understand, but away from home, NO. These deaf people who are cheating and using pets as "guide dogs" with fake "capes" etc. are ruining the reputation of the rest of us deaf people who follow the law. You are making us ALL look bad.

I have been in restaurants with these fake "deaf guide dogs", actually two of them in one party at the same time and I was terribly embarassed and hoped that the Establishment would ask for proof of certification, etc. but of course they were afraid to approach ASL speaking people.

What this amounts to is that deafies are actually using their handicap to beat the system and get their own way.

Respectfully, Lantana (a former owner of a CERTIFIED Hearing Ear Dog).
 
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