Just saw this on Facebook - checked it out and it's legit.
Service dogs (usually identifiable by the brightly colored vests they wear) are trained to seek help for their owners if they are in trouble that the dog can do nothing about, such as having a seizure, or has fallen and is nonresponsive, etc.
If you are ever approached by an obvious service dog without its owner, the dog is looking for help. There have been incidents where the dog was shooed away, which probably only confuses the dog. The proper response is to FOLLOW THE DOG back to its owner and be prepared to call 911 if necessary.
After reading this, I thought about my own situation - I live alone and have some medical issues. While I don't need a service dog, I do have a medical alert pendant. I got that system several years ago after a suffering a fall and spending 26 hours on the floor unable to call for help. When the paramedics finally got there, I was hours away from checking out - totally dehydrated, kidneys failing. After spending a week in the hospital and a couple of weeks in rehab, the first thing I did was find a reputable medical alert company. This is one of those things that you don't really need until you need it - better to have when you need it than to need it and not have it. ) highly recommend it to those living alone - just make sure it's a legitimate company.
So I was thinking that if I had a service dog, I would want it to be trained to press the emergency button (which I wear on a pendant) and start barking as soon as the response team responds. That team would have to be aware that there's a service dog involved, and that if it's barking it means I can't respond and need help.
Sometimes, i think these dogs are not getting the respect they deserve... |
