Sarah A
She crys if she is not held....she is a heavy baby and im very small and holding her all the time has already popped my hip outta place...but i cant stand to listen to her cry....any suggestions?
Answer
The way you are feeling is natural. There is a very large group of us parents that feel the same way as you. It's called attachment parenting. Here's a couple of links describing it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attachment_parenting
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/10/t130300.asp
I recommend a good sling or wrap. You'd be amazed how easy it is to carry your baby with it, and if you are wearing it right it doesn't hurt your back or shoulders. I don't recommend one of the backpack shaped carriers or a sling you could buy at Walmart or Target. They hurt. I can even carry my 3 year old on my hip with my sling, or I could make the same sling smaller and carry my newborn in it all in the same hour (my baby started in it at 6 days old).
The way you are feeling is natural. There is a very large group of us parents that feel the same way as you. It's called attachment parenting. Here's a couple of links describing it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attachment_parenting
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/10/t130300.asp
I recommend a good sling or wrap. You'd be amazed how easy it is to carry your baby with it, and if you are wearing it right it doesn't hurt your back or shoulders. I don't recommend one of the backpack shaped carriers or a sling you could buy at Walmart or Target. They hurt. I can even carry my 3 year old on my hip with my sling, or I could make the same sling smaller and carry my newborn in it all in the same hour (my baby started in it at 6 days old).
Do service dogs ever get carted around in wheeled carriers or strap on things that look like baby carriers?
Ysbeth
The Walmart I go to seems to be overrun by small dog owners who swear there dogs are service dogs and its getting disgusting. None of these dogs look to be in any position to assist their owners with anything as they are either being wheeled around in things that look like baby carraiges for dogs or are strapped to their owners bodies in things that look like backpacks. Its getting ridiculous. Is their any possibility that a dog in this position is a service dog or are these just selfish shammers that can't bare to leave their "fur-babies" at home and are exploiting the laws meant to protect the disabled?
I'm glad that they are changing the laws but I hope they don't hurt the people with real service dogs in the process.
TB, I know people with real PTSD dogs and they are always on a leash. They won't do any good if they are strapped in a carrier and can't get to the person who is having trouble with their PTSD. Also, the ADA changed the rules and emotional support dogs (with the exception of ones for PTSD) do not qualify for protection under the law.
Answer
In the US, where this question was presumably asked, Service Dogs are not required to wear a vest or have any identification showing they're a Service Dog, nor are they required to have any certification/be certified by any organization (some independent organizations offer their own certification, but it is not legally required nor does that certification legally make that dog a SD - a SD is a SD because of work/tasks they perform... that's all). Canada may be different - it doesn't appear this question was asked from Canada (unless the OP for some reason prefers the US Y! Answers site).
That out of the way...
Yes, it is possible they're Service Dogs. The law (United States, per the Americans with Disabilities Act) does not require dogs be "four on the floor". Per the law, it is perfectly acceptable to carry a Service Dog, provided they can perform the "work" or "tasks" which make them Service Dogs. For example, a person with PTSD, who has trained their dog to nudge them during an anxiety attack (this exact example is used in the write-up of the law) does not need to be walking. They're perfectly capable of performing their duty while being carried. A dog who alerts a hearing-impaired person of people approaching (another example used, in the DOJ write-up, as an acceptable "task" for a Service Dog) can still perform their task if carried
The laws were revised a few years ago (no new changes on the horizon) - these were deemed acceptable tasks. Per the ADA, there can be no discrimination between physical and mental/emotional/psychological disabilities. An "emotional support dog" is not a Service Dog because they have not been trained to do work or perform tasks. However, a dog who does work/tasks to mitigate an emotional disability IS a Service Dog (regardless of the disability... a dog who does work/tasks for someone with PTSD is a SD; a dog who simply provides emotional support for someone with PTSD, without doing work/tasks, is not a SD - the specific diagnosis is irrelevant).
People have long had opinions on whether or not they personally like the law, and what they *personally* feel should constitute a disability - but their opinions are just that... opinions. The law is the law regardless of whether people like or dislike it.
http://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm
http://www.iaadp.org/doj-def-comments-Title-II-III-SA.html
And bear in mind that prior to the mid 20th century, dogs were legally allowed most anywhere (no need to be a Service Dog). Health Codes started banning dogs because of the rabies epidemic; rabies has been under control for decades now, yet the laws banning dogs have not been revised. Even if these SDs are "fake", just look at it as a way of dogs being in public places again (as they used to be for the majority of the country's history) and indirectly adjusting for rabies now being controlled (since health codes haven't caught up with that, making it seem rather nanny-state-like, no?)
In the US, where this question was presumably asked, Service Dogs are not required to wear a vest or have any identification showing they're a Service Dog, nor are they required to have any certification/be certified by any organization (some independent organizations offer their own certification, but it is not legally required nor does that certification legally make that dog a SD - a SD is a SD because of work/tasks they perform... that's all). Canada may be different - it doesn't appear this question was asked from Canada (unless the OP for some reason prefers the US Y! Answers site).
That out of the way...
Yes, it is possible they're Service Dogs. The law (United States, per the Americans with Disabilities Act) does not require dogs be "four on the floor". Per the law, it is perfectly acceptable to carry a Service Dog, provided they can perform the "work" or "tasks" which make them Service Dogs. For example, a person with PTSD, who has trained their dog to nudge them during an anxiety attack (this exact example is used in the write-up of the law) does not need to be walking. They're perfectly capable of performing their duty while being carried. A dog who alerts a hearing-impaired person of people approaching (another example used, in the DOJ write-up, as an acceptable "task" for a Service Dog) can still perform their task if carried
The laws were revised a few years ago (no new changes on the horizon) - these were deemed acceptable tasks. Per the ADA, there can be no discrimination between physical and mental/emotional/psychological disabilities. An "emotional support dog" is not a Service Dog because they have not been trained to do work or perform tasks. However, a dog who does work/tasks to mitigate an emotional disability IS a Service Dog (regardless of the disability... a dog who does work/tasks for someone with PTSD is a SD; a dog who simply provides emotional support for someone with PTSD, without doing work/tasks, is not a SD - the specific diagnosis is irrelevant).
People have long had opinions on whether or not they personally like the law, and what they *personally* feel should constitute a disability - but their opinions are just that... opinions. The law is the law regardless of whether people like or dislike it.
http://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm
http://www.iaadp.org/doj-def-comments-Title-II-III-SA.html
And bear in mind that prior to the mid 20th century, dogs were legally allowed most anywhere (no need to be a Service Dog). Health Codes started banning dogs because of the rabies epidemic; rabies has been under control for decades now, yet the laws banning dogs have not been revised. Even if these SDs are "fake", just look at it as a way of dogs being in public places again (as they used to be for the majority of the country's history) and indirectly adjusting for rabies now being controlled (since health codes haven't caught up with that, making it seem rather nanny-state-like, no?)
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