More Stuff You Might Not Know About Service Dogs

Last month I posted some facts you might not have knownabout service dogs.  Here are a few more.

• The full cost of a service dog is usually about $20,000.  Depending on what the dog must be trained to do, it can be twice that much.  Most people with disabilities do not get service dogs given to them for free.  Most programs that train and place service dogs cover a lot of the cost themselves (through donations and occasionally grants) but it’s common for a person with a disability to have to pay somewhere between $2000 and $5000 for their service dog.  Health insurance doesn’t cover the cost of a service, either, at least not in most cases.

• Churches are exempt from the Americans with Disabilities Act, which means they are not required to let a person with a disability bring a service dog to church services.  The same goes for other places of worship, like synagogues and mosques.  Some do welcome service dogs, but they are legally permitted to disallow them.  (They must allow service dogs at events that are open to the general public though.  For instance, if a church holds a community craft show or allows AA groups to meet in their building, service dogs must be permitted there.)  Do you know if your church allows people with disabilities to bring their service dog to services?
  
•  Hotels must allow people with disabilities to stay there with their service dogs, even if they do not normally allow pets.  They are not allowed to charge an additional fee for the service dog, even if they typically charge an extra “pet fee” for pets (because service dogs are not pets).  If a service dog does any damage to a hotel room, though, the owner must pay for that damage.
  
• While most businesses must allow a person with a disability to bring their service dog into that business, they are not required to provide any special supplies or services for the dog.  For instance, restaurants must allow me to bring Isaac in with me.  However, they do not have to provide him with a dish of water (and in fact, I should not be giving Isaac food or water in the restaurant at all.  I keep water, and if necessary, food, in the car and feed or water him before or after I go in to eat).