It’s not just the dog that needs to follow a set of guidelines when it comes to a service dog, you’re required to follow a few vital etiquette when service dogs are around. Dogs play a crucial role in lives of people, especially, when it comes to people service dogs; physically and mentally challenged people find service dogs as life-savers in performing their daily activities.
Most people don’t know what should be done when the find a service dog around in their vicinity. It might be the best deal to read dos and don’ts of service dogs rather than just going by your instincts. Your instinct might do harm to the service dog and handler when you don’t know what to do and what not to when you’re around a service dog.
Here’s a list of dos and don’ts you should learn about service dogs:
- Resist the temptation to pet every dog
You might have a strong urge to pet just about every pretty-looking dog in the neighborhood or public places. People might not pet a dog when they see a dog with vest, it might be the best investment for dog owners to research where to buy a service dog patch. You’ll be avoided from a lot of trouble when you have a vest for your service dog, they work like an uniform for service dogs.
You can always ask the dog’s handler if you can pet the dogs, you can do so for some time, however, don’t make it a habit to pet the dog at all times. If you’re declined from petting the service dogs, you can move away politely and leave the dog to do its job without any distraction.
- You don’t lose much when you ask
There might be little to no harm to ask the trainer or handler of the dog if you have any questions. Some might fee offended when you ask the reason why they have a service while some might be more than happy to tell you, it might be best to understand where to draw the line.
Don’t be too curious when the handler has little to no interest in sharing any information about the service dog. It’s a matter of personal preferences when it comes to talking about the dogs and what makes their service dog their best buddy.
- Don’t be rude to the handler
You might not always get the approval of the handler or owner to respond to you positively when you request to pet the dog or ask any information about the service dog. However, it might be the best etiquette not be rude to the handler regardless of the response you receive from him or her.
It might be the best investment to purchase a dog vest for your service dog, which might make things easy for you and other people to behave well with your dog. It’s suggested that you find where to buy a service dog patch for your service dog and teach the aforementioned dos and don’ts to people you might come across.