Why do parents allow their children to distract peoples assistance dogs?
Parents should educate their children about dogs for their own safety. They should also educate them about sex and drugs, but most seem to think that is the school’s responsibility these days. Clearly a lot of people, some dog owners included, don’t know much about dogs. But I do. And a assistance dog with a jacket is trained to deal with those situations. If they are distracted by kids being kids, they need to go back to the trainer.
There are two major reasons why this happens, 1: Some parents aren’t as stern with their children as they need to be, and think that their kids will turn out better if the parent acts as a “friend” or “best Buddy” which often backfires terribly. 2: The majority of the US population isn’t educated about service dogs. Most people only know and accept seeing eye dogs. With this lack of education people think that if the person isn’t blind then the dog must not play as important of a role so can be distracted and played with. I think that everyone should be educated on the different role of service dogs, and the way to handle and be courteous to them in public when you are put in a situation with them. Hope this helps!
I can’t say for certain in every situation, but I have noticed that some parents think that all dogs – be they pets or working dogs – are like costumed characters at amusement parks and exist solely to entertain their children. I took my dog to a local farmers’ market a few months after I got him and had him sit while I was waiting in line. I looked down and there was a small boy petting my dog while his mother stood by, apparently having encouraged him to just go up and pet the nice doggie. Now my dog was nervous around people at this point, but he’s not dangerous. Still, neither the boy or his mother had any way of knowing that because they didn’t bother asking me. Just because my dog knows how to sit on command doesn’t guarantee that he’s nice to children (though he is). If this woman continues allowing her son to just run up and pet any dog that looks well behaved, she is setting him up to get hurt. Bothering service dogs is even more unforgivable. Although service dogs would never
Because they don’t know just how important that it is that the dog isn’t distracted. Some people think that all dogs are simply pets, and do not understand that these dogs are actually “working”. If they do know about service dogs and allow their children to pet & disturb them, then it’s because they are simply glad that their children aren’t “bugging” them instead!
Too many parents don’t care- I own a dogwash/grooming salon- people bring their kids up there and they are into EVERYTHING!- I will sometimes take my dog with me, and I’ll have him in a crate- these kids will stick their fingers through the crate- and parents allow them to! Parents don’t want to discipline their children, and we’re raising a whole generation of thugs!
