Thread by @KmarkovCTV

How to act around #servicedogs from the wife of a #veteran
🧵: My husband served 2 tours in Afghanistan as a tank driver with the #CAF. He joined when he was only 17 and served for over 7 years. He has very severe #PTSD, we’ve been told by VA case managers that he has one of 1/13

the most severe cases in Canada by their disability standards.

My husband got a PTSD service dog after being on a waiting list for 6 years.

Before he got a service dog I had no idea the sorts of things both he and I would experience and how it was like to have one.

2/13

On a daily basis people try to touch his dog without asking.

People follow us around to watch them work. People stand too close. They stare. They take photos.

There are people who deliberately try to get his dog to misbehave by creating distractions. 3/13

We get denied access. A lot.

Since he looks so young people assume he is training the dog.

On a daily basis people go directly up to him and without even breaking the ice or saying hi first ask him point blank “what kind of service dog is he?” 4/13

Now I totally get that most people mean well. Most people love dogs. Some people have never seen a service dog before. Some may never have seen or heard of a PTSD service dog before. And while we may be the only people with a service dog you see today - you could be the 10th 5/13

stranger who asked my husband to explain to them what exactly is so wrong with him that he gets to bring a special dog everywhere. What a tricky spot to put someone in because if he’s short with you he’s a rude, angry man, but why should he have to tell a stranger 6/13

about his psychological condition while he is just trying to buy milk at the grocery store?
You would never walk up to a stranger and ask them something personal like that so why is it okay if they have a service dog with them? 7/13

It’s hard to describe how much my husband tries to avoid people, to hide away and isolate himself from society. His biggest fear is conversation. His service dog brings him comfort, is a welcome distraction from hypervigilance and gives him a reason to wake up in the morning.8/13

But it’s hard when a ptsd service dog is a walking people magnet for someone suffering with ptsd. I wish people knew how hard it is just for some people to convince themselves to leave their house. If you did I don’t think you’d make it even harder for them. 9/13

So in parting I humbly offer some suggestions for how to interact with someone who has a service animal after being witness to many different kinds of interactions. 10/13

1. Do not ask what the dog is for
2. Do not ask if they are training it vs. using it
3. Do not stare. Do not follow. Do not take photos.
4. Give them space
5. You can strike up a respectful conversation but remember sometimes people just want to buy a loaf of bread
11/13

6. Do not pet the dog. Don’t ask to pet the dog you already know the answer.
7. Do not engage the dog with words or excessive eye contact.
8. Do not ask for the dogs name many are trained to have their name as part of their commands by saying their name you will get their attn

9. Treat people with service dogs the way you should anyone. Give them space, respect and compassion. Don’t force them to be vulnerable to satisfy your curiosity and remember that getting to the grocery store that day may have felt like climbing mount Everest. 13/13

P.s. I have immense gratitude for the parents who I hear explain to their kids what service dogs are and why they can’t pet them when they see us. It comforts me hearing the educating happen and helps me feel like I don’t have to have my guard up. Thank you. 💜