Service Dog?

It is interesting how far people will go to ensure their beloved dogs are with them.  Always.  We see them in the grocery store, Lowe's and often hotels.  In the latter, they are allowed in non-dog friendly hotels if they fall under the category of "service dog."

A recent stay in a Hampton Inn,  my favorite hotel among the chains, I had such an encounter.  It was a warm Christmas night as I checked in.  After pouring coffee to help the lousy virus I apparently brought with me to New Hampshire, I turned around.  What first struck me was the pitter pattern on the ceramic floor.

A small twenty-five pound dog was tethered to its human.  The owner was well into her eighties, wearing heavy make-up and a Christmas shirt.  I believe the dog was a bulldog.  They are not my favorite dogs but still.  The dog appeared to be in it late teens,  huffing and puffing, barely able to stand, and it wasn't because of the slippery ceramic tile on the foyer floor.  The dog was struggling just to breathe.

"I'd like to check in, " the woman said to the attendant at the front desk.

"It's just me and my service dog."

I could barely contain myself.

A service dog?

No way was this dog providing any kind of 'service' other than to keep his owner warm and happy.

"So this is a service dog?" I inquired as the woman and her pet made their way toward the elevator.

The front desk attendant chuckled.

"Yes, she says it is."

"There is nothing we can do about it.  Happens all the time.  They say 'service dog' and we are bound by Federal law.

The dog had no identifying 'service dog' coat or leash as seen by most 'service dogs.'

'Service dog'? Hardly.  But a very comfortable good night with its human.