The TRUTH About Service Dogs & ESAs

04/20/2025

04/20/2025

A SkyWest flight bound for Dallas out of Provo was redirected to Colorado Springs after a 10-year-old boy was bitten by a service animal mid-flight.

04/18/2025

04/15/2025

04/09/2025

Disabled people are not "parasites," and access to Social Security is disabled Americans' right. That's why we just sued the government.

AAPD just filed a federal lawsuit against the Social Security Administration (SSA), SSA Acting Commissioner Dudek, the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE), DOGE Administrator Gleason, and de-facto head of DOGE, Elon Musk, for their efforts to make Social Security harder for disabled and older adults to access.

Working Americans have paid into Social Security to protect their own futures and their vulnerable neighbors. Making it harder for disabled and aging Americans to access SSA services and benefits is stealing from those who have paid into Social Security, and will harm and kill countless disabled Americans.

Read our press release and access the complaint, filed today in federal court in Washington, DC, at this link, and make sure you follow AAPD to receive updates on this lawsuit and our fight to protect SSDI and SSI: https://www.aapd.com/aapd-sues-ssa-and-doge/

Image descriptions in alt-text and comments.

04/07/2025

Proof labeling your dangerous exotic pets "emotional support animals" and "service animals" won't get you a free pass.

Deputies seize 7 tigers from home; man claims they were his service animals: https://tinyurl.com/5cvmbvvj

04/06/2025

Look she’s fluffy now!

04/06/2025

Seeing multiple links to laws that have worked for years just quit working. Laws that protect disabled people from discrimination… gone.

04/06/2025

I am royally pi**ed off! EVERYTHING ABOUT FAIR HOUSING IS REMOVED FROM THE HUD WEBSITE! NO MORE SERVICE ANIMAL INFORMATION, NOTHING! DID WE LOSE OUR FHA PROTECTION?

http://www.hud.gov/stat/fheo/rights-obligations

03/28/2025

Elon Musk’s use of the R-word has had real consequences. A study from Montclair State University shows that since he used the slur, its use on social media has tripled.

This is not okay.

I have a lot of words I could use to describe how this makes me feel—but instead of adding to the hate, I’m asking everyone to take a stand. If you hear someone using derogatory language, call it out.

Words matter. They can uplift or tear down. The R-word is hurtful, unkind, and disrespectful. And let’s be clear—people who use it aren’t being edgy or funny. They’re showing insecurity, ignorance, and a lack of empathy.

We can do better. We must do better. Let’s choose words that uplift, not harm. Be part of the solution—because a more respectful, inclusive world starts with each of us and how we talk to, and treat each other.

https://digitalcommons.montclair.edu/scom-facpubs/55/

https://www.montclair.edu/school-of-communication-and-media/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/01/Montclair-Social-Media-Study-Musk-and-R-Word-Increase-on-X.pdf

03/27/2025

Hot take but calling him “Governor Hot Wheels” was funny as s**t. 

Honestly I don’t care if people are ableist towards that piece of s**t human.

03/26/2025

Love an overachiever

03/26/2025

I just LOVE when people see me with my service dog and volunteer how they fraudulently bring their pets into public places and admit they lied when they were confronted by staff who ask the if it’s a service dog. *much sarcasm.*

Businesses have got to get better at asking the second question if it’s not obvious what task it’s trained to perform and kicking out people’s pets when they’re not service dogs. Please if you can educate the businesses you shop at and let them know their rights. I’ve come across so many that don’t know. 

I would say I’m sorry about the profanity in the meme but I’m not. Unfortunately I was in a situation I could not call this person out, God I was seething on the inside!

03/25/2025

There are a lot of new followers to the page, so I thought I would do an intro post with some information on the ADA and also on Flirty.

The ADA only covers dogs and miniature horses as service animals. In order to be a service animal, a dog or mini horse must be potty trained, well behaved enough to be under control and non-disruptive to businesses, and know at least one task that mitigates their handler's disability. Emotional support and comfort are not tasks.

In the USA, there is no legally recognized or required certification or registration for service animals. Businesses and organizations are required by the ADA to accommodate disabled handlers and their service animals.

Businesses may ask two questions of any service animal handlers entering their business, if the answer is not obvious: Is this a service animal required for a disability? What work or task are they trained to perform? Businesses may not inquire about the disability or ask any other questions, request paperwork, or require that the animal demonstrate a task.

Service horses are generally 34" or under, with most being on the shorter side. There are a number of reasons a person might select a service horse over a service dog: fear of or allergies to dogs, religious reasons (at least one religion considers dogs unclean, but not horses), a lifespan of 30-35 years that allows them to work far longer than a service dog, because they are better suited for mobility work, and more.

Service horses can do almost all the same tasks that service dogs can do. The only task I've ever thought of that they can't really do is picking up small items like coins or a credit card that has been dropped on the ground.

Flirty is a 12 years old American Miniature Horse and is 27" tall. We've been a team for nearly 8 years, now. In a typical week, she only works about 3-6 hours and spends the rest of her time relaxing in her paddock (aside from bad weather or at night, in which case she comes in the house). Her tasks include medical alert and response, mobility assistance, crowd control, and medication reminders.

If you have any questions I haven't covered, feel free to ask them in the comments!

[Image: Abrea, wearing a blue sundress, kneels beside Flirty, a grey mini horse. Flirty is wearing a black leather halter and black leash. There are pink rose bushes behind them, and some trees in the background.]

03/25/2025

I’m literally sick to my stomach.

The Department of Justice has begun to roll back ADA regulations and remove information about clarification of requirements and rights.

“The Department of Justice removed 11 guidelines for US businesses on compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)…

Multiple pages were removed from the ADA’s archive website, including one page that explained how retail businesses are required to have accessible features and another on customer service practices for hotel and lodging guests with disabilities”

No, the ADA is not being repealed...only Congress can do that. There are currently still ADA laws, but the intent of this is to make fewer accessibility regulations so businesses don’t need to spend money to be compliant. They are arguing it will be good for the economy if businesses don’t need to deal with bureaucratic red tape. It requires ZERO bureaucratic red tape to add an ADA parking spot, a curb cut, a ramp, or an ADA-compliant bathroom. How is removing information about customer service for people with disabilities at a hotel going to help put money into the economy? Treating people as equals is free. And also requires zero red tape. This is about money. And not wanting to spend money on people with disabilities.

According to the CDC: 12.2 percent of U.S. adults have a mobility disability and have serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs.

The US Census website states the population of the US this January was over 341,000,000.

12.2% of 341,000,000 is 41,600,000

41 million people have serious difficulty waking up a flight of stairs.

If this was about money and the economy, there would be a mandate for every business to be accessible to help the economy and ensure that 41,600,000 could contribute their money.

But that is not what this is about. It’s about seeing people with disabilities as less deserving of dignity and rights. It’s about seeing us as a financial burden. It’s about someone caring more about their wallet than ensuring their loved ones and neighbors (12.2% of them), have access to the world around them.

This is incredibly shortsighted.

To those who support this, remember: you are just one bad day away—one drunk driver, one distracted driver texting, one unexpected biopsy, one knee replacement—from needing the protections of the ADA.

And if that day comes, I hope you will truly understand the pain and hardship you once dismissed. Because maybe, just maybe, that understanding will help us all become more compassionate, more empathetic, and more human to one another. As much as I love the ADA, I think the world needs that even more right now.

DOJ website: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-actions-combat-cost-living-crisis-including-rescinding-11

https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2024/12/new-year-population.html

https://www.cdc.gov/disability-and-health/articles-documents/disability-impacts-all-of-us-infographic.html

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/19/justice-department-disability-business-guidelines

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5205795-justice-department-ada-guidance/amp/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2025/03/20/trump-justice-department-eliminates-disability-guidance/82550992007/

03/14/2025

The museum near New Plymouth says it was a misunderstanding and apologised.