Proposed bill would make life easier for P.E.I. service dogs and their handlers

Jennifer Sanderson says she'd be lost without her dog Braden, a two-year-old black Lab-golden retriever mix. 

Braden is Sanderson's guide dog for her visual impairment, helping her navigate streets and sidewalks and basically anywhere she needs to go outside of her home. 

That's why she's thrilled the P.E.I. government may soon recognize dogs like Braden through a bill that, if adopted, will be known as the Service Dog Act. The proposed legislation is set to be introduced during the current legislative sitting. 

Sanderson said she's had trouble in the past trying to go into some business premises with her four-legged helper, and this legislation could go a long way toward eliminating that friction. 

"I could train a dog to guide me places, but unless it's accredited… I think that's what makes a true service dog," she said. "It'll be more accountability and bring more awareness to guide dogs and service dogs, plus more protection. 

"There will be [fewer] people who pass off their animal as a guide dog or service dog that doesn't have that training and they don't have the control over that animal." 

What Sanderson is talking about is just what the proposed bill aims to address. 

P.E.I. currently has no certification process for service animals, meaning there's no clear way for their handlers or a business to distinguish them from a normal pet. 

Less anxiety for handlers

Progressive Conservative MLA Brad Trivers hopes to bring the service dog bill, based on existing legislation in Nova Scotia, to the legislature this month. 

"If you're somebody who needs a service animal, you can go in with[out] that… anxiety that you could be refused entry at… a restaurant or any other public place," he said.

"It also allows an establishment to identify that service animal. Right now, anyone with a dog could say, 'This is my service dog and you need to let me in with my dog.'"

Trivers will gather feedback on the bill, which could eventually be expanded to include other types of service animals, through a public consultation March 13 at the Hunter River Lions Club. 

He expects it will take about a year before any new rules would be in place. 

If the new rules are approved, P.E.I. would be one of four provinces to have such certification.

'Getting a dog gave me my life back'

For Kristen Cameron, her service dog Sirius is a necessary part of life. 

Cameron was struck by an impaired driver while she was cycling, a collision that left her using a wheelchair and without sensation from her collarbone down.

"I was a master's student [and] me getting a dog gave me my life back," she said. "I have a physical disability and I have the right to have a service dog in public. I just hope that's the same 10 to 15 years down the road."  

A school that breeds and trains service dogs says people insisting on entering an establishment with unofficial, untrained dogs can be an issue. 

"They gain access and the animals have not been trained and do not have the behaviour that's expected and required. It can actually pose a safety risk," said Gina Lijoi of the Lions Foundation of Canada Guide Dogs.

"It makes it difficult to know who is the legitimate team and who isn't."

A better experience for everyone

Dogs help people with a wide range of needs — from mobility issues to specific training for seizures, low blood sugar, autism and more. But handlers and their dogs aren't always welcome in some establishments.  

That's an experience Alexandra Matte knows all too well. 

Matte, from Quebec, met Cameron and Sirius while she was training with her own service dog Tod.  

"I have difficulty moving myself, bending and using my joints properly," she said. "I've had some trouble in the past… about accessibility with my dog.

"If the law's a little more clear about what schools are recognized, what does it take to have a service dog, we can have a better experience."