Auburn Football Players Accused of Harassing Veteran and Service Dog

TIDE-HSV

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There are many dogs that are not actually considered "service" dogs but "therapy" dogs and will therefore not have the vest clearly identifying them as such. Therapy animals are used in a variety of ways from providing comfort to the elderly or after a natural disaster or mentally incapacitating occurrence. Just Google service dog. Below is an excerpt from one of the websites. There is one more exception, people use that ruse to garner sympathy and even money, Arab has one but being a small town, it doesn't work anymore plus I think someone threatened them.


But therapy animals also serve in many other ways, including helping people with learning difficulties, helping people with mental and physical therapy, and bringing comfort to people in stressful situations such as those recovering from disaster. Research has shown that contact with a therapy animal helps improve a patient's physical, mental, emotional and social state, which in turn helps them better engage and participate in the process of their treatment and recovery.
Here in HSV, the organization is "Therapy Partners, Inc.," or "TPI." The amount of training they put those animals (mostly) dogs is impressive. However, you'll normally see them in environments such as hospitals, nursing homes, sometimes even in private homes. You'll seldom see them just out and about...
 

TIDE-HSV

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It's funny Earle mentioned Publix because that's the place I saw a service dog for the first time in a long time. It was decked in a black jacket with the words, "Do not pet, service dog" on the side. It was rather interesting as I'm like BB and can't recall the last time I saw a service animal either.
I think it was Costco for me. I'd guess I see them 2-3 times a year. If it's in a store, that's a dead giveaway, since businesses can't refuse entrance for them, although they may for pets. It's just a guess, but I'd be surprised if this dog were in the standard harness/bar, but the players made their own judgement that there was nothing wrong with the woman. Why anyone would do that is beyond me...
 

TitleWave

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There are other kinds of service dogs that you wouldn't see or even hear about unless you were in a war zone or police force - or both, as you can read about link: here, in an article that's sort of the antithesis of what the Barners did in shaming themselves and their school. Yes, their school, too because the irony is, Auburn actually had and may still have an operation on campus that bought these dogs - Labrador retrievers - and trained them for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan. Not going to tell how one would come by this information, or how one might come to sell an adult dog to a university for "bomb dog" training, but it was legit.
 

gtowntide

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There are many dogs that are not actually considered "service" dogs but "therapy" dogs and will therefore not have the vest clearly identifying them as such. Therapy animals are used in a variety of ways from providing comfort to the elderly or after a natural disaster or mentally incapacitating occurrence. Just Google service dog. Below is an excerpt from one of the websites. There is one more exception, people use that ruse to garner sympathy and even money, Arab has one but being a small town, it doesn't work anymore plus I think someone threatened them.


But therapy animals also serve in many other ways, including helping people with learning difficulties, helping people with mental and physical therapy, and bringing comfort to people in stressful situations such as those recovering from disaster. Research has shown that contact with a therapy animal helps improve a patient's physical, mental, emotional and social state, which in turn helps them better engage and participate in the process of their treatment and recovery.
I saw some therapy dogs after the Sandy Hook school shooting. Adults and children were going up and petting on these dogs. The main difference is these dogs are there to be petted and a comfort to help the people get there minds off the disaster for a while. They seemed to be very sweet dogs, it looked like they were Labs or a lab mix. These dogs and trainers were headquartered in Chicago.
 

GrayTide

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There are other kinds of service dogs that you wouldn't see or even hear about unless you were in a war zone or police force - or both, as you can read about link: here, in an article that's sort of the antithesis of what the Barners did in shaming themselves and their school. Yes, their school, too because the irony is, Auburn actually had and may still have an operation on campus that bought these dogs - Labrador retrievers - and trained them for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan. Not going to tell how one would come by this information, or how one might come to sell an adult dog to a university for "bomb dog" training, but it was legit.
Great article, think I got something in my eye.
 

TIDE-HSV

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I saw some therapy dogs after the Sandy Hook school shooting. Adults and children were going up and petting on these dogs. The main difference is these dogs are there to be petted and a comfort to help the people get there minds off the disaster for a while. They seemed to be very sweet dogs, it looked like they were Labs or a lab mix. These dogs and trainers were headquartered in Chicago.
The TPI operation here in HSV is sizable. One of my wife's best friends is the executive director. They have a very well-attended annual "Doggy Ball" which supplies a lot of their receipts. They have sort of an amateur competition. Not all of the competitors are therapy animals themselves. The actual therapy animals are very unflappable in personality and demeanor. They are scrubbed and completely sanitized before they go into a hospital wing or nursing home...
 

bat123

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I am some what surprised that no third party has come out to corroborate the veterans side of the story. We can say its a big cover up but in this day and age of social media it is really hard to cover up incidents in a public setting. What I would hate to see is two young men who are probably animal lovers see a dog, and do what I have seen hundreds of people do, try to be friendly with it. Now most dog owners know you should always ask for permission first before petting someone's dog. If you walk through any park in America you will see people break dog etiquette rules all day long. Seeing two large muscular African American males walking up may have given her some anxiety by it's self. My mom did 27 years in the Army(God rest her soul) so I know it can be tough on females in the military especially raising kids. My dad was also in so I have been around the military my entire life. My 2 brothers and my sister currently serve. I can tell you from experience that just like in the real world you have "all types" in the military you also have "all types". I choose until I hear more information to not crucify these young men even if they are from that cow college. Now if it turns out that they did what she says I will be at the front of the mob screaming for them to be severely punished.
I served for 20 years and this is a very true statement....... One of my dearest friends was Air Force OSI (Office of Special Investigations) and he told me if I knew half of his job I probably would not let my family live in base, but by the same token some of the best people I have ever had the pleasure to meet and know are military folks. I hope this young lady is able to fully recover from this debilitating condition and the aubie football players have learned something in the process.
 

dvil doc

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Feel fortunate, those of you who have not seen a service dog ever or in a long time.

Seeing one of these amazing animals means seeing its master who has needs most of us cannot imagine. I'm in Northern Virginia where many Wounded Warrior battalions are based, plus I receive my healthcare at Walter Reed where numerous young men and women still wheel around with no arms and/or legs. The ones with dogs, while appearing OK on the outside, often have more issues than the amputees.
 

92tide

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I served for 20 years and this is a very true statement....... One of my dearest friends was Air Force OSI (Office of Special Investigations) and he told me if I knew half of his job I probably would not let my family live in base, but by the same token some of the best people I have ever had the pleasure to meet and know are military folks. I hope this young lady is able to fully recover from this debilitating condition and the aubie football players have learned something in the process.
i heard the same from my brother. he did some law enforcement work in the air force and did a stint at ncis afterwards, so he had to deal with some real low rent stuff that went down on the bases.
 

tmv85

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I've read the entire thread, and I don't recall seeing this mentioned. Service dog, therapy dog, or pet...one should never just assume it is okay to walk up to it and let it or to whistle to it or call it in any way. Before approaching a dog, one should ALWAYS ask if it is okay, even if it is the tiniest, cutest little ball of fur ever. That's just common courtesy. Had these guys done that in a polite "excuse me ma'am, would it be okay it we pet your dog" kind of way, none of this would have even been an issue. Unfortunately, I know many people who do just rush in and reach out to pet strange dogs.
 

Mystical

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I served for 20 years and this is a very true statement....... One of my dearest friends was Air Force OSI (Office of Special Investigations) and he told me if I knew half of his job I probably would not let my family live in base, but by the same token some of the best people I have ever had the pleasure to meet and know are military folks. I hope this young lady is able to fully recover from this debilitating condition and the aubie football players have learned something in the process.
Thank you for your service!!!!!
 

TIDE-HSV

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I've read the entire thread, and I don't recall seeing this mentioned. Service dog, therapy dog, or pet...one should never just assume it is okay to walk up to it and let it or to whistle to it or call it in any way. Before approaching a dog, one should ALWAYS ask if it is okay, even if it is the tiniest, cutest little ball of fur ever. That's just common courtesy. Had these guys done that in a polite "excuse me ma'am, would it be okay it we pet your dog" kind of way, none of this would have even been an issue. Unfortunately, I know many people who do just rush in and reach out to pet strange dogs.
Actually, that same thought had passed through my mind several times. It's just crude and boorish to assume control of someone else's pet. Knowing the AU roster, I was not surprised at all, but it doesn't change the tenor of the social error...
 

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