Best in Show: Public Perceptions of Different Dog Breeds as Service Dogs

Abstract

Recent research has shed light on the amount of discrimination faced by those who require service dogs ( Mills, 2017 ). While most of the research thus far on discrimination against those who use service dogs has pertained to the appearance of the disabled individual, very little has assessed the appearance of the dog in the amount of discrimination an individual faces. The current study aimed to examine the ways in which the breed of dog impacts the way they are viewed as Service Animals. Participants each looked at one picture of a dog, either a Pomeranian, a Pit Bull type dog, or a Labrador Retriever. They then answered a series of five questions about the animals’ legitimacy as a Service Animal. Pomeranians were rated significantly lower on perceived legitimacy than both Labrador Retrievers and Pit Bull type dogs. Additionally, participants rated themselves as the least comfortable around Pit Bull type dogs, regardless of their perceived legitimacy. These findings continue to shed light on the ways that individuals with service dogs are perceived and contributes to the larger body of research surrounding those who are discriminated against for their disability.

Insights into Canadians’ Perceptions of Service Dogs in Public Spaces

“…One reason for this is that the media routinely uses the terms interchangeably (e.g., therapy dog and Service Dog) and tends to report on extreme or negative confrontations between the public and working animals. Consequently, public perception studies have become more prevalent in recent years in the American and Australian settings [1,[6][7][8]. There is a dearth of such studies conducted in Canada.…”

“…Despite the mostly positive reflections on SDs, research has also found that individuals with SDs can experience discrimination based on their disability given that many otherwise "invisible" illnesses (e.g., mental health concerns) become visible through the presence of an SD [8,[10][11][12]. Up to 50% of individuals with an SD report experiencing some form of discrimination when in public, but those with invisible disabilities report experiencing even higher rates of discriminatory experiences [10,12].…”