Service Animals

I want to show some of the four legged furballs that attended the 2009 Hearing Loss Association of America Convention. Service animals are animals that are individually trained to perform tasks for people with disabilities such as guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling wheelchairs, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, or performing other special tasks. Service animals are working animals, not pets.

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), businesses and organizations that serve the public must allow people with disabilities to bring their service animals into all areas of the facility where customers are normally allowed to go. This federal law applies to all businesses open to the public, including restaurants, hotels, taxis and shuttles, grocery and department stores, hospitals and medical offices, theaters, health clubs, parks, and zoos.

Check out this perky little papillon who is a hearing dog- so cute!

Meet Janet, Rosemary Tuite hearing dog of HLA Fountain Hills of Arizona.
She is resting her paws...

You can see that the poochies were just as exhausted as we were walking all over
the 47.1 acres of the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center!