VA Bans Veterans Service Dogs - Page 1

Many vetts have said their service dogs have kept them from suicide (see episode of shelter dogs) and now the VA has decided to ban most service dogs. Please sign this petition on behalf of all veterans. http://www.change.org/petitions/service-animals-barred-from-va-facilities

I'm very gald that you posted this here.  I would have never known such a thing was even occuring.  I looked up ADI and they are a VERY SMALL non-profit.  They only brought in $200,000 USD last year.  I can't imagine its even possible for them pay for and maintain the accrediation process they have instituted with that little money.  Second, I have been involved with Guide Dogs of America in the past and they are only a "canidate" of ADI's website, meaning thier application is under review.  If I read things correctly that means Gudies Dogs of America has no voting rights within ADI and are basically at the mercy of an organization formed in 2001.  In contract Guide Dogs of America was founded in 1948 and brings in $7,000,000 a year in donations and grants.  On the west coast they are pretty much the biggest guide dog trainer around and they are only a "canidate member" according to ADI and by default the VA. 

I do see a potential loop hole, maybe the dogs could be dual trained with one area being thier real focus and the other to simply meet ADI's minimum standard for one of their defined service dog categories.  I did see that ADI has a mandatory spayed/neutered  rule, so I'm not sure how that affects thier policies for organizations that have breeding programs such Guide Dogs of Aermica etc.


ADI's EIN is 930993471, here is ADI's non-profit profile with address etc:

 http://www.melissadata.com/lookups/np.asp?ein=930993471 

http://www.guidestar.org/organizations/93-0993471/assistance-dog-international.aspx

ADI's 990 tax filing:

http://dynamodata.fdncenter.org/990_pdf_archive/930/930993471/930993471_201112_990EO.pdf 

http://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/pub78Search.do?ein1=93-0993471&names=&city=&state=All...&country=US&deductibility=all&dispatchMethod=searchCharities&submitName=Search


My guess is that ADI and the VA wants to bottleneck veterans getting service dogs, so veterans are force go to approved providers determined through "back office discussions"  I say this because Guide Dogs of America is ,so old and reputable, they should automatically be on thier board that decides on national standards for service dogs, not just begging for admission.  I also guess that this is the largest amount of soilders in history EVER to contemplate getting a service dog.  The industry as a whole is basically going to have a large short term boom period.
 .  I say this


 , so vete 



 

I don't understand, isn't this in direct conflict with the American Disabilities Act?!   Sounds like a lawsuit waiting to happen. 

My husband is in need of a psychiatric service dog. At first the VA told him they would get him one,that was right before he left the Army in 2007 on a medical discharge due to PTSD. After he got out they changed their minds. NOW the Dayton office says that he can have one at OUR cost and they will allow him to bring it with him for his hospital and appointment visits. I joined this site in the hopes of finding him a dog,but for the most part it's been nothing but a head game and a disappointment. 

 So I feel for those in need but because of politics can't have!!!

 I went to your page and signed it.




  

 http://www.irs.gov/publications/p502/ar02.html#en_US_publink1000178936

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p502.pdf 

 lovingwife , tax deductions for service dogs are pretty cut and dry, you will have to come up with some money up front and start working with a accountant who is familiar with these kinds of deductions to help you get started.  Essentially, if you do your taxes correctly, much of the cost can be defrayed.  Also if you do not have a servce dog already, you can simply follow the VA's current policy and get one through an organization certified by ADI.  The VA will reimburse for those dogs.
 
hunger4justice, is pointing out that the VA has bottlenecked the process and that ADI is now in control of the certification process.  I'm upset because ADI appeared pretty recently, but now can dictate policy to organzations that have been giving service dogs to veterans for over 50 years. 

Its still not entirely clear to me, but it looks like people who would not nornally be eligable for VA benefits were able to get services if they had a seeing eye dog.  The VA then shifted the policy, most likley to reduce the number of eligible veterans in some way.  Thats where the ADI certification comes in, to limit access in some way.  But like I said, I'm not clear on exactly what "loophole' the VA was trying to close.

http://americanveteranmagazine.blogspot.com/2010/08/amvets-rep-klein-push-for-clear-service.html 

Here is another interesting article on the topic.  It seems there were others who tried to get involved quite early but were turned down.  It seems the need to provide 4 dogs over a wounded soldiers lifetime is more than the VA wants to spend financially, so the best way to reduce the number of dogs is to make getting a service dog from a "certified organization" more difficult:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-kleiman/why-wont-the-va-provide-s_b_126378.html 





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Do you think they did this because a service dog for PTS vet killed his 10 year old child. They said they were getting "false" service dog..but from who I am not sure.

Oh lovingwife, how I wish I heard of you a month ago.  I had a perfect puppy for therapy work.  I tried a number of different organizations to have her evaluated and donated to them (that was the whole point of Rose's litter).  All of them turned me down (wouldn't even look at the dog) because she wasn't a "rescue" dog.  It was very disappointing.  I made plans to keep her, but 3 puppies at once to train was way too many.  I found her a good home, but I am not sure she will live up to her full potential.

Good luck and I hope your husband gets what he needs.  GSDs are wonderful therapy dogs.  Rose is mine and I would not trade her for all the money in the world.

Its looks like the Federal Government put out a contract to conduct reseach on this topic and very few organizations applied to propose on the contract.  This is a big problem and having looked up the old project, I now realize why thier final policy descision has little to do with reality.  Essentially the big players in the service dog indisutry didn't even know they needed to apply.  So at the end of the day a small organization without the right experience will now dictate to the organizations that have decades of real world experience.  Here is an example of a recent solicitation link below.  I haven't heard of any of the companies that replied to this solicitation, so I would say its safe to assume that the findings will be pretty far off base, but at the end of the day will influence actual future policies:

https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=2144262c47cdc26d558f3eb37efa9489&tab=core&_cview=0

lovingwife, please make contact with this organization:

http://servicedogs4servicemen.com/

Although they are located in Florida, even if they aren't able to match your husband with one of their dogs, I believe they can at least point you in the right direction.