Yep, like our friends that we have decided that they will no longer travel with us. Their cute little dog is being passed off as a service dog and have never been caught. No consequences for lying. It's not just CA, they lied on the TSA questionaire and flew with their pet to Florida. We finally decided that we are so sick and tired of their pet.
Yes, when we bought at NCV 20 years ago, never did we think there would be pets…dogs sitting and living on the furniture of the timeshare we had bought. We go to NCV twice a year…have four weeks, and we have seen doggies dressed in matching outfits, playing with each other on the front lawn, “service” dogs fighting and barking loudly at each other and at people multiple times, we have seen people treating their dogs likes children in front of the staff with nothing said…so obviously not a true service dog, which is terrible and such deceit…I bought when all of these fake service animals were not a “thing”, and now realize that they trump real human owners….as they can lay and play on our furniture which is not at all what we paid for…very disappointing. Just like the people who smoke in their units. Such a very narcissistic society we live it, people thinking they don't have to follow rules. My aunt and uncle have trained true service dogs for decades. We know how these service dogs are behaved. I am not against true service animals. It is nothing like we are seeing the past three years at NCV and many other places.
You're right about having to provide proof. In my wife's case, her doctor had to either fill out or sign an application for the placard. It seems like there should be some way of validating a person's ADA needs without being more of a burden than applying for a handicapped placard or license plate.
I agree that there's significant abuse, that properties are reluctant to enforce lest they end up in the middle of an ADA lawsuit, and that some kind of third-party verification – a service dog ID card of sorts – would be a big step forward. The person needing the service animal might need to disclose some details about their need for the animal and the tasks the animal is trained to perform in order to receive the ID card, but would henceforth simply need to show the ID card when checking into lodging, etc.
Tell me about it. I see 99 percent of the people pulling into HCP spots put up a temporary mirror tag (given out like Halloween candy and often for someone else in the family) while I limp past them to the store. My hip is shot and the more I walk the worse it gets. Still, I can walk. So I do. I wish they'd let the dog stay in the plane and put the fake owner in cargo.
I've seen obvious pets at Ocean Pointe also. I love dogs, but I obey rules. I'm at OP in a few weeks...we'll see how it is this year.
Years ago I was accused of having a dog in a villa at Manor Club. After I checked out the cleaning crew said they smelled dog. What actually happened was on my last AM I attempted to re-heat some bacon in the microwave (bacon reheat time is probably like 2 seconds not 60!). I tried to air the place out but it still smelled like smoke. They were going to charge me something like 500 bucks. Even when I told them what happened they still insisted the burning bacon smelled like a dog. Well, I got the dog thing removed eventually. So you can get whacked with a fine for a dog. Or a kitchen disaster.
Because your car will be parked unattended most of the time.
Ocean Pointe was the worst I've experienced. A dog who was on a leash from a six-year-old boy started licking me in the marketplace. I walked right to the front desk and told them about it but have no idea what happened.
Oh, ok, thanks. So if we are in the car, no placard necessary?
HCP are not given out like Halloween candies. Doctors have to fill out the forms stating the health conditions. However if family members abuse by using it while the handicapped individual is not riding in the car, that is an offence.
As I noted, there are abuses but they are infinitely less for HC parking and I am comfortable that requiring a person to attest to having a true service animal and having physicians to do the same would have a significant and beneficial impact. Both are under penalty of law.
We had a tenant in our guest house who basically held us hostage the last few months of her tenancy. She stopped paying rent, and one Sunday just before Christmas she showed up with a “witness” from a legal aid office, a rambunctious young pit bull and a dog handler. We called the police after telling her the dog violated her lease. Of course the legal aid person said emotional support blah blah. We thought to call an acquaintance who was a lawyer. She said GO TELL HER SHE CAN HAVE THAT DOG. HANG UP AND DO IT NOW! We did and the effing dog was gone in ten minutes never to return. That young, untrained dog literally yanked the handler all over the back yard as they made sure we knew that the dog was on the premises. ESA, my ass.
This does unfortunately seem to be another far too typical MVC Corporate response, which does not recognise the existence of any locations outside of the US, where there are no such restrictions on what they can ask animal owners at a resort?!
In all fairness, it was a response to an ongoing conversation dealing specifically with Newport Coast.
In resorts in Europe there are restrictions on what staff can ask service dog owners just as in the US. There is a difference in that many countries the dog must be formally registered with an accredited organisation and the owner must carry ID for the dog and produce it on request. Owner trained service dogs (those that haven't undergone training with an accredited organisation) are generally not considered service dogs and are treated as pets. This is a major difference between the US and is most likely a major factor in the lack of service dogs seen at European resorts, people simply can't pull off their pet dog as a service dog.
Indeed and that is the fundamental difference here in Europe being able to ask for the formal ID documentation, which works and could so easily do so in the US to the benefit of Service dog owners, and all other owners (except of course pet owners trying to break the rules!)
The problem is it isn’t easily solved because your suggested solution requires that federal law be amended as the ADA governs all 50 states. And then some states have additional laws in place that are also being abused by folks claiming disabilities. As such, any requirement of formal documentation cannot be imposed by a property, it requires Congress actually amend the existing law, which requires both the House and the Senate to pass legislation, which is then signed by the President.
