....been posting in this blog for awhile, but this might make it easier! If this works, I will be able to update this much easier, and keep a better record of the situation of Aric and Tagg.... Gail and Anja, my German Shepherd Service Dog & Flicka the MinPin EmoSD. + DePorres Service Dog Trainers Guild http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DePorresServiceDogs »§«.,¸¸,.·´¯`·.,¸¸,.»§« Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

...this is so much the case with Aric and his service dog- the harassment continues, albeit in a more subtle form than the original "Wallace type" he recieved in grade school.

Debate continues over school's dog ban - Newsday.com

Debate continues over school's dog ban

BY JENNIFER BARRIOS AND CARL MACGOWANNewsday Staff WritersJanuary 16, 2007, 10:39 PM EST

When Mike Steubing was in school, Max was always at his side.Steubing, 18, of Levittown, has muscular dystrophy and uses a wheelchair. Max is a golden retriever -- and he does a lot more than fetch items for Steubing, whose symptoms have progressively worsened since he first joined up with the dog in sixth grade.
"He helped me with a lot of stuff," Steubing said of his faithful friend, now semi-retired at 9 years old. "When I was able to walk, he would help me get up. He'd pull me around in the wheelchair."Steubing is one of some 10,000 to 12,000 Americans who use a service dog to help in their daily lives because of a disability. He's among only a handful of people on Long Island to have used a dog in school, and among those, most have reported no problems.In Farmingdale, a blind teacher has used a guide dog in the classroom for 14 years. In Levittown, two students and a teacher have used service dogs in the last 20 years. Complaints about service dogs barred from public facilities also are unusual.But that hasn't been the case for John Cave, 14, of Westbury, who recently was barred by East Meadow School District officials from bringing his service dog to school.Steubing said he was in disbelief over Cave's case. When Steubing attended Jonas E. Salk Middle School in Levittown, the school even printed an ID card for his pooch. "Max the Dog," it read, and featured the retriever's photograph."I want to help him," Steubing said of Cave. "It just makes me so mad. I don't understand what kind of person would tell somebody they can't bring their dog to school to help him."District versus familyThe Cave case has drawn nationwide attention as the deaf boy's parents and school officials debate the provisions of disabled-rights law. Federal and state laws say public facilities must not discriminate against people using service animals. But East Meadow officials say they have the right to block the dog because of health and safety concerns, and because Cave has full access to the educational program without his dog.The debate goes on as the state Division of Human Rights investigates the case.Steubing said that having Max by his side helped him become more self-sufficient."I try to be as independent as possible. That's what Max basically did for me," he said. "I have a lot more confidence with Max."Children are far less likely to have service dogs than adults, because they must show they can handle a dog before getting one."It is certainly rare for children to receive assistance dogs," said Kristin Law, executive director of Canines for Disabled Kids, which works with the Massachusetts facility that trained John Cave's dog, Simba. "It's not something that all children can do."The number of students seeking school access for dogs is not likely to grow, Law said. "I would not anticipate that school districts are going to be barring their doors and saying, 'This will not happen,' in part because this is not going to happen in large numbers," she said.The East Meadow controversy pits a family against a school district, both equally sure the law is on their side. John Cave's mother, Nancy, says her son doesn't need the district's permission to bring Simba to W. Tresper Clarke High School.East Meadow Superintendent Robert Dillon last week said service dogs would disrupt classes, block hallways and pose a health hazard for children with allergies. Dillon said John did not need the dog to "access the district's programs."Rosa Principato, co-president of the high school's parent-teacher-student association, expressed concern for students with allergies and said the dog may pose a threat. "An animal is an animal and will attack if children are teasing him," she said. "I don't think animals should be in the school."Validity in questionAdvocates for the disabled said the district's rationale is inadequate. While federal law permits exceptions for life-threatening allergies, such instances are rare, said Fred Shotz, president of Indianapolis-based All Disabled Americans."A person sneezing in the presence of a dog doesn't rise to the level where you can deny somebody [his or her] civil rights," Shotz said.An online publication of the U.S. Department of Justice says: "Allergies and fear of animals are generally not valid reasons for denying access or refusing service to people with service animals."Assistance dogs are not dangerous, said Larry Wallnau of Rochester, a regional representative for the National Education for Assistance Dog Services who has multiple sclerosis. Service animals are selected in part for their temperament, he said, adding that dogs who bark "or show the slightest bit of aggression get kicked out of the program." He said his service dog, Gentle Ben, a smooth coat collie, usually sleeps when they go to a restaurant. "As I leave, I hear people say, 'Oh, I didn't know a dog was in here.'"