My husband and I each have our own service dog, home schooled since they were 10 weeks old, they are nearly 4 years old now. Chihuahua mixes for hearing alert and one is cross-trained to alert to hubby's highs and lows in blood sugar since he is a diabetic.

Since moving to Washington we have had very little trouble taking them anywhere. The dogs are often called by name when we go to Denny's. Wal-Mart and several other places. They are quite friendly and love kids, Munchie is a bit more reserved than her brother and is a Daddy's Girl, preferring to stay as close to him as possible. Bearbear, is a Mama's Boy and literally goes everywhere I do, he won't let me out of his sight. I don't hear sirens when I am driving and he alerts me to them. People come up behind me and on my right side and he lets me know they are there. If I need to use the rest room when we are out, he sits patiently till I finish and wash my hands..he likes to stand under the hand dryer and let it blow on him!!

I saw some small kids run up to a large standard poodle that was a service dog the other day and the dog tried to run from them, and in the process, almost knocked his owner over pulling on the leash!! Some dogs fear fast movements by them....I can snap open a trash bag by Bearbear and he looks at me as if to say, "you done yet?" He's never run in fear of anything, and he's never offered to bite, even with his leg severely broken in 4 places. He was a little trooper through the nearly 4 months of splints, surgeries, pins put in his leg and finally amputation. The leg was not to be saved.

I had problems in Arizona getting the dogs into places but not here!