Therapy dog out of job because of costume
San Diego, CA (ABC) –Chopper the Biker Dog, a 5-year-old Boston terrier, lost his therapy dog certification for wearing his costume while visiting people at San Diego veteran’s hospitals, senior centers and schools, according his owner.
Mark Shaffer, who has worked with therapy dogs for a decade, told ABC News today that Pet Partners, the certifying agency, had full knowledge that Chopper had been wearing his costume – a leather vest, biker goggles and a bandanna – for years.
“It’s not a problem for dogs to wear costumes around town, but in the context of a therapeutic visit it’s not appropriate,” Glen Miller, the national director of communications, told ABC News today.
Miller noted that Pet Partners has over 11,000 teams of handlers and pets across the country and it’s hard to monitor that everyone follows this rule. Shaffer was mailed a warning about a year ago about Chopper’s costume, Miller said.
Pet Partners suspended Chopper on May 14, Shaffer said, adding that Chopper’s visits were always on his own time and not organized by Pet Partners.
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