Bogus Therapy Dogs

It only takes a couple clicks of the mouse to buy a patch that says "therapy dog," purchasing a pass for your dog to enter a wide variety of businesses that forbid any other dog.  I'm not the least bit surprised to learn that this is going on, I'd thought of it myself and entertained the idea from time to time.  I'm not saying it is right, only that it doesn't take a genius to see a way to exploit a system that both asks people to not do something they believe they have a right to do, in this case take their dog where ever they go, and is built on trust.

New Yorkers use bogus 'therapy dog' tags to take Fido everywhere

Phony “service dog” tags have become common among city pooch owners, who use them for everything from taking Fido bar-hopping to pick up chicks to getting discounts on the Hamptons Jitney.
Dog owners can easily snap up bogus tags, vests, patches and certificates on the Internet, circumventing the city Health Department and undermining federal regulations designed to aid the disabled.
“I was sick of tying up my dog outside,” said Brett David, 33, a restaurateur whose tiny pooch, Napoleon, wore an unofficial “therapy dog” patch during a visit to Whole Foods on Houston Street.

If this turns out to be a problem that needs to be solved (some problems are preferable to the solution), there are two possible ways forward.

1. End the special treatment of therapy animals by freeing businesses to decide whether or not to allow animals onto their premises.  If some want to cater to dog-lovers, or any other animal owners for that matter, allow them to do so, as long as they can still pass any applicable public health or safety regulations.
2. Require the owners of therapy dogs to carry their papers at all times and instantly ask any owner who cannot produce verification to leave the business in question.  Likewise, there could be a fine involved for misrepresentation of your pooch as a therapy animal.  

I confess a preference for informal policing and market solutions to the heavy hand of the state.  My first instinct is to prefer the first option though I am well aware of some of the problems that might arise.  My terrier doesn't care much for children and my heart jumps every time I see a toddler make a dash for "the puppy."  It definitely impacts where I decide to take him but I'm not confident all dog owners would use the same discretion.  I am not confident that even with the best discretion available that all problems would be avoided.  I know they wouldn't and our flawed expectation that Fido to act like a little person would result in trouble, even for responsible dog owners.  So if we are going to allow special treatment for therapy dogs, perhaps we do need insist on sanctions for those who would break public trust by passing their dog friend off as a therapy animal.

There is one thing that I don't quite understand: when using a therapy dog to pick up chicks do the girls being chatted up not care that you're a guy who needs a therapy dog or do they not care that you're a guy who would violate the public trust by passing your dog off as a therapy dog?  If the former, good for them.  If the latter, they are getting the quality of man they deserve.