What To Do If A Service Dog Approaches You Without Their Owner

Melissa Hope, a Twitter user, recently posted a PSA that got a lot of attention. When Melissa face-planted to the ground, her service dog sprang into action to look for help. While Melissa was totally fine otherwise, her dog was trained to find help in the event she has a seizure, which is what the dog thought had happened.

The service dog was shooed away from a woman who did not understand that the dog was trying to find help for its owner. This is when Melissa took to the Internet to post a very blunt PSA about service dogs and what it means when they approach you without their owner.

pic.twitter.com/KZssvu0Sr2 — Melissa Hope (@lissalet) June 16, 2018

In the PSA, Melissa explains her situation and follows up with why service dogs need to be taken more seriously. “Don’t get scared, don’t get annoyed, follow the dog! If it had been an emergency situation, I could have vomited and choked, I could have hit my head, I could have had so many things happen to me,” Melissa wrote.

Many people took to social media to support Melissa’s PSA. They encouraged people to learn about service dogs. Some people even shared their own stories.