Leave Rover home
Leave Rover home
Regarding “Gone to the dogs” (Tribune-Herald, June 15): I’m an animal lover myself. I can relate to how various animals can help someone calm down and give temporary relief of stress.
But people should really leave their beloved pets at home when going shopping or out to dine. I see dogs in purses, being carried or on a leash, strolling through the aisles of the supermarket and table-side at various restaurants and drive-ins. Often, we have what I assume to be a homeless individual with their grungy animal accompanying them everywhere, at any establishment.
The hazards for having untrained service animals is safety. Safe from attacks, sanitation and also allergies. I think the state should set up a certification and identification program. Each animal should have an identification tag with photo of the animal and who it services. It also should identify the specific nature of its service. Possibly something similar to a driver’s license that clearly shows purpose and any restrictions.
The current law or ordinance is too vague or broad. It should specify what services are allowed. The most common is an animal that assists the visually impaired. Not exactly sure what other service a dog can provide for a human, except for those veterans who suffer from PTSD. I’ve seen documentaries about veterans and their service dogs. These dogs are carefully selected and highly trained before being paired with a veteran. But again, these service animals go through careful selection and training to perform their specific service.
Leave your pets at home!
Cary Tahara
Hilo
Pensive recollection
Ten days ago, I visited Sandy Song at Hospice of Hilo when Marcella Stroh of Central Pacific Bank informed me Sandy was asking for me. Sandy welcomed me in high spirits, grasping my hands and smiling without a trace of her terminal illness. We reminisced about the past when Sandy served as a board member and chairperson of Hawaii County Economic Opportunity Council for nearly 30 years.
Sandy left an indelible record of accomplishments helping the poor attain economic self-sufficiency, as well as helping them individually on legal matters and in court appearances without remunerations.
On the community-action front, Sandy helped us tremendously on program grant mobilization by her meticulous review of the cumbersome legal aspects of the contents of our grant applications to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations, thereby contributed to grant awards of more than $30 million during her tenure as member and chairperson of HCEOC board.
Looking back, Sandy Song was indeed an individual who not only cared about the disadvantaged people of this county, but was positively responsive to their needs.
George Yokoyama
Hilo