Last month KOMO News reporter Jeff Burnside reported that Washington could see a record number of complaints about fake service dogs.
Here is a picture of Brutus sporting his new service dog ID badge and Vest. They came from a company that sells them to anyone who will pay for them. Photo from Brett Bennett.
The biggest reason for this problem is that the American Disabilities Act (ADA) requires no test or certification for service dogs. As a result, a number of websites have sprung up that give fake ID badges, vests, and certificates to people who want to pretend they have a service dog so they can take it wherever they go.
But training a real service dog requires a lot more time and effort than tapping a few keys on a website and submitting a credit card number.
Northwest Battle Buddies, a nonprofit group in Battle Ground, WA that trains service dogs for veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), says it costs $10,000 and takes 3-4 months of work to train a service dog.
So how do you know if someone has a fake service dog?
1. Know the Definition of a Service Dog. According to Service Dog Central, “[a]nimals whose sole function is to provide emotional support, comfort, therapy, companionship, therapeutic benefits, or to promote emotional well-being are not service animals…” A service animal must be specifically trained to DO something.
2. Ask questions. The US Department of Justice allows business owners to ask people with service dogs 2 questions. 1. Is this a service dog required because of disability? 2. What is it trained to do to mitigate the disability?
3. Observe the (Potentially) Fake Service Dog. Assistance Dogs International developed a list of Minimum Standards and Ethics for Service Dogs. Things to watch for include:
- Dog does not solicit attention, visit or annoy any member of the general public.
- Dog does not disrupt the normal course of business.
- Dog does not vocalize unnecessarily, i.e. barking, growling or whining.
- Dog shows no aggression towards people or other animals.
- Dog stays within 24″ (60 cm) of its handler at all times unless the nature of a trained task requires it to be working at a greater distance.
OK, if you’ve read this far you’re probably wondering how this relates to Brett Bennett, the scam artist that posted the “Grieving Rottweiler” video and tried to use it to raise $100,000 for himself.
Bennett recently posted a picture of a service dog badge he ordered in the mail for his dog Brutus. He also posted this video of him with Brutus decked out in his service dog vest and badge while meeting another dog. (the link may not work at some point because he tends to take down his videos after people criticize them).
Based on what I saw in the video, it’s my opinion that Brutus is not a service dog for these reasons:
Here is a close up of Brutus’ service dog ID badge that says he is a PTSD service dog. These badge look official, but there is no federal requirement for service dogs to wear them. There aren’t even any national standards for training service dogs. That’s why it’s so easy pass off any dog as a service dog. Photo from Brett Bennett.
- He doesn’t appear to be trained to do anything
- He barks, growls, and acts aggressively towards at 2 other dogs
- He doesn’t stay within 2 feet of his handler
- He doesn’t respond to his handlers commands
- He strains against his leash to get to the other dog
- Bennett got Brutus’ service dog “credentials” from USSDR (United States Service Dog Registry).
- I don’t think a person who makes a video of his/her service dog would entitle it “American Pit Bull Terrier VS Service Dog Rottweiler.” It’s a sensationalistic headline designed to get people to click on the video (and put money in Bennett’s pocket).
- He hypes the video by saying, “If you type in Pit Bull attacks service dog you will see on a few occasions Pits have mauled and even killed some service dogs that were on Duty.” Again, this appears to be an attention grabbing “fact” to get people to click on the video. But he provides no information to back it up, and he’s making the public’s negative perception of pit bulls even worse by saying they kill service dogs.
Having fake service dog is a federal crime, so if you suspect someone has one, you should report them to the police.
One final note. Brutus’ “ID Badge” says he is a PTSD service dog. If Brutus has not actually been trained as a PTSD service dog, Bennett is disrespecting people, primarily veterans, that suffer from this awful illness.
Key here is this:
Dog does not solicit attention, visit or annoy any member of the general public.
Dog does not disrupt the normal course of business.
Dog does not vocalize unnecessarily, i.e. barking, growling or whining.
Dog shows no aggression towards people or other animals.
Dog stays within 24″ (60 cm) of its handler at all times unless the nature of a trained task requires it to be working at a greater distance.
Brett Bennet’s dog, does lunge at other dogs, attacks toy dolls, wears a muzzle, wander far from Brett, barks, growls. Brett has spent no money in training this dog, because it costs ALOT to do so, and well, he rather spend any monies he scams, on himself. The fake tag, fake service dog and everything about Brett is fake, except that he threatens many who are against him or disprove him.
Kudos! and keep pounding him!! He has ‘apologized’ to his MANY followers LOL that he was going to be absent from facebook and YouTube “for a while”. But look for more in the future!! That is his MO, reading the pleading posts to ‘stay with us, we LOVE you and Brutus!”. Like a bad penny that keeps resurfacing. Cut off from the fund raisers and can’t live off praise. He’s still out there, laying low. Or maybe hiding from authorities. 🙂
It’s all about the money.
Also I keep checking daily to see if he is incarcerated. Hoping. Waiting. Will have a party when he is 😉
he will be arrested very soon, we are pinning down his location now. he will be charged with fraud and for a fake service dog, both federal crimes. he will not be getting away with this any longer. would love to see him threaten an attorney when federal cops show up at his residence. brutus will be taken along with his small dogs, the likely hood of such an aggressive rottweiler being rehomed is very small. he will likely be held at a shelter until court ruling and then be humanely euthanized as he’s not safe to be adopted into the public.
I don’t think we can speculate what would happen to the Rottweiler until he’s assessed by a pet behavioralist.
Alix….keep us posted on what sounds like imminent arrest!
Also, be it known that Brett, clearly and publicly stated on his facebook page before deactivating it, that he supports PURRR Rescue and Diana. He is her biggest cheerleader. The crazy and devious sure stick together.
As a service dog owner and mine is a pitbull I hate this man more and more. I have a hard enough time with my small pit than he’ll ever have. Wish he would be arrested.
It will catch up to him at some point. The way he demonizes pit bulls is disgusting.
I couldn’t agree more. I too have a small pit service dog and this video ticks me off. First of all SDs are NOT dominate dogs and that Rotty was showing dominance over the Pit. My SD will roll over and show her belly to another dog to show her submissiveness. She is extremely well trained for four major disabities and she rocks them every day even when she isn’t in vest and working. I love my girl!!
I personally wish each State’s Voc Rehab would take over certifying Service Dogs so there wouldn’t be an issue as to wether or no a SD was legit or not. I really think that would settle it. We have to go to the BMV to get our handicap placards, why not Voc Rehab to certify our SDs, after all they are the best when it comes to disabilities.
Good idea but most state legislatures have the time or money to do it.
He has already edited this video.
What did he do?
It is shameful that people pass off there animals as “service dogs”. I encounter that almost daily at a government building. Real service dog owners are curtious and accommodating when we ask those pesky questions about the dog. Fakers start to rant and rave when questioned and threaten a law suit.