[Lucid:]

I think companion pets are great, but I do also think that they should be required to have SOME sort of training to be taken to public places that don't typically allow your standard pet.

I have an aunt who purchased certification for her dog and calls her a "companion pet/therapy pet." My aunt has absolutely no need to have her dog nearby, and at dinner parties tells funny stories about people asking her what the dog helps her do and her giving funny or awkward answers. She brags about how she can cheat the system since she's able to get the certification so easily and is not legally obligated to disclose her "illness" which her dog "helps" her with.

Now, luckily my aunt's dog is tiny and well behaved. But not everybody's pet is suited to handle crowds, or children, or strangers, etc. The fact that anybody can get their standard, run of the mill pet "certified" to bring to public places just by spending a few bucks is absurd. Pets who aren't well trained around strangers can be disruptive or harmful. I don't care about the whole allergy thing, but if a little kid pulls the dog's tail and the dog turns around and bites the kid, that is a serious problem. Pets trained to be companions in public areas (hopefully) wouldn't have social problems cropping up. Requiring a training course would twofold decrease the problems people have with other peoples' companion pets, and also increase the barrier to entry for obtaining the proper certification.