Rules are made to be followed. There are simple rules and there are quite tough ones but we follow them anyway so we won’t get into trouble.
However, one mom was not in the mood to follow even the simplest rule — do not pet the dog. She even verbally abused a group of service dog handlers in a shopping center after being told her daughter wasn’t allowed to pet the animals.
Megan Stoff was in a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania mall with Nala, a Golden Retriever service dog when a mother with a 2-year-old asked if they could pet the dog.
Clearly unaware that service dogs should never be pet – it distracts them from their jobs and can interfere with their training – she got upset.
At first, the mother kept walking. But it appears that being told “no” was just too much for her. So she decided to return to the scene and confront the dog handlers for some reason.
She appeared to be enraged and started shouting at them.
“That was definitely very rude how she talked to me. Firstly you should have a sign [warning people not to touch the dog], and secondly she should not have said ‘no,’ she could’ve said ‘sorry the dog is in training,’ that would’ve been nicer.”
A mind-boggling response since “no” is a valid answer and no one owes a stranger an explanation as to why they cannot touch what belongs to someone else.
Megan pointed out that her dog’s vest has the words “Please do not pet me I’m working”, along with “Do not touch” and “Do not pet” written on both sides of it.
The video went viral and it’s been viewed millions of times, with most commenters taking the mom to task for her bad behavior, particularly in front of her toddler.
Megan also reminded the raging mom that it is illegal to “harass a service dog.”
There’s no doubt that it’s inappropriate to respond to her with threats – especially when we hope she learned her lesson after seeing herself on the video.
Watch her ridiculous tantrum below:
Sources: OpposingViews, Daily Mail