Re: "Seeing Eye guide dogs are not pets (Olds Albertan, March 4) I realize the decision to disallow Mr.
Re: "Seeing Eye guide dogs are not pets (Olds Albertan, March 4)
I realize the decision to disallow Mr. Mortimer's guide dog has been reversed, but it's surprising that this became an issue in the first place, seeing as pets are allowed in our hospital without hardly a restriction.
Back in December, I was at the Olds hospital for a pregnancy-related test and saw a small dog walking outside in the sidewalk mud and rock salt.
The dog was then allowed by its keepers to hop around on the furniture 30 feet inside the main doors.
The dog was carried down the hall towards the nurses' station and beyond, presumably into a patient's room.
How this wasn't a glaring sanitation concern is beyond me.
Our local butcher shop has a "no animals allowed" sign posted on the door, and the Farmers Market signs state the same.
With hospital cleaning staff stretched as thin as they are, random pets in our hospital is puzzling.
A call to Patient Relations didn't reassure me much either, though I was told that the hospital was going to better enforce a few points of their pet policy.
I'm not sure of the exact reasons Mr. Mortimer's guide dog was deemed a problem at the seniors’ home where he lived, but I'm glad to see that the dog can stay since after all, non-guide animals are permitted in the hospital where sanitation is crucial.
Judy Douglas
Olds
