Loving a dog is easy. They are gentle, lovable, playful, affectionate and even loyal. These are essentially the reasons why dogs are considered “man’s best friends.” They can instantly brighten up a home and bring so much joy to a family. Some dogs are known to even help disabled people and support them throughout the day.
Meghan Taylor, 22, lives every day with the help of her guide dog, Rowley. Meghan is blind and her guide dog helps her with bus rides and more. It’s never been an easy task, and they always encounter rude and insensitive passengers along the way. One thing, however, made Meghan reconsider using public transport.
Meghan was just getting on the bus one day when a passenger turned to her and said, “why is there a f***ing on the bus? Get it off”.
Meghan explained that Rowley is her guide dog. This woman doesn’t believe her because Rowley is a black Labrador. Passengers seem to think that only yellow Labradors can be considered service dogs. Meghan told her that guide dogs can be of any colour, but the woman still doesn’t seem to get it. Meghan decided to ignore the passenger because it would be pointless to argue with her anyway.
According to Meghan, this isn’t the first time people have treated her poorly on public transport. Sometimes people even deny her priority seating because “she doesn’t look disabled,” even after showing people her medical alert card. That’s why she was so nervous when she had to use public transport. “People should know that service dogs come in many shapes and sizes and are trained to help people with a variety of disabilities. They’re not just for the blind.
” Thanks to the confidence Rowley gave me when that woman started yelling at me When I yelled, I was able to stay calm,” Meghan told the Liverpool Echo.
Despite having so many negative experiences on public transport, Megan still has faith in people, and knows they are the minority “Most people are good and kind”, she finally said during the interview.
Rowley has helped Meghan in many other ways, including helping with simple household chores and having access to a phone in an emergency.
Meghan started suffering from “occasional blindness” after suffering a head injury at the age of 15. This leads to other ailments, including dizziness, fainting, hearing loss and balance problems.
Despite the unfortunate events her guide dog has endured, Meghan chose to remain positive.
“I try to stay positive and not let what happened put me down because I’m not ashamed of my disability. Despite so many negative experiences, I know these people are a minority. Most people are kind and kind.”
