Service dog owner calls for awareness over rules after confusion at Warrnambool cafe

Ararat's Sally Gilleece said she was shocked when she was refused service at a Warrnambool cafe on Friday.

Ms Gilleece had her service dog Gordon, a labrador, with her during her visit to the city.

She said when she entered the eatery, a staff member asked her if Gordon was a service dog.

Ms Gilleece replied he was.

However, she said she was not happy with the questions a staff member asked.

"She asked me why wasn't he wearing a coat and then she asked me what my disability was," Ms Gilleece said.

"It was embarrassing as she asked all of this in front of other customers."

Ms Gilleece said it was not the first time she had experienced discrimination when entering businesses with her service dog.

"This is happening more frequently than it used to," she said.

"The law is very specific. I'm surprised it's still happening given the publicity of the (David) Mulligan case."

Mulligan, who has cerebral palsy, wanted to fly with his service dog but was informed by Virgin Airlines it was not allowed.

He was awarded $10,000 compensation from the airline.

Ms Gilleece said she wanted business owners to be better educated about the law.

"The law doesn't say he has to be identified with a coat," she said.

"The law says he has to be hygienic and well-behaved."

Ms Gilleece relies on Gordon because she has an acquired brain injury.

She sustained this after a fall in a shopping centre some years ago.

Ms Gilleece said she experienced spacial awareness difficulty and blurred vision.

She is also prone to fainting and has a signal if she needs assistance for Gordon.

"I give him a command and he will bark and draw attention to me," Ms Gilleece said.

She said Gordon allowed her to maintain some independence.

"Gordon saved my life. I fell into a river because the bank was slippery and he pulled me out."

A Warrnambool City Council spokesman said it was disappointing Ms Gilleece had an experience in Warrnambool which left her feeling uncomfortable.

"While it's permitted for a business owner to ask someone with a dog for evidence it is an assistance dog or that it is appropriately trained, an assistance dog can generally go anywhere a member of the general public is admitted and there is no legal requirement for the dog to have any identifying harness, coat or lead," the spokesman said.

"It's important that the community is aware of this and their legal obligations.

"Over recent years we can see the growing importance of assistance dogs and the difference they make to people's quality of life."

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