Introducing the Most Famous Service Dog

Anyone who knows me is familiar with my love of Disney.  I love the "Land," the "World," the movies and music.  I can't say I am a fan of all things Disney, as a liberal feminist, some of the traditional Princesses make my skin crawl and my feminist sensibility shutter, but I am a fan of the fab five, the beginning, the main characters (I have a Minnie issue but we can get into that later).  My love for Mickey is prevalent in my home and office. I would love to have all things Mickey if I did not have the pressure of adulthood lingering in the back of my mind and sometime in front of my face, aka the roommate rant. 

Now, it has to be stated that Mickey and Pluto are my favorites.  Mickey, because he's Mickey and Pluto because he is a dog. How can you question the bond between Mouse and Dog? Not to mention, as a dog lover, all things dog are good. Now, I have had those that have argued that Goofy is a dog too and that should elevate him to favorite status but let's look closely at this Goofy/dog situation. As I see it, Goofy clearly has dog features; long stout, whiskers and floppy ears but is infused with human characteristics; which works for a mouse but for a dog is just a goofy premise.  

In the course of my life and filling my evening (yes, I do have a brimming social life) there continues to be frequent heated discussions about this (and that Minnie is a hussy--but I digress). When one day, instead of arguing I was just asked,  "Why Pluto?"  The answer to me seemed obvious but why was I not able to regard Goofy with the same affection as Mickey?  Mickey, like Goofy, is no more than a mouse infused with human characteristics.  This important questioning of my beliefs and preferences left me contemplative and required further explanation.  Hummm...

It took a bit of time mulling over my hypocrisy (a characteristic I hate)  when it occurred to me, like a bolt of lightning from the sky. The reason Pluto is a favorite is because he is not just Mickey's dog but rather Mickey's service dog and service dogs, like Ivan, Steeler and now my Nin are my world.  These dogs are my life, my love and my laughter so of course I would relate to Mickey and his relationship with Pluto more than I would relate to Goofy, Donald or Daisy.  (Clearly we could argue that Minnie too needs a service dog but you know she is too much of a pre-Madonna to admit she needs assistance, ugh!) 

Okay, I hear you questioning this logic and shaking your head. Some of you out there may be thinking, "THAT'S It! I knew she was teetering on the edge of sanity and it has finally happened...she has gone over the edge!"  But to the contrary, there is a very logical train of thought behind this revelation.  Yes, it is the same type of logic and critical thought that lead me to the conclusion that Minnie is a hussy so we know it is without flaws! But, I remind myself that this blog is about me and my Nin or my service dogs, not about the musings of a flirty and flighty mouse! So back to my point. 

Relying upon what we know of Mickey we can identify that he is probably the most famous person/mouse with a disability.  I mean he is missing a finger and has overgrown gloves for hands. Can he really handle change or buttons? Can he get a credit card out of his pocket?  I am confident that he cannot do these things and many others without extreme difficulty or assistance. Now, let's not forget his feet. They are huge! They can't be easy to walk on especially for distance. Have you ever seen him run? I think not! Although he has assimilated well, I can't really say that he can function independently or attend to his activities of daily living without assistance, so...enters Pluto. 

Now Pluto may not have a vest, but remember this is not required under the law. He frequently accompanies Mickey around in public and is not asked to leave. I have even seen him in restaurants
and have never heard anyone citing health code violations as one would with a pet dog.  Additionally, in an unfriendly world filled with leash laws, Pluto is not seen on leash rather he is controlled by voice commands, another option for a service dog under the law. It has to be difficult to handle a leash with those ginormous hands.  To further my point, I have a collectable Pluto figurine that is a pose of Pluto with a Post It stuck to him, which clearly happened in the provision of picking up the note for Mickey, after all Pluto cannot read. As Nin can attest, picking up a Post It note is tricky business and can easily get stuck to to a paw, creating extreme frustration. (However, rather humorous for me).  Another figurine I have has Pluto with Christmas ornaments on his tail and hanging from his mouth, clearly he is helping Mickey trim the Christmas tree; a task that would be very difficult for Mickey with those big, missing finger, hands and a perfect task for a service dog. Both of those figurines were provided to my from Disney as a member of their Collectors Club, so we cannot really argue the authenticity of the figurine or intended poses.  

Looking at Goofy, he is more person than dog and not in need of a service dog of his own. Not only does Goofy walk upright all the time, he speaks, and he drives the Goofy mobile. Have you ever seen a dog who walks exclusively upright, speaks, in spoken English, and drives? (Ok there are a few dogs that drive in New Zealand but only with assistance from their person and they certainly do not have their own car. Thus, I will concede that their may be an very small exception to this rule!)

Looking at the entire picture, it is clear that Pluto is Mickey's service dog. His role is to help, love and be a faithful companion to his mouse,  just as my Nin is my faithful companion to help and love me unconditionally, well that is except when I kick her out of the big bed! 

I could go on to discuss particular episodes of cartoons which further demonstrate my theory but why belabor the point.  Disability comes in all sizes shapes and species, even in the form of a very wealthy famous mouse.  Mickey's relationship with Pluto demonstrates the love and interdependence felt by every person with a service dog and goes to show that we all get by with a little help from our friends.