An Île-Perrot woman claims a Châteauguay Walmart violated her rights and mistreated her when she was in their store with her service dog.
Louise Fournier says on July 8, she was at the cash at Walmart when she was stopped by an employee who told her that her Chihuahua, which Fournier carries in a bag, was not allowed in the store.
Fournier, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and physical handicaps, said her pup is not provided by a service dog foundation, so she showed the employee her doctor’s note.
Fournier says the employee read the note and walked away.
“I felt discriminated against and picked on,” said Fournier. “I’ve been to this Walmart, this is where I shop and no one has ever asked me for my papers.”
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Fournier says her dog helps her deal with anxiety, stress and depression.
Fournier says by speaking out about the incident she hopes businesses in Quebec will be more sensitive to people with emotional and psychological needs for which a service dog is needed.
“I’m an invisible disabled, you can look at me and you can never know that I’m disabled,” she said. “There are a lot of us that are walking around with that silence and we need to be heard.”
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Global News spoke with the assistant manager of the Châteauguay Walmart who said Mira dogs and bigger service dogs are allowed in the store, but usually, smaller dogs are not.
On Walmart’s website, it states “service animals play an important role in ensuring the independence of people with disabilities, and it is our policy to welcome into our stores any animal that is individually trained to assist a person with a disability.”
The assistant manager referred us to corporate communications for more information on its policy.
Center for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR)‘s executive director Fo Niemi says all businesses need to be more sensitive to those like Fournier.
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“Sooner or later we need to have some sort of coherent policy to educate and make every institution more aware of this need to accommodate a person with a disability that’s invisible to the naked eye,” he said.
Global News reached out to Walmart’s corporate communications for comment, but has yet to hear back.