Disabled teen suffers from 'meltdown' after Wetherspoons refuse his assistance dog

dailystar.co.uk:

Wetherspoons while out with his assistance dog. In troubling footage shared online, the distraught teen can be seen begging with the manager of the pub to allow his Shih Tzu, Chico, inside.

River Cartledge, 19, claimed that he had explained to the manager that he needed his dog because of his Autism, Fibromyalgia and Arthritis, Mail Online reported.A woman, who identifies herself in the video as the manager of The Five Swans in Newcastle, tells the boy that its policy to only allow in guide dogs and asked him to leave.He tells the manager that the pub is not able to refuse entry under the Equality Act.River claimed he subsequently had a "severe meltdown and panic attack" after the incident.

Wetherspoons' policy claims it only allows registered assistance and guide dogs into the premises. It has since said it made a "genuine error" and apologised.

River said: "Assistance dog handlers such as myself get denied in public places more often than it’s talked about, and it always makes us feel like this, and like we’re the ones causing problems for ourselves by needing a dog, when in reality it’s the ableism and ignorance of other people, not the disabled person."Their issue, was the fact he was an assistance dog, and not a guide dog."I was straight up told that they only allowed seeing eye dogs and they didn’t allow assistance dogs, because of their 'policy'."Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: "It was an error not to let the [man] in with her assistance dog."It was a genuine error and we apologise wholeheartedly.Stay in the loop with all the latest news by signing up to our free newsletter here."We can understand the fact the [man] would have been upset and frustrated by the situation."Assistance dogs are allowed into.