By Alan Peters Effective August 1, 2018, it is illegal to pretend that a pet dog is a service dog in Minnesota. Can Do Canines brought the issue forward in 2017 and the Minnesota legislature voted to institute a new law during the 2018 session. It is now a petty misdemeanor on the first offense and increases to a misdemeanor on a second offense. Pet dogs do not receive the rigorous training that true service dogs receive. Poorly trained or dangerous imposters are putting the public and legitimate service dogs at risk. Service Dog handlers are regularly confronted about their …