Raising awareness for guide dog reform

When a blind disability awareness advocate heard about the death of a three-year-old black Lab, Milton, at a guide dog school in 2022, he became enraged, not just at the tragedy, but at the lack of oversight into guide dogs and disability rights he’s lobbied decades for.

Recently, Frank Perino educated the public about Milton’s story, and the fight for stronger provisions to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), to help vision impaired people navigate the world through better guide dog access and public accommodations, in downtown Sayville.

Milton was the guide dog to Michelle Krupa, who was losing her vision and hearing due to the genetic disorder Usher syndrome. In July 2022, Krupa dropped Milton off at the Guide Dog Foundation in Smithtown, where he first trained, and he died after a worker allegedly left him in a van for over five hours.

“He was a pile of mush and a big goofball, and a very good worker,” Krupa told The Suffolk County News at the time.

Krupa shared her story with the press, including Perino on a podcast he hosted, to raise awareness for better guide dog accountability.

“If it helps save one dog, or one child, then it’s worth it,” Krupa said at the time. “That’s one of the most important things that I’m trying to get out with this message: how important guide dogs are. They are not a robot. They’re not a toy. They are very important to people like me. When they’re trained to help, they’re really incredible.”

The Guide Dog Foundation chief marketing officer Mike Rosen told The Suffolk County News at the time “Our team has been in regular contact with them [the Krupas], and we are providing our complete support, including, at a time when they are ready, matching Michelle with another guide dog, so she can continue to live her life without boundaries.”

Rosen did not immediately respond to a followup request for comment.

Perino said it took over two-and-a-half years for Krupa to receive a replacement, highlighting an issue he’s advocated decades for- allowing disabled people to receive service dogs quicker, and more affordably. If they can get Congress or the state’s attention, Perino said it would benefit both the blind, and schools that provide service dogs.

“The whole thing of what happened would have been avoided if there was a law to protect them, protect Milton, protect Michelle, [and] protect the school,” Perinos said. “It’s two-sided. We’re not [trying] to hurt anybody. We’re looking to make it better.”

While the ADA helped enshrine disability rights into law, Perino said it doesn’t go far enough, and provides no funding for guide dog training or public accommodations. Guide dog training can sometimes cost up to $100,000, according to Perino, who has trained guide dogs like his Akita Starlight, himself.

“It took me four years to get one of those talking lights put up there,” Perino said, gesturing towards Sayville’s pedestrian crossings. “We need enforcement.”

To accomplish this, InnerSight created a Change.org petition to call on Congress to allow blind people fairer, quicker hearings to receive a service dog. Perino’s daughter Mary, who inadvertently sparked InnerSight in 1986 when Perino was refused to bring his guide dog into the delivery room during her birth, helps run the team’s digital campaign.

In 13 years, InnerSight’s petition has received over 75,000 signatures, and can be found at: change.org.

“We’ve gotten a great response,” Perino said.

To learn more about Perino’s story and advocacy, visit www.innersight.blog.