Recently, guide dogs, service dogs, and hearing dogs for the physically disabled have become common in the city. Where do the assistance dogs that support people with disabilities go to the toilet when they are out? Have you ever had such a question?
Assistance dogs learn the timing and method of excretion during training, and users are constantly calculating their behavior while managing excretion, but it is a job to find a place where they can be relieved on the go. Therefore, in order to create a more comfortable environment for assistance dog users using hotels, the first "assistance dog toilet" in the hotel industry was installed in 2007.
The dedicated toilet installed on the outside of the South Tower lobby with a flat floor has a wooden deck made of durable wood urin, also known as ironwood, which is easy for wheelchairs to handle, and artificial grass made of a material that is gentle on dogs' feet. In addition to the mechanism in which the urine is drained as it is by placing a stainless steel pan under the artificial grass, the excretion steps installed higher than the floor to make it easier for wheelchair users to clean up, and the braille blocks placed on the floor on the flow line, are still receiving a great response even after 14 years of introduction.
In 1997, we were the first in Japan to accommodate customers with service dogs from overseas, and in 2002, we have been actively promoting the acceptance of assistance dogs even before the enactment of the "Assistance Dog Law for the Physically Disabled" for the purpose of independence and social participation of people with disabilities, such as having many customers using assistance dogs as partners, and in 1997, we were the first in Japan to stay with a service dog from Keio Plaza Hotel overseas. The experience accumulated through valuable contact with customers has led to the further enhancement of universal support not only in the installation of this assistance dog toilet.
*In the design and construction of the toilet for assistance dogs, we received guidance from the following organizations.
Japan Guide Dog Association
Japan Assistance Dog Information Center
Japan Service Dog Association