[Marty]

After a while, you stop noticing the stares, said Melvin "Shorty" Rossi, an actor and former stuntman who stands about 4 feet tall.

When his 70-pound American pit bull, Hercules, is around, the attention is impossible to ignore.

Hercules isn't a tough-guy accessory - he's a working dog. Since suffering a spinal injury during stunt work, Rossi has been unable to carry heavy loads. Hercules, a certified service dog fitted with a pair of saddlebags, does it for him.

But Rossi, 38, has had a difficult time with people who think service dogs are limited to guide dogs for the blind.

"Most people have a problem with Hercules, because he's a pit bull," Rossi said.

Other than guide dogs for the visually and hearing-impaired, there are dogs that pull wheelchairs and dogs that are trained to warn their owners of oncoming epileptic seizures.

The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination against service dogs on the basis of breed. And while most trainers favor Labradors and golden retrievers, a service dog can be of any breed - Rossi just likes pit bulls.

Rossi, who has worked on such films as "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Daddy Day Care," is also the co-owner of Short Entertainment, a company that books little people for film, television, private parties and special occasions. Rossi was at Robert J. Cabral Station in Stockton last week, shooting footage for a TV show about the lives of little people.

Living in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Stockton, Rossi rides the Altamont Commuter Express train several times a week. The ACE, he said, has been more hospitable to Hercules, one of four dogs he adopted from a pit bull rescue organization, than most public transportation agencies.

ACE spokesman Thomas Reeves said that after the initial shock of having a pit bull on board, ACE passengers and employees have become comfortable with Rossi and his canine posse.

In fact, riders required more calming than the stoic Hercules did, Reeves said.

"They'd never seen a pit bull assistance dog before," Reeves said. "(We had) to squash our interpretations of what a pit bull is."

Karyl Carmignani, a spokeswoman for Canine Companions for Independence, a nonprofit organization that provides service dog training and support, said public reaction to the breed can be a drawback to using pit bulls as service animals. An ideal service dog is one that allows its owner a seamless acceptance into society, she said.

"I'm not saying a pit bull can't be trained," she said. "But it's a lot easier than people who are inherently frightened of them can be trained to accept them."

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, any establishment that serves the public must allow people with disabilities to bring their service animals anywhere customers are normally allowed to go.

Robyn James, president of St. Louis-based Support Dogs Inc., said a service dog can be ejected or denied access only if it has become a legitimate nuisance. The standard is high, she said. The dog has to be "out of control." Some example behaviors include jumping on counters or barking incessantly, she said.

Otherwise well-meaning people can be unintentionally hurtful when they lavish attention on a friendly service dog, James cautioned.

"They ignore the person (with the disability) and go straight for the dog," she said.

But Rossi believes the compact and powerful breed is perfect for him.

Contact reporter Christian Burkin at (209) 239-6606 or cburkin@recordnet.com.

http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.d...NEWS/704250332